Broncos coach Kevin Walters has spoken candidly about the form of his superstar fullback Reece Walsh.
Walsh was targeted by NSW Blues players throughout the State of Origin series and found himself in the wars on Wednesday night as his Queensland team surrendered to the Blues.
Speaking on Nova’s Ash, Luttsy & Susie O’Neill show, Walters said Walsh was feeling the strain of intense pressure.
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“Susie, you know about this as much as anyone with the pressure that he’s under … you know for him to just to be himself and be his best, he’s just got to relax and just get that pressure out of his head, the pressure of being the superstar,” Walters said.
“And everyone, you know, everyone targets him, and that’s going to be a thing for the rest of his career.
“So we’ve got to work out ways, and Reece has got to work out ways of how we can protect him.
“The NRL certainly has to look at it as well.
“But Reece is a tough kid and his best work is still in front of him. At the moment it just not quite working for him, but I’m sure that it’s not far away where he just explodes again and brings the team and club alive again.”
The Broncos will be without Selwyn Cobbo when they face Newcastle on Saturday, however, Pat Carrigan is a confirmed starter despite the Maroons forward leaving Suncorp Stadium in a moonboot to nurse a swollen ankle.
Walters also said there was no chance Walsh would miss this weekend’s game.
“I’ve held his head under the ice bath for the last two hours trying to get him good, he’ll be right. They breed them tough here.”
Walters scoffed at the prospect of the Broncos missing the NRL finals, while also confirming the return of Adam Reynolds from injury.
The captain has finally received the green light from medical staff after an 11-week absence to repair a ruptured bicep.
Walsh was in good spirits at Friday’s captain’s run and victorious NSW Blues prop Payne Haas will complete the arsenal as the Broncos aim to end a six-game losing streak.
“It’d be wrong to dump it all on Adam, but he’s the type of player that does bring a lot of experience and confidence … it’s certainly a big in for us,” Walters told reporters on Friday.
“I’ve seen him up in the coaches’ box for the last nine, 10 weeks.
“Hearing him talk about the game … I know if he was on the field he could be helping them, which he’ll do tomorrow night.”
Last year’s beaten grand finalists are 13th with seven wins, one behind the Knights and two outside the top eight with eight regular-season games to play.
Walters scoffed when asked if he thought his men could right the ship and play finals.
“I’m not going to answer that … that’s a joke mate, of course we are,” he said.
“I have utmost faith and belief in these guys. Rugby league’s a funny game.
“It tests your character … because we’re so strong with our character, that’s why I believe we’ll get through the other side.
“Not so much win, we need to play well this week. If we get our team up and about playing the footy they can, look out.”
Walters said Tristan Sailor and Josh Rogers would drop out of the team, while one of Blake Mozer and Tyson Smoothy will also be relegated.
The coach said Carrigan was “a little bit wounded” but could start after playing 70 minutes on Wednesday.
“He’ll go into battle and we’ll get as much as we can out of him … to help us get back,” Walters said.
“And (Walsh) he’s fine; he’s got the shirt off at training today. That’s always a good indicator that he’s ready to go.
“Most of us have taken a bit of a battering in the last few weeks but I keep saying: they’ve been training well, their attitude has been amazing and that’ll turn.
“If we keep working hard and supporting each other, good things are going to happen.”
– With AAP