NRL 2024: Re-signed Brisbane Broncos star Corey Oates reveals emotional toll of rollercoaster season

Corey Oates has endured plenty of painful knocks over a 201-game NRL career, but it was something else that brought the Brisbane Broncos fan favourite to tears recently.

Broncos veteran Corey Oates insists he isn’t a spent force in the NRL and won’t be pushed into retirement next year after outlining plans to win back his Brisbane jersey.

Oates has inked a one-year contract extension that will see him enter a 12th NRL campaign with the Broncos in 2024.

The 201-game statesman endured the toughest season of his career in 2023, suffering multiple injuries and missing out on selection for Brisbane’s grand final loss to Penrith.

The off-contract Oates was overlooked by coach Kevin Walters for rising flyer Jesse Arthars at the business end of the season, raising speculation his NRL career could be in jeopardy.

However he signed a one-year extension last week, keeping him at the Broncos until at least the end of the 2024 season.

At 29, Oates is still relatively young in NRL terms and said he had no plans to retire at the end of next season, insisting it was a decision he was determined to make himself.

Corey Oates had a tough 2023 season. Picture: Liam Kidston

“I don’t want it to be my last year,” he said alongside golf superstar Cameron Smith at a promotion for this week’s Australian PGA Championship in Brisbane.

“You work so hard for so many years, I don’t want my decision to be anyone else’s. I want it to be my own.

“I don’t want it to be (next year) year. That means I feel like I’ve got another couple in me still.

“We’ll see how the year goes. Hopefully it’s a lot better than last year and more positive and the club still has belief in me.”

Oates produced arguably the finest campaign of his NRL career in 2022, scoring 20 tries in 22 games for the Broncos and earning a recall to the Queensland State of Origin team.

However a broken jaw in round 2 last season sidelined him before multiple knee problems restricted him to just nine games – and no tries for the first time in his NRL career, which started in 2013.

With Arthars on the rise, and young gun Deine Mariner coming into the fold, Oates is facing stiff competition to crack Brisbane’s top 17 next year.

But the Broncos fan favourite, who’s scored 118 tries, is confident the NRL hasn’t seen the last of him.

“There’s always competition when there’s young kids coming through every year,” Oates said.

“The older you get, the harder it is to keep your spot and prove your worth. You’ve always got to step it up and prove you’ve still got what it takes. That’s what I’m trying to prove to myself.

Corey Oates and Tegan Miles. Picture: David Clark

Corey Oates at Broncos training. Picture: Adam Head

“The injuries didn’t affect me. Obviously I couldn’t play while I had them, but when I came back I felt really good and had everything I had at the start of the year.

“I felt really good leading into the finals and wanted to keep pushing that at training. There’ll be nothing different this year.

“I’ll be trying to prove to myself that I’ve still got it and hopefully the coaches have the belief in me.”

The emotional toll of a draining year was there for everyone to see when Oates broke down on stage at Brisbane’s presentation night upon receiving a 200-game milestone award.

He was reduced to tears speaking about wife Tegan and their children Montana and Huxton.

Oates is confident he can bounce back in 2024. Picture NRL photos

“The last four-five years of my career have been a massive roller coaster,” he said.

“It’s been tough. Five years ago, so many people said I was done.

“I was lucky I had my daughter at the time, coming home to her those few years when it was going downhill and really tough.

“When you go through so many things you don’t realise you’ve lost belief in yourself. I had a lot of people close to me that helped me through those times.

“I went up there so confident about not getting emotional, then as soon as I brought up my kids and wife I broke down.

“That shows how much it meant to me and how much they influence my decisions with everything I do for the rest of my career.”

The Broncos will begin reporting for pre-season training later this week.

Originally published as NRL 2024: Re-signed Brisbane Broncos star Corey Oates reveals emotional toll of rollercoaster season