NRL 2021: Ben Ikin reveals how he plans to help fix Brisbane Broncos

New Broncos head of football Ben Ikin explains how he will help Kevin Walters and why the club must heal wounds with his father-in-law, Wayne Bennett.

Ben Ikin has spoken about his new job at the Broncos

Brisbane’s new head-of-football Ben Ikin believes the Broncos can be a finals force next season and has pledged to ease the “stress” on Kevin Walters as the embattled coach fights to save his job at Red Hill.

In his first interview as Brisbane’s football-operations boss, Ikin spoke to The Sunday Mail about his blueprint to instil clarity and confidence and drive the program to break the longest title drought in the Broncos’ history.

Brisbane haven’t won a premiership since 2006. Six years earlier, Walters and Ikin struck a potent alliance as the Broncos’ scrumbase combination that delivered the club’s fifth title in the 2000 grand final.

Now Walters and Ikin are back in business at Brisbane’s nerve centre, this time in an off-field union as coach and football chief at a Broncos club that is battered, bruised and on its knees as it hurtles toward the prospect of consecutive wooden spoons.

Ben Ikin will team up with former teammate Kevin Walters at the Broncos again.

Many people think Ikin is mad for taking on the job. This is the same articulate, intelligent, deep-thinking executive snubbed by the Broncos for the CEO’s role in favour of Dave Donaghy just four months ago.

But Ikin is determined to be better, not bitter, and has vowed to bring stability and alignment to Brisbane’s football program to ensure Walters parlays his premiership success as a player into coaching.

“I’ve got the skill-set for this role ... I’m not nervous,” Ikin said.

THE JOB

Respected NRL authority Phil ‘Gus’ Gould claims the Broncos are broken. Ikin wants to implement a plan to have the football department pulling in the same direction.

“Gus is right, there is something not working at the Broncos,” said the 44-year-old, who played 150 first-grade games between 1995-2004, including 55 for Brisbane.

“I will run the day-to-day operations of the football department.

“I will work with the head coach and the other department leads to make sure the football program is humming. Everything that relates to football, I’m expected to oversee and manage.

“It’s not a case of ... do this or else. I will look at what sits inside the program, who runs what, and give our staff what they need to be great at what they do.

“It’s leading and managing the football department to a position where everyone is very clear on their role at the Broncos.

“The clearer they are, and the more support they’ve got, the better they will be at their jobs, which will ultimately have a positive impact on the playing group.”

Ben Ikin played 55 games for the Broncos.

THE SNUB

Ikin wanted to be Brisbane’s chief executive. In February, he lost out to rival Donaghy. Now Donaghy has headhunted Ikin.

It could be viewed as a recipe for disaster, but Ikin is relishing working with Donaghy after a chance meeting with the former Storm boss.

“I took this job because I felt I was ready and willing to do the CEO’s job last year,” Ikin said.

“I worked hard to get my pitch right, which required a deep analysis of the club so I could identify where and how I could make a difference.

“To miss out, the competitor in me was really dirty.

“Because I had played for the Broncos and I have a passion for the club, being part of the solution really appealed to me.

“After the grand final last year, Dave Donaghy and myself both had to spend time in COVID quarantine and we ended up at the same hotel in northern NSW.

“Dave beat me to the job and I really wanted to dislike him, but the more I got to know him, the more I realised the Broncos had landed themselves a very good CEO.

“Dave and I are very much aligned with how we see the game and the important components that form a successful NRL football department.”

Ben Ikin has vowed to bring stability and alignment to Brisbane’s football program.

THE ROSTER

It was almost 12 months ago that Ikin delivered one of his most enduring lines during his decade-long stint as host of Fox Sports’ NRL 360 program.

With the Broncos struggling under former coach Anthony Seibold, the normally mild-mannered Ikin unleashed an uncharacteristic attack, slamming Brisbane’s roster management as “disgusting”.

After talking the talk, now he gets the chance to walk the walk by fixing the very Broncos roster he roasted.

“I thought the roster was bent out of shape, it lacked balance,” Ikin said.

“I felt the roster didn’t have enough game awareness to get the best out of the young guys who were super talented but just learning how to play.

“There will be a component of my role that is involved with roster management, absolutely. That’s one of the most important parts of the footy department, so I will have input in that, as will many other people.

“We have to build a balance of capability in our roster ... strike, endurance, youth, leadership, game awareness, enforcers, grinders. Positional depth is important, but it’s not everything.

“The spine (fullback, five-eighth, halfback and hooker) is hugely important. They are the brains of a football side. We all know how big an impact a best-in-code playmaker can have on the result week to week.

“And look at the impact fullbacks are having on the game at the moment. It’s vitally important we get our spine right.”

Ben Ikin and the Broncos have to iron out the club’s roster. Picture: NRL Photos

THE COACH

Walters is off-contract next season and has been buffeted by reports he is losing the dressing room with poor communication. Ikin is adamant Walters can succeed with the right front-office support.

“I haven’t seen a whole lot of Kevvie the coach, but I’ve had him as a captain and I know what his leadership qualities are,” he said.

“Kevvie takes on so much because he cares. He’s carried a huge physical and emotional burden into his first year at the Broncos and it can wear you down. I am keen to work with Kevvie. This is the bloke who led me to my first and only premiership.

“I don’t think it’s fair to judge ‘Kevvie’ based on what he has had to deal with this season. He inherited a wooden spoon team and has had multiple distractions along the way. I can assure you his football knowledge runs deep and given the right support, he can be a quality coach.

“If communication is an issue in the football department, then it will be part of my job to address it.

“I’m not Kevvie’s boss. But if I can come in and get the environment around him performing at a high level, then Kevvie will get some clear air to focus on what he is great at, which is leading, coaching and building a winning team.”

WAYNE BENNETT

Ikin is Bennett’s son-in-law, having married the super coach’s daughter Elizabeth. Bennett was sensationally sacked by the Broncos in 2018 and on Thursday, after months of speculation, he finally ruled out any hope of a Red Hill return.

Ikin hopes the Broncos and Bennett can one day smoke the peace-pipe.

“He was an integral part in making the Broncos the great club that it is,” he said.

“There is no doubt that when the time is right, the club and Wayne will find a way to reconnect because he is the foundation coach.

“I don’t know what that looks like, that’s not my role, but he has been such a huge part of this club’s history, I believe a relationship will exist in some form into the future.”

THE REVIVAL

Ikin is confident a new halves pairing of Adam Reynolds and Kotoni Staggs next season can trigger a Broncos fightback. He says finals football is possible.

“Is it too much to ask for Brisbane to be a finals contender next year? No it’s not,” he said.

“Every team loses their aura when you are losing often, but as quick as you lose it, you can get it back. If you get the right things right, you can be back playing finals and contending very quickly.

Adam Reynolds is a key signing for the Broncos. Picture: Bradley Kanaris/Getty Images

“In a high-performance environment, the one thing you need is certainty. If people feel clear about their roles and certain about what they are expected to be doing, they are much more likely to give you their best. But if that isn’t happening, you won’t get close to 100 per cent.

“From the outside it would appear that the theme of the Broncos over the last 18 months has been one of churn and confusion.

“When I walked into my first training session at the Broncos way back in 1999, everyone was focused and competing, but at the same time having so much fun.

“Winning becomes contagious, it gets in the walls, and the things you need to do to win become easier because things are more enjoyable.

“It will be magnificent to have the Broncos logo back on my chest. It’s a great club, it’s struggling at the moment, but I’m looking forward to being part of a group of people who work really hard to get the Broncos back where they belong.

“I have no doubt that success and fun is what Kevvie is trying to bring back to the Broncos ... I’ll do everything I can to help him achieve that.”

Originally published as NRL 2021: Ben Ikin reveals how he plans to help fix Brisbane Broncos