‘Out of control egos’: Broncos players brace for reality check
New Brisbane Broncos coach Michael Maguire is being urged to pull several star players into line as a new era dawns at Red Hill.
Newly appointed Broncos coach Michael Maguire has been urged to tip the club “on its head” and harness some players’ “out of control” egos.
Maguire was unveiled as new Brisbane coach this week on a three-year deal after former mentor Kevin Walters parted ways with the club following a scathing review.
Known for his hard edge, Maguire is tipped to flip the script and pull players into line after a harrowing season in which the club finished in twelfth place.
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Broncos captain Adam Reynolds won a premiership with Maguire at South Sydney, with the former Blues coach also handing the halfback his first grade debut.
“I’ve got a good relationship with Madge obviously from over the years. He’s a winner,” Reynolds told Triple M.
“He comes in, he demands success straight away and he holds everyone accountable to their actions both on the field and off the field and the boys will get a bit of a shock.
“We need the hard process and we obviously didn’t have that good of a season last year and no matter who the coach was we need to bunker it down.”
The Daily Telegraph’s Dean Ritchie said some players could be in for a fright when pre-season starts in November.
“He (Reynolds) has won a premiership with Madge in ‘14. But Madge will tip that club on its head and it needs to be tipped on its head. The egos are out of control,” Ritchie said on Fox League’s NRL 360.
“I think that some of the egos are out of control, Gordie (Tallis), and you can either confirm or deny that. You won’t see that (Reece Walsh wearing sunglasses in the dressing room at night). I’m telling you.
“And you won’t see nail polish either. You won’t see nail polish on the fingers of the players. Madge will say ‘you are kidding’.”
Tallis, however, claimed that things at Brisbane weren’t as dire as some were suggesting.
But NRL 360 host Braith Anasta questioned whether Maguire would stand for some of the players’ antics.
“This is no disrespect to Reece (Walsh), but do you think he (Maguire) will allow this in the sheds at a night game walking through with his Versace sunglasses on?” he said.
“Do you think? I can’t visually see it or imagine it knowing Madge that he would allow that? I’m not saying that it’s the end of the world and Reece has got freedom of choice to do that.
“But I can’t see it happening. Can you see this happening with Madge as coach?”
Tallis said there had been a shift in culture, with the modern-day player a very different beast to stars from the past.
“I just think with all the young players now you can’t tell them what they wear. You see what they all wear on the Matty Johns couch,” he said.
“They’ve all got the labels on. They follow the NFL. They follow the basketballers. You watch them all walk in.”
Anasta then doubled down.
“There’s nothing wrong with that. I’m saying in the sheds though. Do you not look at that in the sheds?” Anasta said.
“I know it’s a bit judgmental but you look at Reece and think ‘he is confident this kid’. I like confidence and I like arrogance because you’ve got to have it to be with one of the best players in our game you need that arrogance and that confidence for belief and to think that you can dominate.”
Tallis said it was up to Walsh’s peers to talk to him rather than the coach, pointing to an example from his playing days involving Wendell Sailor.
“Like Cathy Freeman in the suit (at the 2000 Sydney Olympics). Wendell Sailor wanted to wear silver boots,” Tallis said.
“Wendell Sailor wanted to wear silver boots in 2000 and we talked him out of it. It’s got to come from the players.”
Ritchie disagreed that it’s purely down to the players, however, saying any such dialogue must be delivered by Maguire.
“The coach sets the culture. And this is not a crack at Kevin. I love Kevin,” he said.
“But I just think things will change and Reece Walsh won’t dream of doing that if that dressing room is different.”
Originally published as ‘Out of control egos’: Broncos players brace for reality check
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