Rabbitohs skipper Cody Walker has declared former teammate Adam Reynolds can catch NRL all-time point scoring leader Cameron Smith as the halfback closes in on third place on the list.
The Broncos playmaker requires 11 points in Friday's showdown with the Cowboys to surpass Raiders legend Jarrod Croker on the point scoring list.
NRL Hall of Famer Cameron Smith holds the record with 2786 points, ahead of Hazem El Masri (2418 points), Croker (2374) and Reynolds on 2364 points.
Reynolds looks set to reel in both Croker and El Masri this season, with his focus to then turn to catching Smith.
The 34-year-old halfback would likely need to play for another three seasons to overtake the Melbourne legend and Walker said his former teammate is capable of pulling it off.
"Renno can play until he's 40," Walker said.
"He's the ultimate professional. He goes about his business like no other, he gets in there, gets his job done and he's been amazing for [the Broncos] the last couple of years.
"I've played a lot of footy with Renno over the years since 2016 and personally I was sad to see him go. I totally understood the decision he made and had to accept it. He's a wonderful player who has had a big impact up there."
Reynolds has been the most prolific of the top four on the point scoring list, averaging 8.12 points a game.
Heading into Friday's match, he sits 422 points behind Smith. The halfback has averaged 180 points a season, meaning he's on track to pass the Storm legend in early 2027 if he can extend his career that far.
Reynolds has been hampered by niggling injuries throughout the past few years, managing only 90 points from 13 games in 2024, and would need to enjoy a clean bill of health in 2025 and beyond to chase down Smith.
The halfback's prolific point scoring ability has been clear since his debut in Round 1 2012, where he kicked four from five in South Sydney's 24-20 loss to the Roosters.
Reynolds became the Rabbitohs all-time point scoring leader in 2021 when he surpassed Eric Simms, claiming the club's goal-kicking record in the process.
Brisbane coach Michael Maguire was Reynold's coach at South Sydney from 2012 to 2017 and it quickly became clear how far the youngster was willing to go to succeed on the field.
Maguire would watch Reynolds spend hours on the training field practicing his goal kicking with assistant coach Kurt Wrigley. That work at training, he said, directly translates to his 82% goal kicking rate.
"The competitor comes out in him," Maguire told NRL.com. "Goal kicking is an individual skill that's learnt over time. Renno understood early on how important that is.
"He's been in big games and kicked goals from the sideline to win. They're the little rewards you get from the hard work done over a long time. It takes a lot of practice to be at his level, time outside of what everyone else is doing.
"It's a nice feeling as a goalkicker when you're able to take your team to a win."
While proud to accumulate individual accolades, Reynolds has always made it clear team success is his primary focus.
The halfback has well and truly delivered on that front, playing finals football in nine of 13 seasons. He has played in three grand finals and led South Sydney to a drought-breaking premiership in 2014.
While the Broncos missed the eight last year, expectations are high in 2025 after Maguire took over as coach in the summer.
Brisbane opened their season with a dominant win over the Roosters in Round 1 before they crashed back to earth with a loss to the Raiders last weekend. Friday provides a chance to make amends when they host fierce rivals North Queensland at Suncorp Stadium.
Plenty has changed since Maguire and Reynolds last worked together in 2017 however much remains the same.
"He's still the same competitor," Maguire said. "He was competitive at the age of 18 when I landed with him and he's been showing that for years. For any player to play as long as he has, it's an incredible story.
"To see a young player at the start and to be working with him at the other end of the career to chase the same dream has been really good.
"When you have him at a younger age, he doesn't have that experience. Now being able to coach him in completely different circumstances and see the knowledge gained over the years has been very enjoyable."
As for whether Reynolds can eventually surpass Smith on the all-time point scorers list, Maguire is eager to see the veteran create his own slice of rugby league history.
"That'll be up to Renno to do that," he said. "If he keeps performing and stays healthy, he'll have an opportunity to get himself a piece of history in rugby league.
"He had a fair few people saying he's done some time ago, he's proven them wrong. You should never write off Adam Reynolds from being able to play further in the future but at the moment at his age, he's just concentrating on now and playing his best this year."
NRL.com
