2018 Bronco season review.

john1420 said:
Very strong goal line defence is a hallmark of WB coached teams, and that was missing in 2018 (not every game, but for the season overall)

This is the single biggest problem we have

Fix it and we go a long way to being genuine title threats, even without discussing the halves
Click to expand...

Yep. If tariq sims is scoring hat tricks then there is something seriously wrong
 
Tariq Sims is a talented player to be honest, easily the best of the Sims brothers, and one of the better impact players this year IMO. It's why he finally got a shot for NSW. I was saying early in the match that we gotta watch him, because he's sort of like their version of TPJ.
 
Last edited:
Alec said:
Tariq Sims is a talented player to be honest, easily the best of the Sims brothers, and one of the better impact players this year IMO. It's why he finally got a shot for NSW. I was saying early in the match that we gotta watch him, because he's sort of like their version of TPJ.
Click to expand...

Need to bring him to Broncs so the brothers can complete the ruin a broncos finals trifecta! Family traditions are important after all.
 
Number6 said:
Need to bring him to Broncs so the brothers can complete the ruin a broncos finals trifecta! Family traditions are important after all.
Click to expand...

He played for us in the 20s if that helps.
 
john1420 said:
Very strong goal line defence is a hallmark of WB coached teams, and that was missing in 2018 (not every game, but for the season overall)

This is the single biggest problem we have

Fix it and we go a long way to being genuine title threats, even without discussing the halves
Click to expand...
I'd say it's been an issue since 2016...

2015 - Brick wall
2016 onwards - Tissue paper
 
In footy circles, the measure of a successful season is based on whether the club qualified for the Top 4. From that perspective, 2018 was a failure, but let's unpack. How important is qualifying for the Top 4 when it ultimately ends in disappointment? Do we honour the fine achievements of Parramatta 2017? Do we still wax lyrical about the Panthers 2014? Don't get me wrong, success can be a good indicator for future success but it usually isn't always the case. From my perspective, it's all about the ability to foster talent and groom a team capable of competing on the big stage, and one measly win isn't the difference between a good or a bad season.

Whatever premiership hopes the Broncos had were dashed as soon as the true extent of Jack Bird's physical wellbeing was revealed. Jack Bird was brought to provide the club with a point of difference and without the proper off-season to work on the nuances of his role, we only caught one solitary glimpse of what he can provide this club. Round 6 2018, the Brisbane Broncos achieved something no other team had done at that point when they bested the Warriors at their home ground and it was on the back of a physical and confident Jack Bird performance and I cannot wait to see how he'll go in 2019, he'll be an entirely new player.

Without Bird, it became clear that 2018 was going to be about the long game. It wasn't about beating Manly or the Bulldogs, it was about giving these players reps and the opportunity to develop their games. At times, it was ugly and really difficult to sit through but when the players got it right, I saw the signs of life that have been sorely missing ever since Ben Hunt signaled his intentions to leave the club. There were victories I would rate right up there with the best in the club's history and I came away from this season feeling more confident about the club's playing group than I had in years.

It's just a matter of who the board appoints as the next Broncos coach. There is so much riding on this decision, and if the Broncos can find the right fit, the 2020s could be their moment once more.

That's all hypothetical wishy-washy stuff, let's talk nitty gritty. The Brisbane Broncos were far more powerful through the middle than they had been in years with Matt Lodge, Tevita Pangai Jr, Josh McGuire & Joe Ofahengaue leading the way. They received tremendous support from Jaydn Su'A & David Fifita who played better than anyone could have ever anticipated. When the Broncos were able to control possession, and the forwards were able to come into the game, they proved to be an extremely tough team to beat, which is why they were able to best the Sharks, Rabbitohs & Roosters.

Over the course of the season, Milford developed his kicking game and was able to find far more consistency with the boot. It's a part of his game that was underrated, especially by the man himself since he seemed to have an aversion to kicking. Milford has always had a good boot to him, it just required the finishing touches which you can only achieve through experience. Milford holds the key for the Brisbane Broncos and while he grew into the role of primary playmaker, there are still aspects of his game that require work. Milford needs to be more confident in his plays, give himself an option A, B & C, and needs the temperment to realise the side doesn't need to score on every play. Milford has the tools, he's shown he can lead this team around, he just needs to trust in himself and his team mates.

To be fair to Milford, this lack of confidence could be solved if he received more support. Darius Boyd put on a brave face, but he was clearly struggling with a hamstring all season. Fair play to the captain for putting the team first on several occasions, but he was a liability for the majority of the season. Nikorima stood up towards the back-end of the season when he realised while he couldn't pass, kick or tackle, he could at least run. McCullough was fine, but in a side that desperately needs some guidance he often just goes through the motion and rarely puts the defence in two minds. I compare him a lot to Jake Friend, but where Friend will often over-play his hand, McCullough underplays it. Again, the few times McCullough decides to do something more than pass it one off the ruck to the open-side, he looks more than capable.

The most underrated issue with the team is the lack of mileage we get from our backs. If you look at the Grand Final, where the match was won and loss, it was the difference between Slater/Addo-Carr/Vunivalu vs. Tedesco/Tupou/Ferguson. One group constantly got their team on the front-foot, the others didn't. Outside of Oates, the Broncos don't have anyone who can bail them out from inside their own half. Darius used to be amazing in this regard (averaged 200m in 2010) but that's completely fallen off. Isaako has great foot-work, but he can't utilise it from dummy half and our centres are virtually useless in this regard. It's the one area where the Broncos really miss having a Jack Reed or a Justin Hodges since they were usually good for those strong carries coming out of trouble.

All in all, it wasn't a premiership winning year for the club, but they made some promising strides. Whether they can challenge in the future will come down to how the club sorts out this coaching situation. If they get it right, the 7th premiership won't be far away. They get it wrong and well...we may not hear the end of Rooster Rooster Man.
 
Big Pete said:
In footy circles, the measure of a successful season is based on whether the club qualified for the Top 4. From that perspective, 2018 was a failure, but let's unpack. How important is qualifying for the Top 4 when it ultimately ends in disappointment? Do we honour the fine achievements of Parramatta 2017? Do we still wax lyrical about the Panthers 2014? Don't get me wrong, success can be a good indicator for future success but it usually isn't always the case. From my perspective, it's all about the ability to foster talent and groom a team capable of competing on the big stage, and one measly win isn't the difference between a good or a bad season.

Whatever premiership hopes the Broncos had were dashed as soon as the true extent of Jack Bird's physical wellbeing was revealed. Jack Bird was brought to provide the club with a point of difference and without the proper off-season to work on the nuances of his role, we only caught one solitary glimpse of what he can provide this club. Round 6 2018, the Brisbane Broncos achieved something no other team had done at that point when they bested the Warriors at their home ground and it was on the back of a physical and confident Jack Bird performance and I cannot wait to see how he'll go in 2019, he'll be an entirely new player.

Without Bird, it became clear that 2018 was going to be about the long game. It wasn't about beating Manly or the Bulldogs, it was about giving these players reps and the opportunity to develop their games. At times, it was ugly and really difficult to sit through but when the players got it right, I saw the signs of life that have been sorely missing ever since Ben Hunt signaled his intentions to leave the club. There were victories I would rate right up there with the best in the club's history and I came away from this season feeling more confident about the club's playing group than I had in years.

It's just a matter of who the board appoints as the next Broncos coach. There is so much riding on this decision, and if the Broncos can find the right fit, the 2020s could be their moment once more.

That's all hypothetical wishy-washy stuff, let's talk nitty gritty. The Brisbane Broncos were far more powerful through the middle than they had been in years with Matt Lodge, Tevita Pangai Jr, Josh McGuire & Joe Ofahengaue leading the way. They received tremendous support from Jaydn Su'A & David Fifita who played better than anyone could have ever anticipated. When the Broncos were able to control possession, and the forwards were able to come into the game, they proved to be an extremely tough team to beat, which is why they were able to best the Sharks, Rabbitohs & Roosters.

Over the course of the season, Milford developed his kicking game and was able to find far more consistency with the boot. It's a part of his game that was underrated, especially by the man himself since he seemed to have an aversion to kicking. Milford has always had a good boot to him, it just required the finishing touches which you can only achieve through experience. Milford holds the key for the Brisbane Broncos and while he grew into the role of primary playmaker, there are still aspects of his game that require work. Milford needs to be more confident in his plays, give himself an option A, B & C, and needs the temperment to realise the side doesn't need to score on every play. Milford has the tools, he's shown he can lead this team around, he just needs to trust in himself and his team mates.

To be fair to Milford, this lack of confidence could be solved if he received more support. Darius Boyd put on a brave face, but he was clearly struggling with a hamstring all season. Fair play to the captain for putting the team first on several occasions, but he was a liability for the majority of the season. Nikorima stood up towards the back-end of the season when he realised while he couldn't pass, kick or tackle, he could at least run. McCullough was fine, but in a side that desperately needs some guidance he often just goes through the motion and rarely puts the defence in two minds. I compare him a lot to Jake Friend, but where Friend will often over-play his hand, McCullough underplays it. Again, the few times McCullough decides to do something more than pass it one off the ruck to the open-side, he looks more than capable.

The most underrated issue with the team is the lack of mileage we get from our backs. If you look at the Grand Final, where the match was won and loss, it was the difference between Slater/Addo-Carr/Vunivalu vs. Tedesco/Tupou/Ferguson. One group constantly got their team on the front-foot, the others didn't. Outside of Oates, the Broncos don't have anyone who can bail them out from inside their own half. Darius used to be amazing in this regard (averaged 200m in 2010) but that's completely fallen off. Isaako has great foot-work, but he can't utilise it from dummy half and our centres are virtually useless in this regard. It's the one area where the Broncos really miss having a Jack Reed or a Justin Hodges since they were usually good for those strong carries coming out of trouble.

All in all, it wasn't a premiership winning year for the club, but they made some promising strides. Whether they can challenge in the future will come down to how the club sorts out this coaching situation. If they get it right, the 7th premiership won't be far away. They get it wrong and well...we may not hear the end of Rooster Rooster Man.
Click to expand...
Very impressive and comprehensive analysis. This post was a langer-origin-like comeback to bhq big pete. Welcome back
 
Big Pete said:
The most underrated issue with the team is the lack of mileage we get from our backs. If you look at the Grand Final, where the match was won and loss, it was the difference between Slater/Addo-Carr/Vunivalu vs. Tedesco/Tupou/Ferguson. One group constantly got their team on the front-foot, the others didn't. Outside of Oates, the Broncos don't have anyone who can bail them out from inside their own half. Darius used to be amazing in this regard (averaged 200m in 2010) but that's completely fallen off. Isaako has great foot-work, but he can't utilise it from dummy half and our centres are virtually useless in this regard. It's the one area where the Broncos really miss having a Jack Reed or a Justin Hodges since they were usually good for those strong carries coming out of trouble.
Click to expand...

As ludicrous as it is, do you know who we may have actually missed this season? Tautau Moga. He averaged 13 runs & 145 metres per game for us from the Centre position, which is elite. He was doing a lot of the dirty work out of our own end to give our forwards a breather, which we simply didn't get from any outside backs this year.

It was the same thing that Thurston constantly praised Kane Linnett for, he was never a flashy Centre by any stretch of the imagination, but he did a lot of dirty work out of their own end in 2015, averaging ~135 metres per game.
 
Unbreakable said:
As ludicrous as it is, do you know who we may have actually missed this season? Tautau Moga. He averaged 13 runs & 145 metres per game for us from the Centre position, which is elite. He was doing a lot of the dirty work out of our own end to give our forwards a breather, which we simply didn't get from any outside backs this year.

It was the same thing that Thurston constantly praised Kane Linnett for, he was never a flashy Centre by any stretch of the imagination, but he did a lot of dirty work out of their own end in 2015, averaging ~135 metres per game.
Click to expand...

I'm glad you picked up what I was laying down.

Don't get me wrong, it was always going to end in tears with Moga and that ACL injury didn't surprise me in the least. You're right though, we missed his strong carries.
 
Big Pete said:
In footy circles, the measure of a successful season is based on whether the club qualified for the Top 4. From that perspective, 2018 was a failure, but let's unpack. How important is qualifying for the Top 4 when it ultimately ends in disappointment? Do we honour the fine achievements of Parramatta 2017? Do we still wax lyrical about the Panthers 2014? Don't get me wrong, success can be a good indicator for future success but it usually isn't always the case. From my perspective, it's all about the ability to foster talent and groom a team capable of competing on the big stage, and one measly win isn't the difference between a good or a bad season.

Whatever premiership hopes the Broncos had were dashed as soon as the true extent of Jack Bird's physical wellbeing was revealed. Jack Bird was brought to provide the club with a point of difference and without the proper off-season to work on the nuances of his role, we only caught one solitary glimpse of what he can provide this club. Round 6 2018, the Brisbane Broncos achieved something no other team had done at that point when they bested the Warriors at their home ground and it was on the back of a physical and confident Jack Bird performance and I cannot wait to see how he'll go in 2019, he'll be an entirely new player.

Without Bird, it became clear that 2018 was going to be about the long game. It wasn't about beating Manly or the Bulldogs, it was about giving these players reps and the opportunity to develop their games. At times, it was ugly and really difficult to sit through but when the players got it right, I saw the signs of life that have been sorely missing ever since Ben Hunt signaled his intentions to leave the club. There were victories I would rate right up there with the best in the club's history and I came away from this season feeling more confident about the club's playing group than I had in years.

It's just a matter of who the board appoints as the next Broncos coach. There is so much riding on this decision, and if the Broncos can find the right fit, the 2020s could be their moment once more.

That's all hypothetical wishy-washy stuff, let's talk nitty gritty. The Brisbane Broncos were far more powerful through the middle than they had been in years with Matt Lodge, Tevita Pangai Jr, Josh McGuire & Joe Ofahengaue leading the way. They received tremendous support from Jaydn Su'A & David Fifita who played better than anyone could have ever anticipated. When the Broncos were able to control possession, and the forwards were able to come into the game, they proved to be an extremely tough team to beat, which is why they were able to best the Sharks, Rabbitohs & Roosters.

Over the course of the season, Milford developed his kicking game and was able to find far more consistency with the boot. It's a part of his game that was underrated, especially by the man himself since he seemed to have an aversion to kicking. Milford has always had a good boot to him, it just required the finishing touches which you can only achieve through experience. Milford holds the key for the Brisbane Broncos and while he grew into the role of primary playmaker, there are still aspects of his game that require work. Milford needs to be more confident in his plays, give himself an option A, B & C, and needs the temperment to realise the side doesn't need to score on every play. Milford has the tools, he's shown he can lead this team around, he just needs to trust in himself and his team mates.

To be fair to Milford, this lack of confidence could be solved if he received more support. Darius Boyd put on a brave face, but he was clearly struggling with a hamstring all season. Fair play to the captain for putting the team first on several occasions, but he was a liability for the majority of the season. Nikorima stood up towards the back-end of the season when he realised while he couldn't pass, kick or tackle, he could at least run. McCullough was fine, but in a side that desperately needs some guidance he often just goes through the motion and rarely puts the defence in two minds. I compare him a lot to Jake Friend, but where Friend will often over-play his hand, McCullough underplays it. Again, the few times McCullough decides to do something more than pass it one off the ruck to the open-side, he looks more than capable.

The most underrated issue with the team is the lack of mileage we get from our backs. If you look at the Grand Final, where the match was won and loss, it was the difference between Slater/Addo-Carr/Vunivalu vs. Tedesco/Tupou/Ferguson. One group constantly got their team on the front-foot, the others didn't. Outside of Oates, the Broncos don't have anyone who can bail them out from inside their own half. Darius used to be amazing in this regard (averaged 200m in 2010) but that's completely fallen off. Isaako has great foot-work, but he can't utilise it from dummy half and our centres are virtually useless in this regard. It's the one area where the Broncos really miss having a Jack Reed or a Justin Hodges since they were usually good for those strong carries coming out of trouble.

All in all, it wasn't a premiership winning year for the club, but they made some promising strides. Whether they can challenge in the future will come down to how the club sorts out this coaching situation. If they get it right, the 7th premiership won't be far away. They get it wrong and well...we may not hear the end of Rooster Rooster Man.
Click to expand...

We missed you.

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As a "Club" brand as a whole I think we did pretty well.

Men's team C

Inaugural NRLW Premieres A+

Inagural NRL Touch Mens premieres A+
 
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