Milford only wants to be a Bronco

[Super Freak]

ANTHONY Milford has declared he will not be doing contract talks with anyone but the Broncos.

In the ultimate show of loyalty, Brisbane’s star playmaker revealed he is not even looking at offers from other clubs as he aims to secure his future with the Broncos.

Milford is one of many key players off contract at the end of this season for the Broncos and is expected to be the first they re-sign.

After his fellow half Ben Hunt confirmed last week that he will head to the Dragons from 2018, Milford’s allegiance to Brisbane will come as a great relief.

The 22-year-old said yesterday he was leaving all the discussions up to his manager Sam Ayoub, but he knew that Brisbane was the only place he was interested in.

“We’re only talking to the Broncos,” he told The Courier-Mail.

“I love all the boys here. The boys have been a rock for me these past three years ... I enjoy the club, I love the club.

“(Ayoub) came up last week to have a talk with the Broncos so I’ve left it all up to him.”

Milford said he prefers to be left out of the negotiations surrounding contract talks and he trusts his manager to “get the best” for him.

With the young talent off to the Auckland Nines this weekend, he said it is his responsibility to worry about his football and his manager’s responsibility to sort out the contracts.

“The discussions are there but I told my manager to leave me out of it,” he said.

“I just don’t like to know about it. It helps me stay focused on training and what I want to do for the Broncos this year.”

With Hunt’s departure next season, it means Milford will have a new halves combination to form from 2018 onwards.

It is unclear yet what the Broncos are planning to do for the future, including whether they will look outside the club for a half or prepare Kodi Nikorima for the job.

While former skipper Justin Hodges was unsure whether Nikorima was mentally ready to deal with the pressure of becoming a Broncos starting half, Milford said yesterday he would love to combine with the talented Kiwi.

He said he always loved playing with Nikorima in representative teams when they were young, including the Queensland under-16s side.

“I believe (Nikorima) can handle the pressure,” Milford said.

“He would be pretty exciting to partner up with. I played junior footy with him at a rep level in the halves. It would be pretty cool to play with someone I’ve grown up with.”

http://www.townsvillebulletin.com.a...e/news-story/e970088fdcad67e12c3b6cd8faf74977

 

[Unbreakable]

And that ladies and gentlemen, is how you speak to the media if you intend on staying with your team long-term.

 

[winslow_wong]

Didn't hunt say the same things once upon a time?

 

[Super Freak]

No.

 

[BroncsFan]

Hunt probably said something similar after signing his last contract for massive unders to stay at the broncos

 

[Super Freak]

Hunt probably said something similar after signing his last contract for massive unders to stay at the broncos

Hunt said he wanted to stay at the Broncos, but he was always looking at offers from other clubs.

 

[broncos4life]

And that ladies and gentlemen, is how you speak to the media if you intend on staying with your team long-term.

I didn't see any comments confirming that "his heart is with Brisbane, for now..." I'm greatly concerned.

 

[Foordy]

And that ladies and gentlemen, is how you speak to the media if you intend on staying with your team long-term.

I remember one Karmichael Hunt say something very similar one day only to screw us around for months before taking the massive offer from the Suns

 

[Porthoz]

I remember one Karmichael Hunt say something very similar one day only to screw us around for months before taking the massive offer from the Suns

Can't see a rival code trying to pinch Milford. Only yawnion would be interested and I doubt they could afford to beat the NRL money wise.

 

[Sproj]

You seem a little disgruntled Foordy?

At least Milf has no desire to commit infidelity with another club in word, at least for now.

 

[Foordy]

Can't see a rival code trying to pinch Milford. Only yawnion would be interested and I doubt they could afford to beat the NRL money wise.

true and i was actually surprised they were interested in KHunt as well.

my point was that those type of articles are fluff pieces for the clubs fans ... while it is always nice to hear your star player has no interest at even looking at offers from rival clubs, these days these statements are just pure BS. whether we want him to or not him (and his manager) will know exactly what rivals are offering and they will consider these offers.

 

[Porthoz]

true and i was actually surprised they were interested in KHunt as well.

my point was that those type of articles are fluff pieces for the clubs fans ... while it is always nice to hear your star player has no interest at even looking at offers from rival clubs, these days these statements are just pure BS. whether we want him to or not him (and his manager) will know exactly what rivals are offering and they will consider these offers.

This is normally not the type of message a player gives when negotiating a contract. It's pretty cut and clear from the mouth of the player himself...

 

[Mr Fourex]

No....let's continue to look for the negatives.

Has to be one there somewhere. Guy happy...loves the club......can't be right.

 

[Socnorb]

I'm sure his manager is stoked with those comments.

 

[Morkel]

I'm sure his manager is stoked with those comments.

Still plenty of bargaining power. He's young. "Do us a good deal this time and next contract (when he's mid-20s) we won't need to test the open market. Skimp on us now and we'll need to look elsewhere next time". Depends how short-sighted the club is.

 

[holdzy]

Milford is awesome.

 

[NImitz]

That's good to hear. Hopefully he stays true to his word.

 

[mitch222]

I'm sure his manager is stoked with those comments.

Im pretty sure he is going to get paid handsomely anyways