![](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/poster-fallback.png\"\/)
<\/p>\n
Speaking on NRL 360, veteran foxsports.com.au journalist Paul Crawley delivered a blunt assessment of the club\u2019s predicament.<\/p>\n
Crawley warned that another defeat could trigger even more turmoil at Red Hill which could see them become the first premiership winners to miss the finals the next season since the Wests Tigers in 2006.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf they don\u2019t beat the Roosters on Friday night, pull down the shutters because the joint\u2019s going to implode,\u201d Crawley said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s so much drama going up there at the moment, just when you look who\u2019s coming, who\u2019s going and all that sort of stuff and the fact that a premiership-winning team are going to miss out on the finals. <\/p>\n
\u201cThis is their last throw of the dice. It\u2019s almost impossible when you look at their draw that they don\u2019t beat the Chooks this week, it\u2019s all over.\u201d<\/p>\n
‘Needed to get out of Brisbane’ | 03:49<\/p>\n
With their season on the line, much of the focus has fallen on superstar fullback Reece Walsh, who has struggled to recapture the form that helped them win the title last season.<\/p>\n
Establishing himself as one of the game\u2019s most dangerous attacking weapons and becoming must-watch television at the backend of last season, his 2026 campaign has been plagued by inconsistency.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s been this great white hope that Reece Walsh was going to be the answer for the Broncos and he just hasn\u2019t been able to get going,\u201d Code Sports reporter David Riccio said.<\/p>\n
However, with no Adam Reynolds at the helm, Luke Keary believes the circumstances could actually bring out the best of Walsh.<\/p>\n
\u201cLast year, when Reynolds wasn\u2019t there in the semi-finals, when Billy Walters and Ben Hunt (were the starting halves), I think we saw the best out of Reece when Reynolds is not there,\u201d the former five-eighth said. <\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s a bit where Reece says it\u2019s on me now, and he thrives under those situations and thrives under the pressure.\u201d<\/p>\n
Braith Anasta added, \u201cNo disrespect to Adam, but when he went off the field. Reece went to another level.\u201d<\/p>\n
‘Should be on your toes every game!’ | 09:18<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, the NRL 360 panel questioned the decision to hand an extension to Ben Hunt.<\/p>\n
While there was talk earlier in the season that the former Dragons captain might have considered retirement, the veteran decided to play on for another 12 months. <\/p>\n
\u201cIf they keep Ben Hunt for $150,000-200,000, I can understand it,\u201d Riccio said.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut the bottom line is I don\u2019t think Ben Hunt is bothering to go around again for $150,000 to $200,000.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe needs to be staying for a reason and (having him) sit in the $350,000 to $500,000 or just under that bracket, I found it surprising. He turns 37 in March next year <\/p>\n
While he was previously one of the game\u2019s best players, he has looked far from his best in recent seasons and is unlikely to improve as he enters the twilight of his career.<\/p>\n
Instead, foxsports.com.au\u2019s own Paul Crawley believes he has only been re-signed due to his experience and ability to mentor the younger players in the squad.<\/p>\n
Moses blasts ‘unfair’ Daley criticism | 03:50<\/p>\n
This comes as they will lose several members of their squad next season, headlined by Adam Reynolds and Payne Haas.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think it\u2019s obvious they\u2019re doing it with his experience with Payne leaving and Adam Reynolds retiring,\u201d Crawley continued.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey need that experience, but I think they\u2019re holding onto the past. I haven\u2019t seen the football from Ben Hunt this year and it still takes up a spot in your roster. <\/p>\n
\u201cAnd he\u2019s not going to be your starting half. He\u2019s not going to be your starting hooker. He\u2019s been a champion player as a dummy-half, but he\u2019s not getting better and not getting younger.\u201d<\/p>\n
Former NRL players Braith Anasta and Luke Keary agree with the aforementioned comments on Hunt and were equally shocked not only about his re-signing by also him coming out to say that he want\u2019s to be the club\u2019s halfback in 2027.<\/p>\n
Luke Keary said, \u201cHe won\u2019t be playing seven.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWith all due respect, I haven\u2019t seen any signs really why they should re-sign him. If you\u2019re paying $350,000-400,000 for experience, then I don\u2019t think it adds up.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Brisbane Broncos face a must-win clash this round against the Sydney Roosters as their finals hopes hang…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":754917,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[568],"tags":[64,63,761,762,158,85],"class_list":["post-754916","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-nrl","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-national-rugby-league","tag-nationalrugbyleague","tag-nrl","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/754916","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=754916"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/754916\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/754917"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=754916"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=754916"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=754916"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}