Michael Ennis believes the Broncos’ season will be a failure if they don’t make at least the preliminary finals and warned of the key factor that will decide their 2025 title charge.
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The Broncos have had an inconsistent first season under Michael Maguire, but can still finish in the top four if they win their final two games and the Warriors drop one of their remaining fixtures.
Brisbane are currently in fifth with clashes against the Cowboys and Storm to finish the season, but their plus 148 points differential could see them leapfrog the Warriors (plus 26), who play the Eels and Sea Eagles, into fourth.
Maguire’s side have won three of their last four games despite losing star playmakers Adam Reynolds and Ezra Mam to hamstring injuries and look to be timing their run to perfection, despite their injury issues.
Ennis isn’t surprised by the Broncos’ form spike, even without two of their best players, because of the quality and depth in their roster.
“They are such a unique beast the Broncos because should we really be surprised with that all star roster that they have because it was only two seasons ago that they played a Grand Final,” Ennis told foxsports.com.au.
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“There hasn’t been a huge turnover with their roster and in fact they’ve added probably one of the best utilities in the game in Ben Hunt to the roster, who came with great experience.
“I’m not surprised, Brisbane are where they’re expected to be. I mean Brisbane should be in the top four with that roster and that’s the expectation. Big club, great roster, getting key players back at the right time.
“Brisbane absolutely should be one of the dark horses to win the competition, there’s no question.”
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However, the loss of Mam and Reynolds and the lingering concerns around Payne Haas and his workload has put a dampner on the Broncos’ title charge, but Ennis backed them to go all the way if they can just get enough players back by the time the sudden death games kick off.
“The big thing for Brisbane is that they need to get to the finals healthy,” Ennis said.
“They’ve got the individuals that have experienced finals footy, they’ve felt the heartache of a Grand Final loss and that doesn’t leave you.
“That loss in fact, it just reignites the fire and it just rages until you get yourself back there to turn that around.
“The roster’s incredible at full strength but the key factor for Brisbane is they have to get to the finals with Adam Reynolds healthy.
“They have to get there with Reece Walsh healthy, which in recent weeks the knee is improving in the way that he’s moving and he has looked as good as he’s ever looked.
“Carrigan needs to be healthy, I think he’s a huge factor for them through the middle of the field.
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“And then the other one, I think is Ezra Mam because we saw just what he can do in the big games, what we saw in that 2023 Grand Final, three tries and was marching himself towards a Clive Churchill Medal before Nathan stole it from under his feet.”
While the Broncos’ roster is the envy of most teams in the finals, Ennis warned they still haven’t produced their best footy with their first choice spine.
“It’s their greatest luxury, but it’s also the biggest question mark around Brisbane heading in to the finals, is the fact that when you look at their roster on paper, with the current salary cap, the depth in key positions is phenomenal,” Ennis said.
“To think that you can lose Mam and Reynolds and have the quality of Hunt go to halfback, have the luxury of having Billy Walters, Cory Paix, these types of guys in your side, to hold the fort until you get those other blokes back is crazy.
“But then at the same time, the issue, I think for Brisbane has been, when they’ve had the majority of the top spine together at times it looks like there’s too many cooks in the kitchen.
“So when Reynolds and Mam come back, the side then has to readjust to Hunt going to hooker and Walsh has to readjust to having two key playmakers back and that he can’t do everything.”
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Maguire’s team’s greatest strength is their depth, which is helping them whether their injury storm, but Ennis warned their biggest challenge could come when they get some players back on deck.
“That’s the challenge for Brisbane is to get that balance right because the Brisbane side with all of them in it, can win the competition,” Ennis said.
“It’s just whether they can combine together and get their best performance by all pulling in the same direction.
“That’s Madge’s biggest challenge because their forward pack will handle the final series no problem and their outside backs are absolutely elite.
“Kotoni Staggs has had the best season that he’s had. Shibasaki’s been one of the stories of the season he really has.
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“And then again that depth whether it’s Cobbo, Mariner, Karapani, the list goes on.
“They are so well placed, but it’s just can they all pull together in the same direction and can this spine connect to all get their best game on, without pulling in different directions and unsettling their attack and all trying to do their own thing.
“That’s the challenge and I think that’s where they need Adam Reynolds because his experience, his calmness, his composure and his captaincy is absolutely critical.”
The Broncos have definitely improved from 2024 in their first season under Maguire, but anything less than a preliminary final would be a failure, according to Ennis.
“I think the expectation regardless of whether it was Kevvie (Walters) coaching or whether it’s Madge coming in, the expectation for Brisbane at the moment with that roster is to win a competition,” Ennis said.
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“That’s the cold hard facts of it. There are so many other coaches out there in the competition that would kill to have that Brisbane roster or the quality of individuals in it.
“No doubt that they have those aspirations to win it, but I think a pass mark would have to be to get to the preliminary final because then it just comes down to the occasion.
“You give yourself a shot of the Grand Final and it’s sport, things are unpredictable, things may not go your way and sometimes they do, but with Brisbane I think they’d be extremely disappointed if they don’t give themselves a shot of the Grand Final, so that then tells me that the prelim is the pass mark for Brisbane.”
