The Broncos face a huge dilemma with how best to fill the void left by their star halves after hamstirng injuries to Adam Reynolds and Ezra Mam rocked their title charge.
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 >
Best case scenario, the Broncos will be without Reynolds and Mam for between two to four weeks, but worst case is six weeks which would rule them out for until the finals.
When the pair went down against the Storm in one freak play, Ben Hunt shifted to halfback, which is a fair replacement and Kotoni Staggs switched to five-eighth.
Hunt looms as the obvious No.7 until Reynolds returns, but who partners him is less certain.
The Broncos have options with bench hooker Billy Walters a chance to move to No.6, which would see Cory Paix start at hooker and Tyson Smoothy join the bench as the utility.
However, Walters has been one of the Broncos’ most dynamic players from dummyhalf and may be needed as starting hooker with Hunt shifting to halfback.
The other option would be to bring in rookie halfback Coby Black to play five-eighth, who is yet to earn his NRL debut but has big raps on him after starring for the Queensland Under 19s the past couple of seasons.
Black has eight try assists and five tries in 15 reserve grade games for the Souths Logan Magpies in the QLD Cup this season.
MORE NRL NEWS
‘BIG A** BURRITO’: Fletch and Hindy make Leon a Legend with hilarious challenge
WHISPERS: Souths star could be PNG’s No.1 amid clause; Tigers half rejects Dragons
‘REALLY STRANGE’: Madge’s big Broncos admission after nightmare injury blows
However, thrusting a rookie into first grade at the business end of the season is not without risk given his lack of experience.
But it could also work in the Broncos’ favour that Black is naive about what to expect.
The other left-field option would be to reunite 2015 grand final pair Hunt and Anthony Milford, who is also playing for the Magpies.
The 31-year-old played the last of his 219 NRL games for the Dolphins in 2024, but has the experience in big games.
Matty Johns was in shock at the Broncos losing both their chief playmakers in one play against the Storm.
“I’ve never seen this before, you talk about a costly pass to Xavier Coates an intercept pass from Ezra,” Johns said on The Late Show with Matty Johns.
“Ezra does a hamstring and then all of a sudden you see Reynolds does a hamstring, so you lose your halves combination in one play.”
Leon stitched up in WILD food challenge | 08:43
Bryan Fletcher believes if any other player than Coates was there the Broncos would have scored and avoided disaster.
“It’s unbelievable, it is like two inches higher or anyone else but Xavier Coates, you have a look at the yellow jumpers outside and they score and Adam Reynolds and Ezra Mam are still playing,” Fletcher said.
“It’s just a sliding doors moment for the ages.”
Currently sitting in sixth with four games to play, Nathan Hindmarsh warned the Broncos will battle to make the top eight without their star halves.
“They could be eighth by the end of this weekend the Broncos and are now without their starting halves for a long time,” Hindmarsh said.
“It is going to be touch and go for them to make the finals.”
‘It was crazy… Never experienced that’ | 06:07
Of all the options on the table Broncos legend Darren Lockyer would go with a halves combination of Hunt and Walters, with Black not ready to be thrown into the NRL cauldron at this stage of his career.
“It’s a unique situation,” Lockyer said on Channel 9.
“I think it’s obviously up to Madge, but the key right now is that he still wants to go as far as he can in this season and try to win the premiership.
“I think bringing Coby in at this point in time is a huge risk in terms of their chances of winning big games, because he’s just a kid.
CHAOS! Key playmakers out in WILD scenes | 01:04
“I think Ben Hunt goes to No.7 and potentially Billy Walters goes to No.6 and you bring in Cory Paix and Tyson Smoothy as your combination of hookers.
“That’s probably where I think it sits right now, but at the same time if Madge is thinking differently, Coby is an option to try and get an understanding of how good he is.”
Discussion about this post