It’s only Wednesday but it has already been a tumultuous week for the Broncos after incidents involving Reece Walsh and Gehamat Shibasaki.
On Monday night, Walsh filmed himself drinking toilet water while Shibasaki was axed for this Thursday’s clash against the Storm for turning up to training under the weather following a boozy night out.
FOX LEAGUE, available on Kayo Sports, is the only place to watch every game of every round in the 2025 NRL Telstra Premiership, LIVE with no ad-breaks during play. New to Kayo? Get your first month for just $1. Limited-time offer >
Broncos coach Michael Maguire explained the reasoning behind the Shibasaki decision, stressing there are standards to uphold.
When teams dropped on Tuesday afternoon, a bombshell report from Code Sports revealed Shibasaki won’t play in Round 27 due to disciplinary reasons stemming from a boozy night out in Brisbane.
Shibasaki reportedly turned up to training the next day ‘under the weather’ and Maguire in turn made the decision to axe the outside back.
Speaking to reporters on Wednesday, Maguire says there was a price to pay for Shibasaki’s actions.
“It’s obviously disappointing. He’s made a mistake and he understands that and you pay a price I suppose,” Maguire said.
“I don’t think it’s a big call to be honest. It’s the expectation of what is going on and culture is everything.
“You have to live by what you’re building and the expectations of each other.
“The focus for us is this game. We’ve worked really hard this season, learned plenty about each other and had plenty of hurdles and this is no different.”
When asked if Shibasaki trained on Wednesday, Maguire quipped: “He’s out there training. He got absolutely flogged.”
Walker opens up on Smith’s mindset | 00:58
Walsh didn’t face any disciplinary action for his bizarre video, which showed him drinking water out of a brand new toilet that was installed in his house.
Maguire labelled the incident as ‘unusual’ and has spoken with Walsh about his conduct, but is confident the team has moved past it.
“It was unusual. We’re all different and the adjustments of society in this day and age is a little different to what I grew up in but obviously it’s been spoken about and we move on to the game now,” Maguire said.
“I speak to the players about that, and we are all different. That’s a different one.
“He’s very passionate about what we’re doing and he just needs to make sure he adjusts to the expectations and he’s no different.
“We have a big influence on our community. I spoke to him about the great influence he can have as well so just focusing on that.”
Discussion about this post