‘Had a gutful’: Truth behind shock Broncos exit as Origin snub and player links revealed

The reasons around why Ben Te’o quit the Brisbane Broncos after a run-in with Michael Maguire have been debated after rumours mental health played a role were squashed.

Te’o sensationally walked out on the Broncos three games into the season after a falling out with Maguire, who he won a premiership with as a player at Souths and as defensive coach at the Broncos last season.

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Broncos CEO Dave Donaghy made no apologies for Te’o’s departure while stressing his wellbeing was his main priority.

The Courier Mail’s Pete Badel, who broke the story revealed what drove Te’o and Maguire apart on NRL 360.

“Dave Donaghy the CEO talked about the fact that Maguire was pained by the decision, but he also makes no apologies in the sense that he said, look, we want to be a high performance organisation,” Badel said on NRL 360.

“We’re backing the head coach and if an assistant wants to move on, that’s his prerogative.

“But they want to set some high standards and they’re prepared to back Maguire.

“The coach has come under a lot of criticism. There’s been talk about his training methods. There’s been talk about whether he’s off with the players, whether he’s lost the dressing room. It seems now like he’s lost one of his assistants, not only in terms of head count, but whether there’s a mutiny among his staff.

“And Donaghy’s resolute, he says, we’re standing by what we believe in. Maguire was hired to bring a premiership. He’s done that in his first season. And unfortunately, Ben Te’o has a different point of view. He’s decided to go in another direction.”

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Badel revealed the split between Te’o and Maguire was due to a number of factors, most notably differences of opinion on defensive principles and the Broncos blocking a move to be an assistant under Josh Hannay at the Titans, as well as a role with Billy Slater’s Queensland team.

“I’ve had some information about Te’o and Maguire for some time and it’s multifaceted,” Badel said.

“One of the things I’m told is that Te’o is highly principled and he’s very driven in terms of the defensive principles he’s set for this Broncos team.

“He’s been the defensive coach. I’m told that they didn’t always see eye-to-eye Maguire over some of the defensive patterns, some of the defensive methodologies, and the way they wanted to run things.

“Now, that’s natural. You’re going to have coaches at all clubs that don’t always see eye-to-eye, aren’t always on the same page. And it is the head coach’s prerogative image in some times to call the shots as they see fit. That’s why they’re the head coach.

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“But I’m also hearing Te’o last year was approached by Josh Hannay the Titans coach to join his coaching staff.

“One of the things that Hannay had recommended to Queensland coach Billy Slater was that Te’o be an assistant coach for the Origin team this year.

“I’m told that Billy Slater approached Te’o about the job. Te’o went to Maguire and the Broncos and they vetoed the move.

“That would be enormously disappointing for Te’o and it was not only a decision by Maguire, it was formalised by Donaghy.

“They had already lost Matt Ballin as an assistant with the Maroons. They didn’t want to lose a second guy, so whether that was also a factor, I believe it was, but it’s multifaceted.

“But at the end of the day it seems like Te’o didn’t have his heart totally in the job, and he wants to change.”

Fox League’s Paul Crawley moved to dismiss rumours Te’o’s mental health played a role in him stepping down after rumours out of Red Hill.

“What was interesting in what Donaghy said, was that the club’s given assistance to his well-being, his family’s well-being, and there was a lot of rumblings coming out of Brisbane today that this may have had something to do with Te’o’s mental health and he was stepping away and I got told that’s absolute bullshit,” Crawley said.

“This is to do with the fact he’s had a gutful working with Madge. That’s not us putting a spin on it, that’s the truth of Te’o’s situation.

“So Dave says everything’s hunky-dory at the club. They’ve won a premiership, they’ve won the Grand Final rematch, they’ve got all the sponsorships and memberships and everything. “But what they haven’t got going forward is Payne Haas and they haven’t got their defence coach now.”

The Broncos are now in damage control and looking for a new assistant, defensive coach and on-field trainer, all roles that Te’o filled for Brisbane.

Crawley revealed that Te’o was a huge factor in turning around Brisbane’s season in 2025 after he acted as a go-between with the players and Madge to allow them to reset their season with a night out in Manly.

“Everyone says defence is what wins premierships and Te’o last year was credited with the fact when the Broncos were going through that tough period where they’d lost four games in a row and I think it culminated in a big loss to Manly at Brookvale,” Crawley said.

“Ben Te’o was the one that could read the room and he figured that these boys need to get out and we need to enjoy ourselves, so he convinced Madge to let them go for a beer and he’d spoken to Pat Carrigan about it.

“But it was his ability to have that rapport with the players and pull them aside and keep them on the path and then that put them on the trajectory to win the Grand Final.

“So without that, you do have to worry about what may happen going forward because Madge’s history is that he can go in and he can get the job done, but unfortunately, things can go pear-shaped after that.”

The Daily Telegraph’s Dave Riccio backed up Crawley, labelling Te’o a cushion between the players and Madge’s intensity.

“Te’o acted as a very much a cushion or a go-between, between Madge and the players and the players confided in Te’o a lot,” Riccio said.

“Across every club, the assistant coach plays a pivotal role in being that barrier between head coach and playing group and Ben was that.

“So without him there, I’m fascinated to see how they fill that void.”

However, Braith Anasta questioned why mental health would be brought into it if that is not one of Te’o’s reasons for leaving.

“I’m fascinated that they use the mental health there with Ben because at the end of the day, it’s going to be known to everyone why he left at some point,” Anasta said.

“Ben’s going to talk because if he wants to be a future coach and still be involved in the game and have those opportunities at some point, someone’s going to say, well, why did you leave? So if he didn’t leave because of those reasons, why are they saying that?”

Crawley clarified: “Donaghy said, we want to look after their well-being, but there was definitely talk coming out of the club today that was circulating around and he wanted it squashed because he is a future coach.”

Broncos legend Gorden Tallis heard the same rumours and was emphatic on Te’o’s decision to leave the club.

“I heard Ben’s comfortable with his decision,” Tallis said.