Kevin Walters’ decision to rest Reece Walsh and his State of Origin players in Game 17 against the Warriors has officially come back to haunt the Broncos boss. Brisbane saw their NRL finals hopes dashed on Saturday night in a 40-16 loss to the Dolphins at Suncorp Stadium.
After the Dragons’ surprise loss to Parramatta on Saturday afternoon, the Broncos had a golden opportunity to climb into the top 8 with a win over the Dolphins. But they were kicked out by Wayne Bennett’s side, and now need to beat the Melbourne Storm in game 27 to have any chance of qualifying for the play-offs.
Just two points off eighth place but with little chance of beating the Storm, questions have resurfaced over Walters’ decision to rest his Origin players at a crucial point in the season two months ago. The Broncos traveled to New Zealand to face the Warriors on Matchday 17, just three days after State of Origin 2 in Melbourne. Walters opted to rest Walsh, Payne Haas and Patrick Carrigan (who all played at Origin 2) rather than return to New Zealand at short notice. But with a loss that would see them out of the top 8, many felt that Walters could not afford not to have their best players in action. Walsh had not played for three weeks before Origin 2, and many thought he should be fresh enough to play as a reserve against the Warriors. But Walters decided not to face them and ended up with a 32-16 loss.