Broncos fullback Reece Walsh is on track to become the best player in the NRL in the coming years, but one of his teammates has gone even further by declaring he\u2019s on track to \u201cbe the best player ever\u201d after one of the great grand final performances.<\/p>\n
Walsh is still only 23 but he can call himself a premiership winner after he ended Brisbane\u2019s 19-year drought with one of the finest individual displays ever seen on the biggest stage to win the Clive Churchill Medal.<\/p>\n
The livewire fullback scored a stunning solo try where he beat five defenders, he set up three tries and saved another three including what would have been the match winner to Ryan Papenhuyzen in the final minute.<\/p>\n
Nathan Cleary is widely regarded as the best player in the world right now, but Walsh is coming to get him after breaking Storm hearts on Sunday night. <\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s definitely helping us erase the memory of Nathan Cleary in 2023,\u201d injured Broncos hooker Billy Walters told the NewsWire.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s on track to be the best player ever.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s only scratching the surface. He\u2019s so good and he\u2019s nothing what the media portrays him as, not that that\u2019s your fault or anyone\u2019s.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s so tough, he\u2019s so resilient, he works so hard on his game and he\u2019s such a talent. He\u2019s honestly just scratching the surface.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s why I wanted to stay at the club because I think he\u2019s carrying us to another premiership.\u201d<\/p>\n
Walsh\u2019s finals form rivals anything we\u2019ve ever seen before, with the superstar joking that his gulp of toilet water helped turn things around.<\/p>\n
The royal flush has turned him into the new king of Queensland, but it\u2019s been a journey after calling veteran halfback Adam Reynolds ahead of his return to the club in 2023 following a stint with the Warriors.<\/p>\n
\u201cI remember when \u2018Reyno\u2019 first came to the club, he invited me over for the first time,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cI asked to have a look at his ring because I was a young kid coming back to Brissie.<\/p>\n
\u201cI remember calling him when I was on Mad Monday for the Warriors saying \u2018I\u2019m going to come back and help you win a comp\u2019.<\/p>\n
\u201cTo be here right now from day one when I was dodging Madge\u2019s (coach Michael Maguire) calls because I was too scared to talk to him. But we were in the trenches together and we were running through the bush as a team with the culture and the belief that we built.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo one gave us a chance. The only ones that believed were the ones in the room. Our backs were against the walls and we could have shied away, but we went towards those moments and I\u2019m so honoured and grateful to be part of this team.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s been 19 years and we just etched our names in history so I\u2019m extremely honoured.\u201d<\/p>\n
Walsh is a polarising figure in the game with some people unable to accept a young man who wears nail polish and does things differently off the field.<\/p>\n
But his teammates insist that the outside perception is all wrong. <\/p>\n
\u201cHe just really cares for the boys,\u201d Walters said.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe just loves everyone and he\u2019s very humble. He doesn\u2019t care if you\u2019ve played 300 NRL games or none \u2013 he\u2019ll always catch up with you for a coffee and see how you\u2019re going.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s very good with kids and loves family. Every time I bring my son in or anyone brings their kids in, he\u2019s always talking to them and making them laugh.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s someone you want on your team, and he keeps proving again and again why he\u2019s the best.\u201d<\/p>\n
Lock forward Patrick Carrigan has a special bond with Walsh and backed him to get even better as he gains more experience on and off the field. <\/p>\n
\u201cYou guys don\u2019t even know (what he can do). He\u2019s just a kid,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t want to pump up his tyres too much even though I\u2019m his biggest fan, but if you hang around footy and see the hard work he does day in and day out, you see how he understands the game already.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf he keeps working hard and stays diligent, he\u2019s going to be a special player.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think it (the criticism) doesn\u2019t really faze him. He\u2019s got a tight circle and a really tight friendship group. He just values the little things in life.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt doesn\u2019t help that he\u2019s a good looking rooster and gets thrown on all the billboards, but he\u2019s a special player and a special person.\u201d<\/p>\n