Broncos coach Michael Maguire has shed a light on how Reece Walsh treats fans while away from the spotlight, with teammate Ben Hunt revealing he copped some ugly sledging from Raiders fans all throughout Sunday’s game. Walsh copped $4800 worth of fines after the Broncos’ stunning win over Canberra, with $1800 of that coming for flipping the bird at fans.
Walsh was spotted raising his middle finger at Raiders fans as he walked off the field after being sin-binned. Claims have since emerged that Walsh was reacting to unsavoury comments made about his family, but Raiders CEO Don Furner has since rejected those suggestions.
The Broncos have defended Reece Walsh after his incident with Canberra fans. Image: Fox League/AAP
Speaking on Monday night, Maguire said the team is getting around Walsh amid the ugly situation, while opening up on how the young fullback treats fans when the cameras aren’t rolling. “He does cop a lot,” Maguire told The Courier Mail.
“Until you see it and see what he goes through, he goes through quite a bit and I do feel for him. But that’s the maturity part of Reece. He enjoys family life and he’s building a family environment and at the Broncos we want to make sure we support him and we’re a part of his journey.
“A lot of people don’t see the great things he does in the background. Whenever the fans come to training, he finds time for them. He is the last guy on the bus because he is signing autographs with the fans. That (abuse) is part of the game. Reece unfortunately has to work his way through that which is unfair on him, but I have seen a lot of growth and maturity in Reece this year.”
Ben Hunt opens up on sledging Reece Walsh copped
Maguire was full of praise for the way Walsh responded to being binned. The Raiders surged to a 28-12 lead when Walsh was off the field, but the fullback sparked a stunning Broncos comeback when he returned.
Veteran teammate Hunt has since revealed Walsh was copping it from fans for the whole game – not just after the sin-binning. “They were going at ‘Walshy’ the whole game, right from the kick-off,” Hunt told 4BC radio. “They were chirping at him and trying to get under his skin and throwing him off his game.
“It was probably a bit silly from Reece (to head-butt Hudson Young), but Hudson gets up in his face and is talking trash to him and you feel like you have to do something. They were booing him the whole game, the players, the crowd were at him and at him.
“Reece is still young and he is learning how to make good decisions. I would say he regrets his decision doing that, but he is a young fella with everyone chirping at him and he just reacted.”
Hudson Young (L) and Reece Walsh (R) were both sin-binned. Image: Getty/Channel 9
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Queensland Origin coach Billy Slater had earlier told Channel 9: “I know Reece personally and I know how much he cops. To be fair, when you pay your $20 ticket to come into a footy game, it doesn’t give you the right to abuse people.
“He wears his heart on his sleeve and it is an emotional game, he loves the game. He probably shouldn’t have done what he did but that’s the way it goes. I don’t think there was anything too much in the incidents.”
According to Raiders CEO Furner, there was no mention of Walsh’s family when he was walking up the tunnel. “I was standing next to the tunnel,” Furner said. “You couldn’t hear the person next to you let alone someone in the stands given it was that loud. I couldn’t care less but it looks to me like the Broncos’ PR department has gone into overdrive.”