These are the four weeks that could determine Corey Oates’ fate.
Rushed back to the Brisbane Broncos’ wing to take on the Dolphins as rookie flyer Deine Mariner recovers from a back fracture, the club great now has one month to prove he still has a future in the NRL, and ideally in the jersey in which he made his name.
At 29, even with 203 Broncos appearances and nine State of Origin caps to his credit, Brisbane’s all-time fourth-leading try-scorer (with 119) is adamant he still has plenty to offer as he comes off contract at the end of the season.
Oates has signed one-year contracts in recent seasons as the Broncos continue to juggle salary cap pressures as a result of the wealth of developing prospects at their disposal and their return to premiership contention.
Reece Walsh, Selwyn Cobbo, Kotoni Staggs, Xavier Willison, Blake Mozer, Tristan Sailor and Kobe Hetherington will be just some of the names free to negotiate with rivals from November 1 for season 2026 - with Walsh expected to ink a multimillion-dollar extension before that time.
Upgraded deals for Ezra Mam, Payne Haas and Pat Carrigan have already reduced funds, and with young winger Israel Leota waiting in the wings, only sheer weight of performances will extend Oates’ tenure.
But Oates, who even in his injury-plagued 2023 averaged 184 running metres a game, said he would not decide on his future hastily.
One-year deals had been a blessing in disguise, he said, hinting he hoped to keep it going in 2025 and beyond.
“I didn’t like it when I first did it, but I actually ended up playing my best footy when I did do it – I guess it keeps you honest,” Oates said.
“The one-years, I think, are probably the best thing for me; they’ve kept me going all this time.
“I’m always hoping there’s something there for me at the end of the year, but I’ve been doing it for a little bit now. I’ll just do it year by year for me – it’s not really a matter of when, to be honest, it’s just how I’ll feel at the end of the year.
“I don’t like making decisions early on … I’ll go on what’s going on in my life, my family, where the kids are at with school.
“There’s a lot of other life when you’ve got kids. My job now is football but when that’s over at the end of each year I always focus on the kids.”
Oates was a shock exclusion from coach Kevin Walters’ initial sides, edged out for a place on the flank by 20-year-old Mariner, whose speed and try-scoring prowess – already crossing 10 times in 11 games – has him tipped to become one of the game’s most electrifying flyers.
A broken jaw and knee complaint limited Oates to just nine games, the latter concern keeping him on restricted duties in this season’s opening exchanges before returning to the bench two weeks ago.
But the desire to deliver a premiership to Red Hill remains – he is the sole survivor of the failed 2015 grand final side, and is determined to ensure “all the pain, all the suffering and all the hurt you go through” does not end in vain.
However, Walters is resigned to the fact Brisbane’s plethora of talent will probably mean some will be forced out the door, and results would dictate extension priorities.
“It could be [an issue], but I guess it depends on the players here and how they perform and whether they want to be here or not,” Walters said.
“I’m assuming they want to be here, so we’ll worry about that down the track.”
