NRL Market Watch: Michael Maguire wants to keep Blake Mozer, Kobe Hetherington wants to be a Bronco for life
Despite revelations hooker Blake Mozer is sidelined indefinitely and requiring shoulder surgery, coach Michael Maguire has made a vow to fight to keep the off-contract young gun at Red Hill.
NRL
Don't miss out on the headlines from NRL. Followed categories will be added to My News.
Broncos coach Michael Maguire has vowed to fight to keep Blake Mozer at Brisbane amid revelations the off-contract hooking ace eventually requires surgery on a shoulder injury.
Maguire says Mozer will miss the start of the premiership and is sidelined indefinitely as Broncos medicos attempt to rehabilitate a shoulder setback that saw him miss Brisbane’s NRL Pre-Season Challenge trials.
Mozer’s setback has opened the door for hooking rival Cory Paix, who has rocketed into the frame for the No.9 jumper following two outstanding trials against the Titans and Bulldogs.
Compounding Mozer’s injury saga, the highly-rated hooker is a free agent and Brisbane’s logjam of dummy-half talent has piqued the interest of NRL rivals in the former Queensland under-20s sensation.
Mozer has been linked to the Titans given he graduated from prestigious Gold Coast league school Keebra Park.
Paix and Billy Walters are set to share hooking roles for the season opener against the Roosters on Thursday week, leaving Mozer in limbo as he attempts to recover as quickly as possible.
Maguire said Mozer is likely facing surgery at some stage, but the Broncos coach is hopeful the club can nurse the 20-year-old through the season.
“These sorts of injuries, at some stage they turn into surgery,” Maguire said.
“But players can play with these (shoulder injuries) for periods of time.
“It’s really dependent on the person and the severity of what he has got.
“Our physio, doctors and the surgeon are pretty confident he will be back soon.
“Blake is in a bit of rehab, he is still in training. We are just going to strengthen the area of his shoulder.
“Timelines wise, he probably won’t be right for round 1, but he is pretty diligent about how he is going about his rehab which is impressive and that will be a telling factor of how quick he can come back.”
The 2025 season was touted as a breakout year for Mozer.
Rated one of Queensland’s best hooking talents since Cameron Smith, Mozer made his NRL debut in 2023 and showed promise with a further eight games last year to suggest he would turn up the heat on Walters for the No.9 jumper in 2025.
But Mozer’s pre-season setback has sent him back to square one at a time when the competition for Broncos hooking spots has never been as fierce.
Maguire is adamant Mozer’s 2025 campaign will not be wiped out completely.
“There’s been plenty of players over my time who have had a similar injury,” he said.
“I can’t tell you how long it could be.
“That’s the thing with these ones, you strengthen the shoulder up and you have good conversations with your physios.
“’Moey’ could be back short term or even a bit longer, but we won’t be rushing him because he will play a major part in what we do.”
Mozer’s management has begun talks with rival clubs as they test the open market. But Maguire insists Mozer has a long-term future at Red Hill and wants to keep the crafty rake in Broncos colours.
Aiding Mozer’s contract hopes, rival rake Tyson Smoothy will leave Brisbane at season’s end after inking a three-year deal with English club Wakefield.
“I’d love to keep him,” Maguire said.
“Blake is great to coach.
“He is diligent about wanting to learn the game, that’s something there that your hookers have to have.
“They are the guys that are driving a lot of what goes on and they are the guys that everyone is running at.
“On both sides of the ball, you have to be high end because you are steering the ship, you are touching the ball first and you have to put your body on the line.
“Moey has been doing that throughout the pre-season, he will be back this year and we’ll get his shoulder to where it has to be.”
KOBE’S PLEA TO MADGE: SIGN ME UP LONG-TERM
Kobe Hetherington has urged Michael Maguire to keep him at Red Hill long term after the new coach blocked the Brisbane forward from defecting to the Wests Tigers in 2025.
Hetherington is unsigned at the Broncos beyond 2025 and the uncertainty around his Broncos future generated interest from rival outfits, including Benji Marshall at Concord.
The Tigers were in deep negotiations with Hetherington about a move south of the border to Sydney before Maguire intervened.
Under former coach Kevin Walters, Hetherington had been given permission to seek a deal elsewhere with the club at the time prepared to release him from the final year of his deal.
But Maguire not only wanted Hetherington at Brisbane, the coach had designs to start the hard nosed forward at lock in 2025 and shift Pat Carrigan into prop.
Hetherington proved Maguire’s instincts correct, producing a hit man like performance in defence against Canterbury in Saturday’s trial at Kayo Stadium.
Speaking for the first time since cementing the No.13 jumper after Maguire rejected the Tigers move, Hetherington made a plea for the coach to re-sign him at Red Hill.
“It’s just wearing the Broncos logo, I got signed here straight out of school and it’s where I want to be. They signed me as a kid. I’d like to be here long term,” Hetherington said.
“Anytime you get to put the Broncos logo on it’s special so you know every time I get to put the logo on I like to go a hundred per cent.”
The hard working forward said Maguire’s arrival at the Broncos has helped him take his game to another level after initially being unwanted by the club last year.
“Everyone knows what Madge is like – he’s tough, and hard, and that’s how I like to play my footy,” Hetherington said.
Hetherington’s move into lock had raised questions about Carrigan’s role in the forward pack given the Origin star’s ball playing ability as the link man with his halves through the middle.
But Carrigan impressed up front against the Bulldogs in a 30-minute stint at prop, charging for 122 metres, alongside powerhouse Payne Haas.
“He’s (Carrigan) buying into it and there’s not much difference between lock and front row, we work well together and I can build off him, and I’d like to think he can build off me too,” Hetherington said.
Haas (ankle), Reece Walsh (knee) and Kotoni Staggs (quad) have all been cleared of any serious injury and will be free to take on the Sydney Roosters in a round 1 blockbuster at Allianz Stadium on March 6.
Staggs sent the biggest scare through Broncos camp after only lasting 13 minutes in Saturday’s trial as he hobbled off the field.
While Staggs has been given the green light for round 1, winger Jesse Arthars is confident Brisbane’s depth in the outside back can cover for any injury loss.
“I think that’s probably been one of the better things about the pre-season – we’ve got the depth there, and there’s a lot of competition for spots,” Arthars said.
“Everyone’s just working hard every day just pushing each other to be better, and it’s just rubbing off on every player.”
Originally published as NRL Market Watch: Michael Maguire wants to keep Blake Mozer, Kobe Hetherington wants to be a Bronco for life
Devastating fallout from ‘nasty’ NRL feud
More details have emerged about the ugly fallout from the feud between Andrew Johns and Erin Molan, which turned “very nasty”.
Ivan’s frosty response to Nathan question
Penrith Panthers coach Ivan Cleary did not beat around the bush after the reigning premiers slumped to their fifth straight loss.