‘Ticking time bomb’ threatening Brisbane Broncos charge

The Broncos’ predicament with Reece Walsh has been brutally exposed with coach Michael Maguire told exactly what he needs to do.

Unlike the rest of the mulleted Zoomers with their devil-may-care attitudes, the only crime Reece Walsh is guilty of is caring *too* much.

But while it’s commendable to see him play with the heart of a humpback whale, it’s pointless when it’s guided by a lizard brain that fluctuates his footy like Bitcoin.

And if coach Michael Maguire doesn’t flatten the fullback’s rowdy form line in the next few weeks, Brisbane’s finals charge could end up in row Z like one of his cutout passes.

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Walsh’s Friday night against Parramatta was so erratic that even the haters were willing to forgive his YouTube channel if he could last just one set of footy without playing like a snapper fish on a boat deck.

With three tackle busts, a line break and a try assist juxtaposed with a forward pass, an overcooked 40/20 attempt and an unattended bomb leading to a Parramatta try, Walsh again exhibited as much sumptuous brilliance as he did worms.

Reece Lightning. Photo by Chris Hyde/Getty Images.

Add a match winning try that he botched by being offside plus the Broncos gut-wrenching defeat, and it was another night for the 23-year-old marred by his over-stimulated and over-played hand.

Maguire was supportive in the post-match press conference, urging his precocious dynamo to play “the longer game” which by Walsh’s standards will mean thinking for longer than 0.5 seconds.

But with six weeks until finals and a top four chance still beckoning, the Broncos coach is faced with a chastening predicament:

Does he prepare for a burst artery by licensing Walsh to play his natural game?

Or somehow curb his capricious ways with dutiful advice, a reduced role and/or some kinda zoo tranquiliser?

Everyone knows the Queensland talisman is one of those disgracefully blessed freaks who can turn a game with one blink of his gorgeously long eyelashes.

But when God gifted him with every conceivable rugby league talent available, he only did it on the proviso he utilised every single one at the same time.

This means Walsh isn’t a match-winner with the poise of Nathan Cleary, the desire of Mitch Moses or the muscular Christian leadership of Stephen Crichton.

Nope, he’s just a kid in a high chair tipping bowls of baked beans on his head until one lands in his mouth.

As a volume-based problem-solver who will try everything and anything until something works, this means sometimes Walsh either spectacularly hits the mark or messily flounders around blinded by tomato paste.

But while this box office style has always been his accepted mode, recently it’s become too imbalanced towards producing too much kernel and not enough popcorn.

Just Reece Walsh casually talking to the Steeden. Photo by Chris Hyde/Getty Images)

How do you distill the best from such an ebullient sheepdog in the short term?

Skipper Adam Reynolds admitted on Friday that “it is my responsibility to calm him down at times when he gets a bit sideways”, much in the way Pat Carrigan once famously commanded to “slow your brain” when he sprayed the ref like a bottle of uncorked champers.

But ultimately the buck stops with Maguire.

Tinkering with a hair-trigger game like Walsh’s is a fragile exercise that risks lobotomising his mojo or detonating a ticking time bomb.

Considering the fullback’s potent attacking prowess is already fighting for attention within an envious offensive quartet including Reynolds, Ezra Mam and Ben Hunt, it’s a delicate task that will require more than boot camps and screaming.

- Dane Eldridge is a warped cynic yearning for the glory days of rugby league, a time when the sponges were magic and the Mondays were mad. He’s never strapped on a boot in his life, and as such, should be taken with a grain of salt.

Originally published as ‘Ticking time bomb’ threatening Brisbane Broncos charge