Lockyer doesn't regret losing Dearden
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News.com.au
3 days ago
- News.com.au
‘Calm him down': Madge opens up on big Walsh issue as ‘cute' error cruels Broncos
Broncos coach Michael Maguire has defended Reece Walsh after his error ridden performance in the Broncos shock 22-20 upset loss to the Eels in Round 21. Walsh had a rocks and diamonds display and nearly stole the game at the death, but his try was denied due to him being off-side. Maguire conceded Walsh needs to play the long game more often, but that was true of all his players after a disappointing display. 'I think that is for all of us, he is going through exactly the same as what we just spoke about, playing the longer game,' Maguire said. 'It's about making choices, so we will review and go through that. Reece has been spectacular for us at times and he had a bit of a tough night in some of the periods in his game, so we just need to be thorough in that and how we go about our roles and the captain will steer that well. 'Over the last period we have captured the things that we want to be, but we need to do it for longer periods of time.' Broncos skipper Adam Reynolds denied the Broncos' all-star spine of Walsh, Ben Hunt, Ezra Mam and himself are still trying to work out their formation amid suggestions they are getting in each others way at times. 'No I think the spine generally moves like that anyway, so there is different parts of the game where he will get more involved and it just depends on how the game is going I suppose,' Reynolds said. 'We all love what Walshy brings. He is an excitement machine and he is a big part of our team and he is a big reason why we are where we are. 'You don't want to take that away from him, but it is my responsibility to calm him down at times when he gets a bit sideways.' Maguire was disappointed his team were not willing to build their performance and were guilty of forcing the issue at times. 'It was disappointing, they played the long game and we didn't,' Maguire said. 'We just tried to caress our way and do it cute in some periods through that second half and we didn't build pressure and they did.' The Broncos held their breath when Payne Haas went up the tunnel before kick-off and he later limped off after an ankle injury, but Maguire denied he is in any danger of missing games. 'Payne is okay, he just has a temperamental body at the moment, which he is sorting through,' Maguire said. 'That's his challenge at the moment to get himself right.' 'That's just Payne putting his body on the line, but he is alright I just spoke to him, so he is okay,' Maguire said.
News.com.au
3 days ago
- News.com.au
Parramatta Eels upset Brisbane Broncos thanks to Mitch Moses masterclass
The Eels have beaten the Broncos 22-20 on the back of a Mitchell Moses masterclass after Reece Walsh was denied a last-ditch match winner in a thriller at Suncorp Stadium. Moses was superb in his return with injury finishing with a linebreak assist and three try assists, while Origin winger Zac Lomax had a classy double and Josh Addo-Carr scored his 150th try and the match winner. Walsh had 147 run metres, a try assist and almost the match winning try, but he finished with three errors in a rocks and diamonds display. Xavier Willison was penalised for being third man in and making dangerous contact below the knee as the Eels took the lead through Mitchell Moses' boot. Addo-Carr was penalised for an escort to give Adam Reynolds the chance to lock up the scores. Walsh let a Moses bomb bounce to allow Sean Russell to produce a freak chip and chase try to give the Eels the Reynolds pounced on an intercept from Dean Hawkins' pass to run away and score a long-range try to square it up again. Reynolds turned provider to put Kobe Hetherington through a hole and he did the rest to charge 30 metres to score and give the Broncos the lead before the break. Reece Walsh ALMOST won it for the Broncos! ðŸ'° Watch #NRLBroncosEels on ch.502 or stream on Kayo: âœ�ï¸� BLOG ðŸ'¢ MATCH CENTRE — Fox League (@FOXNRL) July 25, 2025 Moses put the ball on a dime for Lomax with a pinpoint try assist off the boot just before halftime. Moses and Will Penisini combined to put Lomax over for a double as the Eels took back the lead. Walsh produced a brilliant sidestep to slice through and set up Billy Walters for a try as the Broncos took back the lead. Addo-Carr dived over in the corner for his milestone 150th try as the Eels took the lead yet again. Walsh looked to have pounced on a Joash Papalii blunder to score a late match winner, but the try was ruled out due to the Broncos fullback being off-side. The Eels held on for a deserved win in a seesawing epic to all but end Brisbane's top four hopes. MOSES STARS IN 'BITTERSWEET' MOMENT FOR EELS FANS Mitchell Moses proved why he's considered a top three halfback in the competition, starring for the Eels in his first game since Origin II. Moses has endured a wretched run with injury over the past two seasons and in 2025, has only played in seven games. It's no coincidence that Moses' poor luck with injury has correlated with the club's ordinary form but with the star half back on deck, Parramatta handed in one of their best performances of the season. Moses was in everything good the Eels did and his elite kicking game was evident for all to see. He finished with three try assists and suffocated the Broncos with his long and short kicking.'It's probably bittersweet for Parra fans as it's an insight into what they've missed,' Dan Ginnane said on Fox League. WALSH'S ACHILLES HEEL REARS UGLY HEAD At his best Reece Walsh is the one of the most dangerous attacking weapons in the NRL, but unless he cuts the errors out of his game he won't be the best. Walsh put in a rocks and diamonds display to nearly pull the Broncos out of the fire, but his penchant for errors came back to bite him and his team. Walsh had 147 run metres from 14 runs to go with three tackle busts, a linebreak and a try assist and nearly the match winning try. But the fact he was off-side blew his chance at scoring the game winner and he also had three errors, a missed tackle and gave away a crucial penalty. Walsh is an absolute freak of a player, but he needs to cut down on his mistakes if the Broncos want to go all the way to a drought-breaking premiership.
The Advertiser
3 days ago
- The Advertiser
Dazzling Dearden helps ease pressure on Cowboy coach
The blowtorch on under-pressure North Queensland coach Todd Payten has eased ever so slightly after the Cowboys overcame a spirited second-half comeback from the Dragons to claim a 38-32 home win. North Queensland looked like they might squander a 16-point halftime lead when the Dragons scored three unanswered tries midway through the second half at Queensland Country Bank Stadium in Townsville on Friday night. However, Cowboys skipper Tom Dearden proved the difference. Dearden scored twice, including the match sealer, set up another and proved typically defiant in defence. The victory keeps the Cowboys' slim NRL finals hopes alive, leapfrogging the Dragons into 11th place, five points outside the top eight with five matches to play. The Cowboys have the bye in the final round. A slashing 25-metre angled run by Zac Laybutt saw the Cowboys open the scoring in the fifth minute, and they had a second five minutes later when Reece Robson darted out of dummy half 45m out to send Dearden over untouched. The Dragons bounced back midway through the half through winger Tyrell Sloan. He was followed up by Mat Feagai, who pounced on a deft Lyhkan King-Togia grubber. But the end of the half belonged to the Cowboys, with Coen Hess, Scott Drinkwater and Jeremiah Nanai all scoring inside the last seven minutes, the home side heading into the break up 28-12. The Dragons mounted their comeback midway through the second period, Corey Allan, Sloan and Jacob Liddle all touching down in a nine-minute period to take advantage of a glut of possession. It was Sloan's sixth try in his past four games. Dearden then intervened, scoring a brilliant individual running try with nine minutes to go to seal the win, before Jaxon Purdue and then Liddle both crossed late. It wasn't pretty for the Cowboys, but it was a welcome relief for Payten's men, just their second win in their past eight starts. Meanwhile, the Dragons have now won just one of their past seven and sit in 12th place, six points outside the top eight. With six games to go, five of which are against teams currently in the top eight, they may well see 2025 as a season of "what if'', having suffered seven defeats by six points or less, and staring down the barrel of no finals for a seventh consecutive year. The blowtorch on under-pressure North Queensland coach Todd Payten has eased ever so slightly after the Cowboys overcame a spirited second-half comeback from the Dragons to claim a 38-32 home win. North Queensland looked like they might squander a 16-point halftime lead when the Dragons scored three unanswered tries midway through the second half at Queensland Country Bank Stadium in Townsville on Friday night. However, Cowboys skipper Tom Dearden proved the difference. Dearden scored twice, including the match sealer, set up another and proved typically defiant in defence. The victory keeps the Cowboys' slim NRL finals hopes alive, leapfrogging the Dragons into 11th place, five points outside the top eight with five matches to play. The Cowboys have the bye in the final round. A slashing 25-metre angled run by Zac Laybutt saw the Cowboys open the scoring in the fifth minute, and they had a second five minutes later when Reece Robson darted out of dummy half 45m out to send Dearden over untouched. The Dragons bounced back midway through the half through winger Tyrell Sloan. He was followed up by Mat Feagai, who pounced on a deft Lyhkan King-Togia grubber. But the end of the half belonged to the Cowboys, with Coen Hess, Scott Drinkwater and Jeremiah Nanai all scoring inside the last seven minutes, the home side heading into the break up 28-12. The Dragons mounted their comeback midway through the second period, Corey Allan, Sloan and Jacob Liddle all touching down in a nine-minute period to take advantage of a glut of possession. It was Sloan's sixth try in his past four games. Dearden then intervened, scoring a brilliant individual running try with nine minutes to go to seal the win, before Jaxon Purdue and then Liddle both crossed late. It wasn't pretty for the Cowboys, but it was a welcome relief for Payten's men, just their second win in their past eight starts. Meanwhile, the Dragons have now won just one of their past seven and sit in 12th place, six points outside the top eight. With six games to go, five of which are against teams currently in the top eight, they may well see 2025 as a season of "what if'', having suffered seven defeats by six points or less, and staring down the barrel of no finals for a seventh consecutive year. The blowtorch on under-pressure North Queensland coach Todd Payten has eased ever so slightly after the Cowboys overcame a spirited second-half comeback from the Dragons to claim a 38-32 home win. North Queensland looked like they might squander a 16-point halftime lead when the Dragons scored three unanswered tries midway through the second half at Queensland Country Bank Stadium in Townsville on Friday night. However, Cowboys skipper Tom Dearden proved the difference. Dearden scored twice, including the match sealer, set up another and proved typically defiant in defence. The victory keeps the Cowboys' slim NRL finals hopes alive, leapfrogging the Dragons into 11th place, five points outside the top eight with five matches to play. The Cowboys have the bye in the final round. A slashing 25-metre angled run by Zac Laybutt saw the Cowboys open the scoring in the fifth minute, and they had a second five minutes later when Reece Robson darted out of dummy half 45m out to send Dearden over untouched. The Dragons bounced back midway through the half through winger Tyrell Sloan. He was followed up by Mat Feagai, who pounced on a deft Lyhkan King-Togia grubber. But the end of the half belonged to the Cowboys, with Coen Hess, Scott Drinkwater and Jeremiah Nanai all scoring inside the last seven minutes, the home side heading into the break up 28-12. The Dragons mounted their comeback midway through the second period, Corey Allan, Sloan and Jacob Liddle all touching down in a nine-minute period to take advantage of a glut of possession. It was Sloan's sixth try in his past four games. Dearden then intervened, scoring a brilliant individual running try with nine minutes to go to seal the win, before Jaxon Purdue and then Liddle both crossed late. It wasn't pretty for the Cowboys, but it was a welcome relief for Payten's men, just their second win in their past eight starts. Meanwhile, the Dragons have now won just one of their past seven and sit in 12th place, six points outside the top eight. With six games to go, five of which are against teams currently in the top eight, they may well see 2025 as a season of "what if'', having suffered seven defeats by six points or less, and staring down the barrel of no finals for a seventh consecutive year.
