Brisbane have made a major appointment for the 2025 season with Troy Thomson confirmed as the club's new NRL general manager of football operations.
Thomson, who last October was appointed as football operations manager, was given the promotion tick for the key role at the Broncos' board meeting on Tuesday.
Last year the Broncos went to market for an overarching general manager of football after Thomson had joined the club.
The Broncos used a recruitment agency to search far and wide for the right fit but came back to a candidate who was already in the building.
They were initially seeking an omnipresent figure who could give new coach Michael Maguire elite support, in much the same way as Frank Ponissi does for Melbourne mentor Craig Bellamy.
The size of the Brisbane operation has led to roles being shared.
Founding NRLW head coach Paul Dyer will lead the NRLW program, Thomson will helm the NRL operation, while Simon Scanlan has oversight of recruitment and retention.
Such has been Thomson's positive influence and smarts since his arrival that it was decided to elevate him to the new high tensile task.
Thomson knows how clubland works, but also how the NRL operates.
He was most recently employed by the NRL as the elite performance manager for the Kangaroos and has a long association with Maguire.
He linked with South Sydney in 2012, when he was the high performance manager and an integral mover and shaker behind the club's 2014 title win.
He was responsible for overseeing training, medical staff and practices of the club.
Prior to that he was head trainer at the Storm during a dream run for the NRL powerhouse, while he was also high performance manager of the Melbourne Rebels in their inaugural Super Rugby season.
Last October, club chief executive Dave Donaghy highlighted the importance of finding the right person for the role of football general manager.
Donaghy spoke of the investment the club was making to drive cultural and performance improvements after finishing 12th last year, standards Thomson will now enhance in partnership with Maguire.
"It became quickly evident that Troy was the right person to oversee the NRL Program alongside Madge (Maguire)," Donaghy said.
"He is a strong people manager and ... most importantly knows what goes into providing the best environment for teams to thrive."
The teams Thomson has enjoyed success with in the past have been about a collective effort rather than the individual and that is what he will foster at the Broncos.
That mentality has already come to the fore with the Broncos winning the NRL Pre-Season Challenge on the back of sterling efforts from the 36 contracted players and train and trial hopefuls.
"I'm really big on teamwork and culture. That's more important than anything else," Thomson said.
"I'm very fortunate to have been part of programs where, when you get it right, you can have incredible success and create lifelong memories."
Canberra Times