Jock Madden has been patiently working in the background, waiting for his opportunity and they don’t come much bigger than the one the 24-year-old has on Thursday night.
Madden, who played five games for the Broncos in 2023, will play halfback in the grand final rematch as he fills in for the injured Adam Reynolds.
And while it may seem like big shoes to fill for the relatively inexperienced playmaker, teammate Billy Walters is confident Madden is ready for this moment.
In fact, from the way Madden has been speaking about biding his time in reserve grade, Walters knows the former Tiger is “going to take the opportunity.
Walters compared the way Madden has approached his time in the NRL to that of legendary NFL quarterback Tom Brady, who had plenty of experience early in his career as a back-up before going on to write his name in the record books.
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“He is very professional,” Walters told reporters of Madden.
“We went and listened to Tom Brady speak and he reminded me a lot of Tom Brady.
“He’s got that mentality of it’s not a matter of if he’s going to get his chance it’s when he’s going to get his chance. He is doing all the things behind the scenes to be ready and I know he’s going to take the opportunity.”
Reynolds was diagnosed with a strained medial collateral ligament and could be joined by Payne Haas on the sidelines, with Xavier Willison on standby should the star front rower succumb to a knee injury.
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While the loss of Reynolds theoretically puts more pressure on five-eighth Ezra Mam, Walters is confident Madden is a seamless fit to step in and take on more responsibility immediately.
“He is very similar to Reyno. He’s a game manager. He’s got a good kicking game and running game so it’ll be very similar,” Walters said.
“… He is a really humble kid and not kicking stones that he is not playing NRL (regularly) yet. He’s taken the opportunity to learn off Reyno as much as he can.
“… He is a great little player and he’s definitely the future of our club.”
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