‘Most unprofessional thing’: Brisbane Broncos torched over sacking detail

The Broncos have been exposed by comments made by captain Adam Reynolds that have angered club greats after Kevin Walters’ brutal sacking.

Kevin Walters and Adam Reynolds.

The Brisbane Broncos have been torched over damning details that have emerged surrounding Kevin Walters’ brutal sacking.

The club announced the bombshell news on Thursday night that Walters and the club had parted ways by mutual agreement.

However, reports show Walters effectively had his contract torn up.

It was a shocking way for the club’s nightmare 2024 season after a year when they failed to make the finals — just 12 months after they went agonisingly close to beating Penrith in the 2023 NRL Grand Final.

The question was how long was Walters going to survive — and now the NRL has its answer.

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The Broncos had announced a full review into the club’s football department operations and it appears the findings were worse than the club could have predicted.

The 56-year-old was given a one-year extension in March, which should have taken him up to the end of the 2026 season.

However, details about the circumstances of Walters’ axing have now angered Broncos greats, including legendary prop Shane Webcke.

The players were reportedly only told of Walters’ exit on Thursday evening and captain Adam Reynolds has said publicly he wasn’t consulted about the decision to axe his mentor.

The halfback said on Thursday night the players had been “blind-sided” by the news.

“We were as surprised as anyone when the news broke – we still haven’t heard anything official,” Reynolds told the SMH.

Who’d want to be an NRL coach? Picture: Liam Kidston

“Kevvie is one of the main reasons I came to the club. I’m naturally disappointed. I have a lot of respect for him. I don’t know what else to say until the club communicates with us.

“We’re all trying to find out what’s going on. He’s a great coach and I love his coaching style. It’s been a tough year. Everything that could have gone wrong went wrong.

“We lost four players from last year’s grand final, and me, Reece [Walsh] and Payne [Haas] have been out for long periods this year. Myself and Ezra [Mam] only played a handful of games together this year.

“I’ve tried reaching out to Kev. I feel for him.”

Webcke responded to Walters’ sacking on radio and was scathing of the fact the club didn’t speak to the captain first.

“If that is true, that is the most unprofessional thing I reckon I’ve ever heard that club come up with,” he said on SEN Queensland.

“I sincerely hope that that is not the case.”

Walters said in his farewell message that his role was taking a “toll” on his family and had agreed to step away.

However, Webcke said that alone would not have been enough for Walters to give up the job.

“I promise you that, and nonetheless, there was something serious happening, right?” Webcke said.

“We understand that, but what I’m saying is, Kevvie’s known that the whole time he’s been a coach, so that’s not something that’s come up yesterday and it does smell like now they’re trying to sort of put nice, pretty wallpaper over it and call it something that it’s not.

“I see that as a terrible weakness as well. If you’re going to make a tough call, call it what it is. Don’t try and turn it into something that’s not.

Kevin Walters and Adam Reynolds.

“And that, I think, is a mistake as well, if that is in fact the case. If they’re going to come out today and say, ‘This was a mutual thing, we’re all happy’, well, you’re going to have a fairly difficult time convincing people of that.”

He said Walters should have at least been given the chance to lead the club in 2025 before the club pulled him out.

“I’ll predicate anything I’m going to say with any of us who are not on the inside of the team and playing in the Broncos, we are guessing as to whether Kevvie is the most wonderful coach that ever existed or is not,” he said.

“But if I look at it and stand back as a bloke who loves the Broncos... I think, well, when did it become our way to do things like this?

“If Kevvie has another year on his contract, let’s look at what he’s done. We went from being wooden spooners to a second away from winning the Grand Final. None of us are happy with the season just gone, particularly Kevvie.

“But I think the smartest thing to do would have been, and the right thing to do, would have been to let Kevvie coach next year. Because likely it’s this year that’s the wake-up call that we needed. We’ve got a good, strong club again, a wonderful roster full of great players.

“... And the other thing I always think, ‘Well, if you’re going to make a decision like this, make it because you’re going to someone better’. Well, who’s better? Who’s available right now who is going to be a better fit than Kevvie Walters? I don’t know.”

It comes as leading journalist Peter Badel reported for The Courier-Mail that Walters was the “fall guy”.

“The review of Kevvie wasn’t very favourable and there were some major concerns around some of the standards at the club — a real decline in certain areas.” Badel told SEN.

“And it’s hard to sack 15-20 players but its easier to sack one person and unfortunately Kevvie is the collateral damage here.

Shane Webcke and Trevor Gillmeister.

“He’s the fall guy.”

Badel named Blues coach Michael Maguire and former Rabbitohs coach Jason Demetriou as two contenders to replace Walters, although Webcke certainly wasn’t a fan of hiring the former for the role.

“Mate, he coaches New South Wales. Spare me that,” Webcke said.

“I’ve got nothing against him, but did we get rid of Kevvie Walters for that? I don’t think so.”

Webcke went on to add that he “doesn’t see any sense” in the decision, believing that all the Broncos have done is create a media firestorm — suggesting fans and the general public would not have batted an eyelid if Walters was given another chance to prove himself.

“Instead, what they’ve done is sack him now, like it feels like it’s out of the blue, and created a maelstrom of drama and stuff that’s going to get talked about for weeks now, and put the whole place under pressure again,” he said.

“... There’s nothing logical about this, it just doesn’t make any sense... Kevvie more than anyone understands that his job is about performance, right? And he knows he’s under pressure, but no one can reasonably look at his performance and the tenure of his coaching at the Broncos and say that this is justifiable, because it’s not.”

Ultimately, in giving his final thoughts on Walters’ exit and demise, Webcke said he would “support” the decision if he thought it was the right one. Instead, he described it as a “knee-jerk’ call.

“You’re right (that I am an ally of Walters like other ex-players) but we’re also realistic,” Webcke said.

“And this is the point I would make. If I thought this was the right thing, if I thought sacking Kevvie was the right way to go, I’d support it.

“One thing we all know is none of us are bigger than the joint and never have been. No players are, no ex-players are, no one is, right?

“The good of the club has got to come first. I just don’t think that this serves the best interest of the club. I don’t think anyone wins out of this and I think you could have achieved the same result in a very, very different way, and in a logical (way)... and that none of us would be having these conversations.

“That’s the right way to run a footy club. It’s the right way to run anything. More is going to come to light about how this has all happened or not and all the rest of it and then we’ll probably have a clearer view of it.

The Walters era in Brisbane is over. Picture: Nigel Hallett

“But on the surface, to me, it looks like a knee-jerk decision made by people who don’t understand what our club’s about and what our game’s about.”

Former Cronulla and Gold Coast star Mat Rogers suggested the fact Walters was also coaching his son, Billy, might’ve played a role in the decision.

Rogers reflected on playing under his own father, Steve, at the Sharks, and the problems that created before he left the club.

“Let’s not shy away from the fact he’s coaching his son in that high-pressure job as well,” Rogers said on SEN.

“There’s been a lot of pressure on both, and I can tell you, I left Cronulla because my dad was my boss and I wanted to get my dad back.

“They’ve been under a lot of pressure this year ... I’m sure he’d want to be coaching there but when the writing is on the wall, maybe he thinks it’s time (to leave) as much as they do.”

Former Penrith Panther Scott Sattler added that the cracks were starting to show earlier this month when Walters took offence from a question from Courier Mail NRL reporter Travis Meyn.

“You know what I think the circuit breaker might’ve been for Kevvie, just emotionally? It might’ve been the way he responded to a question by Travis Meyn post-game after a loss when it was a response to the effect of, ‘you seem to know what you’re talking about. Where do you think we’re going wrong?’” Sattler said.

Walters spoke about his exit in a statement on the Broncos website.

“Aside from playing here, it’s been the greatest thrill and honour of my life to have coached the Broncos,” Walters said.

“Coaching in the NRL takes a toll, not just on the coach but also their family – it’s time for me to step away and spend some quality time with my loved ones, who have supported me all the way over the last four years.

“I’m grateful to the club for providing me with the opportunity to be head coach and we have come a long way from the wooden spoon to last year’s run to the Grand Final.

“I wish the team and the club all the best.”

Adam Reynolds and Kevin Walters. NRL Imagery

The news stunned the NRL world.

Fox Sports’ Dane Lillingstone posted: “Absolutely ruthless and brutal decision by the Broncos on Kevin Walters but can’t argue with results. Premiership winning former club captain or not… 1 finals series in 4 years.”

Former radio and TV presenter Ian Maurice commented: “Wow … didn’t expect this. The Brisbane Broncos have sacked coach Kevin Walters effective immediately. The search for a replacement has already begun.”

2GB’s Mark Levy said: “Kevin Walters Sacked – WOW!!! Rugby League – who’d want to be a coach?”

Walters’ tenure at the Broncos has been difficult, having missed the finals three times in four seasons.

However, Walters took over the reigns of the club after the first wooden spoon season in the Broncos’ history.

Just three years later, the Broncos played in its first Grand Final since 2015 and were likely 20 minutes from hoisting the trophy — until Nathan Cleary got involved.

The heartbreaking 26-24 loss had many pundits tipping the Broncos to go one better in 2024.

At round 11, the Broncos were sitting pretty at fifth on the ladder with a 7-4 record.

But from there it was a shocking fall from grace as the side won just three of 13 matches to finish 12th on the NRL ladder.

Walters, at 99 games coached, is the third longest-serving coach in the club’s history, behind only Wayne Bennett (671 games) and Anthony Griffin (101 games).

He’s also only the second coach of the Broncos behind Bennett to take the club to the grand final.

Walters played 241 games for the Broncos, winning five of his six premierships in Brisbane.

The other premiership was for Canberra in 1989, the club where he started his career and played 50 games between 1987 and 1989.

— with foxsports.com.au

Originally published as ‘Most unprofessional thing’: Brisbane Broncos torched over sacking detail