Has Michael Maguire’s tough guy reputation really made one ounce of difference to the on-field attitude/mental toughness of the Broncos players this season?
It’s a fair enough question heading into Thursday night’s round eight blockbuster against the ladder leading Bulldogs given we are now a third of the way through the season.
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I reckon on what we’ve seen so far, there is no proof that the Broncos are a tougher team in 2025 than they were last year under Kevin Walters.
But they will get no better chance to prove if they have what it takes to be a serious contender this year taking on a no-nonsense Bulldogs side on Thursday who fight for every single tackle in every single game like their lives depend on it.
As far as results go for the Broncos this year, it’s worth pointing out that they are exactly where they were this time last year under Walters, with four wins from their first seven games.
That puts them 5th on the ladder on points differential as opposed to sixth last year.
It’s hardly panic stations by any stretch.
Yet it’s been in the games where the Broncos have been put under the pump where they have been exposed the most.
Go back to round two and they were ambushed by Ricky’s Raiders who went out looking for a knock ’em down, drag ’em out fight, and the Broncos couldn’t go punch for punch with them.
Then in the last two weeks cracks have appeared when the blowtorch was applied by the Roosters and the Warriors.
This is why the next two weeks could be particularly crucial because it now goes up a level taking on the unbeaten Dogs followed by the rejuvenated Panthers in Magic Round.
And you get the feeling the heat is rising on everyone in Brisbane in the wake of Maguire’s shock decision to switch Ben Hunt from five-eighth to hooker during last week’s loss to the Warriors.
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Maguire searching for anwsers after loss | 05:27
While there is no ignoring Hunt was having a shocker, Maguire has attempted to sell it as a tactical move.
“I felt that subtle little change actually put us back into a position to take the game,” he said post-match.
“It was nice to see how the boys adapted to that.”
Although some have also viewed the decision as the first major sign of frustration we’ve seen from Madge all season.
The frustration from Hunt towards some teammates was also particularly concerning.
How the veteran playmaker responds against the Bulldogs could tell us a lot about how this season unfolds in the weeks/months ahead knowing Ezra Mam’s return is just around the corner, and so is Origin.
Mam is due back in round 10 after Magic Round, and judging by Maguire’s move last week, it looks certain Hunt will end up at hooker.
But will Hunt be happy with that given he has always seen himself as a specialist half in club footy, even though he doesn’t mind sharing the dummy half duties with Harry Grant for Queensland?
It will be interesting to see if Maguire moves Hunt to hooker again at any stage against the Bulldogs.
While it is way too early to say if the coaching change will ultimately be judged a success or a failure, as was mentioned to me this week, you can only imagine where the fingers would be pointed after back-to-back losses if it was Walters still sitting up in the coaching box.
“Don’t know what more can they prove!” | 02:02
REASON WHY DOGS AREN’T YET GENUINE CONTENDERS
Here’s the reason why some are holding off declaring Cameron Ciraldo’s Bulldogs genuine premiership contenders at this point.
Despite conceded only 58 points in six games, the theory doing the rounds is that the Dogs have only beat one serious top four contender so far _ and that was a 20-6 win over the Sharks back in round four.
The other wins were against the Dragons, Titans, Eels, Knights and Rabbitohs, who will all struggle to finish in the top eight.
Standing up against the Broncos who handed them a loss in the pre-season would absolutely put to bed any questions.
The Dogs haven’t conceded a single point in their last two games, beating the Knights 20-0 and the Rabbitohs 32-0.
There will also be a huge focus on how the Bulldogs underrated front-row of Max King and Josh Curran handle their battle with the Broncos’ star heavyweights Payne Haas and Pat Carrigan.
There is a massive push for King to be rewarded with a NSW jumper this year.
Ciraldo said of King this week: “If he keeps going like that, he is going to be in those Origin conversations, or he certainly deserves to be”.
King won’t get a better chance to push his credentials than going up against Hass and Carrigan.
Potential shock three-way player swap | 02:35
LUAI UNDER MICROSCOPE AS MUCH AS GALVIN
There is as much scrutiny on Jarome Luai’s on-field leadership this round as there is Lachlan Galvin’s top grade return against the Sharks at Leichhardt Oval on Sunday.
After watching the Tigers lose their heads in the Easter Monday loss to Parramatta, this can be a defining moment in Luai’s leadership development.
What Luai needs to show now is that he has welcomed Galvin back into the team and they are prepared to move forward together as they chase the club’s first finals appearance since 2011.
I absolutely respect Luai’s defence of Benji Marshall last week and in no way did I see the “Team First” social media post as a form of bullying, but rather a show of support at the disrespect shown towards hid coach.
But I also pointed out on NRL 360 this week how this also brings back memories of the situation at Manly some years back when there was drama involving Daly Cherry-Evans and other senior players when DCE was seen to be putting himself ahead of the team.
Make no mistake, the body language on Sunday will tell the real story of how damaged Galvin’s relationship is with other players, and if it is salvageable.
You also hope the Leichhardt faithful have enough maturity to put the ‘team first’ and refrain from any backlash against a 19-year-old who looks to have become the collateral damage in a bitter feud between Benji and Galvin’s agent Isaac Moses.
As Shane Richardson told The Daily Telegraph in recent days: “I deal with Isaac because Benji and Isaac have no relationship whatsoever – in fact, it’s antagonistic.”
Yet as Gorden Tallis said on NRL 360 this week, it is not Galvin’s management that was forced last weekend to leave the field after playing NSW Cup chaperoned by a security guard.
You can only shake your head how it has come to this for a young bloke who by all reports lives and breathes for his footy, at a club equally desperate to put their losing past behind them.
Dragons hand Manly 3rd straight loss | 03:49
DRAGONS’ MOTIVATION AHEAD OF ANZAC BLOCKBUSTER
If Shane Flanagan is looking for motivation ahead of the huge Anzac Day clash against the Roosters, the Dragons coach needs look no further than last year’s embarrassing scoreline in the corresponding game _ 60-18.
If that doesn’t get a team fired up on this special day, nothing will.
The Dragons might also get a shot of adrenalin out of the fact that despite sitting seventh on the ladder and the Roosters 16th, it’s the Roosters who still go into this game as the bookies’ favourites.
