Adam Reynolds has revealed why he invited injured dummy half and five-eighth Billy Walters onto the stage with him to lift the Provan-Summons Trophy after the Brisbane Broncos triumphed over the Melbourne Storm on Sunday evening at Sydney Olympic Park in the 2025 NRL Grand Final.
Walters missed the match with a knee injury sustained during the club’s qualifying final win over the Canberra Raiders three weeks ago.
Walters, who had been a major part of Brisbane’s run before then at hooker, and then five-eighth after Ezra Mam and Reynolds both suffered hamstring injuries in the same game against the Melbourne Storm, has suffered an ACL injury and is set to miss a large chunk of next year.
Despite that, Reynolds said Walters is a huge part of the club and that he was “honoured” to share the stage with a player who breathes everything the Broncos are about.
“He is a huge part of our club. When I went down a few weeks ago. He was a huge shining light,” Reynolds said during his post-match press conference.
“To see him miss out, it’s heartbreaking for not only all us players, but himself and his family. His attitude has been fantastic this year.
“It could have easily went the other way.
“He breathes and oozes everything this club is about, so to have that momentum up on stage with him, I was quite honoured.”
Walters, who has played 109 NRL games, was part of all of Brisbane’s 25 games up until he was injured this year, scoring seven tries and adding eight try assists.
His last five games at five-eighth saw him take his game to a new level, but despite all that, he is still currently off-contract at the end of 2026.
The 31-year-old could yet finish his career in Brisbane, but the number nine jersey for the club is one of the more intriguing questions moving forward, with Brisbane needing to promote Blake Mozer likely in 2026 to retain him.
Walters has been tipped as a possible casualty of their salary cap and roster spots crunch, but his role throughout 2025 has been critical to Michael Maguire’s side, with Walters evidently keen on remaining in Brisbane despite the club letting go his father who was head coach up until the end of 2024.