Broncos veteran back from injury to tackle Titans
The veteran utility trained strongly with the team on Tuesday and is set to be named to play Gold Coast in Robina on Sunday night.
The 35-year-old injured a hamstring in Round 10 against South Sydney and will come into the side to play hooker.
Based on training, Cory Paix is likely to be the one to miss out, but the Broncos will be sweating on the availability of their State of Origin contingent of Payne Haas, Pat Carrigan and Gehamat Shibasaki.
Fullback Reece Walsh is 18th man for Queensland and will definitely play the Titans.
Hunt played five-eighth before he was injured, but with the return of Ezra Mam will revert to the hooker role where he has been a standout in the past for the Maroons.
Forward Kobe Hetherington said Hunt would be a huge boost if included to play the Titans.
"Everyone knows how good a player he is," Hetherington said.
"He is in the leadership group for a reason and brings that leadership, and all us younger fellas get around him. He is such a good talker and is tough as well.
"We have seen what he has done at Origin playing that hooker role, so if he can bring that back here the boys will be cheering."
Utility Billy Walters is set to be retained in the 17 after shining off the bench.
"Billy is a competitor and it doesn't matter where you put him," Hetherington said.
"He has been doing a really good job off the bench. He is kicking 40/20s, scoring tries and he is snapping blokes in half. He's really putting his hand up."
The Broncos had a brilliant 22-18 win over Canterbury last week after trailing 18-0 and are seeking their fifth win in a row.
"That is one of the best wins I have been a part of in my career," Hetherington said.
"Our back was on the fence in the first half and Madge (coach Michael Maguire) brought us in and said 'boys, keep sticking with it'.
"In the first half I thought we defended well, and Madge said 'stay in it and we will get them the back end of the half' . We all believed.
"We had all those players out (due to Origin and injury) and everyone stood up. It was a good feeling."
Ben Hunt's return from injury has come at just the right time for Brisbane as they target five consecutive wins.
The veteran utility trained strongly with the team on Tuesday and is set to be named to play Gold Coast in Robina on Sunday night.
The 35-year-old injured a hamstring in Round 10 against South Sydney and will come into the side to play hooker.
Based on training, Cory Paix is likely to be the one to miss out, but the Broncos will be sweating on the availability of their State of Origin contingent of Payne Haas, Pat Carrigan and Gehamat Shibasaki.
Fullback Reece Walsh is 18th man for Queensland and will definitely play the Titans.
Hunt played five-eighth before he was injured, but with the return of Ezra Mam will revert to the hooker role where he has been a standout in the past for the Maroons.
Forward Kobe Hetherington said Hunt would be a huge boost if included to play the Titans.
"Everyone knows how good a player he is," Hetherington said.
"He is in the leadership group for a reason and brings that leadership, and all us younger fellas get around him. He is such a good talker and is tough as well.
"We have seen what he has done at Origin playing that hooker role, so if he can bring that back here the boys will be cheering."
Utility Billy Walters is set to be retained in the 17 after shining off the bench.
"Billy is a competitor and it doesn't matter where you put him," Hetherington said.
"He has been doing a really good job off the bench. He is kicking 40/20s, scoring tries and he is snapping blokes in half. He's really putting his hand up."
The Broncos had a brilliant 22-18 win over Canterbury last week after trailing 18-0 and are seeking their fifth win in a row.
"That is one of the best wins I have been a part of in my career," Hetherington said.
"Our back was on the fence in the first half and Madge (coach Michael Maguire) brought us in and said 'boys, keep sticking with it'.
"In the first half I thought we defended well, and Madge said 'stay in it and we will get them the back end of the half' . We all believed.
"We had all those players out (due to Origin and injury) and everyone stood up. It was a good feeling."
Ben Hunt's return from injury has come at just the right time for Brisbane as they target five consecutive wins.
The veteran utility trained strongly with the team on Tuesday and is set to be named to play Gold Coast in Robina on Sunday night.
The 35-year-old injured a hamstring in Round 10 against South Sydney and will come into the side to play hooker.
Based on training, Cory Paix is likely to be the one to miss out, but the Broncos will be sweating on the availability of their State of Origin contingent of Payne Haas, Pat Carrigan and Gehamat Shibasaki.
Fullback Reece Walsh is 18th man for Queensland and will definitely play the Titans.
Hunt played five-eighth before he was injured, but with the return of Ezra Mam will revert to the hooker role where he has been a standout in the past for the Maroons.
Forward Kobe Hetherington said Hunt would be a huge boost if included to play the Titans.
"Everyone knows how good a player he is," Hetherington said.
"He is in the leadership group for a reason and brings that leadership, and all us younger fellas get around him. He is such a good talker and is tough as well.
"We have seen what he has done at Origin playing that hooker role, so if he can bring that back here the boys will be cheering."
Utility Billy Walters is set to be retained in the 17 after shining off the bench.
"Billy is a competitor and it doesn't matter where you put him," Hetherington said.
"He has been doing a really good job off the bench. He is kicking 40/20s, scoring tries and he is snapping blokes in half. He's really putting his hand up."
The Broncos had a brilliant 22-18 win over Canterbury last week after trailing 18-0 and are seeking their fifth win in a row.
"That is one of the best wins I have been a part of in my career," Hetherington said.
"Our back was on the fence in the first half and Madge (coach Michael Maguire) brought us in and said 'boys, keep sticking with it'.
"In the first half I thought we defended well, and Madge said 'stay in it and we will get them the back end of the half' . We all believed.
"We had all those players out (due to Origin and injury) and everyone stood up. It was a good feeling."
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
News.com.au
3 hours ago
- News.com.au
Rabbitohs, former Origin star Jack Wighton scores $650k off side hustle
South Sydney Rabbitohs star Jack Wighton has sold his longtime Brisbane investment apartment for $650,000. It is understood that Wighton is redirecting his equity into another new-build investment opportunity. Wighton bought the Newstead apartment off the plan in 2016, paying $445,000 when he was four years into his 11-year stint at the Canberra Raiders. McGrath Bulimba agent Sam Battel sold the apartment to an investor within three weeks of its listing last month. The one-bedroom Ajax apartment was pitched at both owner-occupiers and investors, but marketed as a 'high-demand rental opportunity'. The $620 a week rental in place until August next year, so reflecting a 4.96 per cent yield for the 54 sqm unit that has an open plan living kitchen and dining space, a study area, and a balcony. PropTrack puts the one bedroom median at $585,000, up 15 per cent over the past year after 105 sales that spent a median 35 days on market. PropTrack calculates the median yield as 5.1 per cent. Wighton had bought it direct from developer two years before completion. It is set in the $195m complex of four buildings, developed by JGL Properties just a few blocks back from the Brisbane River. The Bureau Proberts-designed complex has communal facilities including two barbecue zones, an outdoor cinema, a 25-metre lap pool, spa, gym, and sauna. Wighton retains the home he bought with wife, Monisha Lew-Fatt for $1,135,000 in 2020. The 3.36ha regional NSW estate, just off the Old Federal Highway at Bywong, has a 1970s home with six bedrooms. Having grown up in Orange, Wighton, 32, made his debut for the Raiders in 2012. He left after 242 games, and has played 32 games since joining the Rabbitohs. He has made 11 Origin appearances for the NSW Blues before announcing in 2024 that he would be in representative retirement.
News.com.au
3 hours ago
- News.com.au
State of Origin game three: Live scores, updates, analysis
Will NSW get the job done in front of a sea of Blatchy's Blues? Or will the Maroons silence Sydney and take the Origin shield back across the border? Here's what you need to know ahead of the decider.
The Age
3 hours ago
- The Age
Payne Haas is Origin's perfect monster, poised to join the Blues all-time greats
His 17th NSW appearance on Wednesday will draw level with Steve Roach, behind only 90s greats Glenn Lazarus (19 Origins) and Paul Harragon (20). A call to Roach begins with cautioning the old Balmain bookend that we're not putting Haas on that Origin pedestal just yet. 'Oh, I think we can,' Roach interjects, 'I think Payne is at the point where he is matching the best for impact. 'There's not many who have racked up big games in the front-row [for NSW] because it's such a tough position to play. But Payne is just a freak, and I think we take for granted what he does every week for Brisbane. 'I always thought the measure, the very best of modern front-rowers, was Glenn Lazarus. With that unbelievable engine that he had, his play-the-ball speed and all his skill. 'But I think Payne is starting to reach that level, and further down the track will probably be spoken about in the same sort of realms as Lazarus.' Haas' Origin I man-of-the-match performance had Lazarus, and then some, written all over it, coming after just half a pre-game training session due to a grade 2 quadriceps tear. Eighteen runs for 156 metres, 61 post-contact metres, three tackle busts and 30 tackles don't tell the full story of how Haas almost single-handedly dominated Queensland's middle six weeks ago. A three-minute video on compiling every Haas hit-up from Origin game one is more instructive. With each of the first dozen carries, a trio of Maroons defenders swarm like bees, but they never stop Haas from bending the defensive line, finding a quick play-the-ball or an offload to keep NSW moving downfield. Lazarus, and then some, was Haas's wherewithal to run wider than usual to get at Cameron Munster, the awareness and ability to pop a pass to Nathan Cleary, keeping the play alive for the Blues first try, and the kick chases he repeatedly led across 29 and 27-minute stints. When NSW then recovered from a miserable first half in Perth to almost pull off Origin's greatest comeback, it was Haas (10 second-half runs for 78 metres and four tackle busts) and Hudson Young standing tallest. The Origin dominance - ala Lazarus being widely regarded as the best prop since Immortal Arthur Beetson - is in full swing. Lazarus told this masthead two years ago that if Haas 'can get himself in the right headspace and stay there, he's got as much as 10-12 years to keep going as the first front-rower picked for NSW and Australia. If he stays at Brisbane and stays in the right frame of mind, they'll win competitions.' That assessment came not too long after Haas's protracted 2022 contract saga and release request from the Broncos. Haas has only endured upheaval and tremendous tragedy since, yet has only further nailed down his standing as the game's best front-rower. He is now the legal guardian of two younger brothers while his mother Joan awaits sentencing after fleeing a car crash that left three people dead, and his father Gregor is detained without charge in the Philippines on drug smuggling allegations that he denies. 'I can't control some things – I know that. I can only control what I can, and that's playing footy and being a good person,' Haas says of his remarkable ability to set off-field dramas aside. Out of respect, Maguire won't go into Haas's home life, but stresses: 'That's what your story should be about. Payne's a very special, very good person. You don't get many like him.' Haas is now in his seventh full season of NRL and in career-best form, all while managing a back issue all season. A cortisone injection has him fit to start in Wednesday's decider, but limited him to light duties in NSW camp. When you ask of holding Haas back, idling an engine that could power every suburb in Brisbane, for the front-rower's own sake, Maguire gives a very Maguire answer. 'It's bloody enjoyable to coach when you've got players that are pushing boundaries,' the former Blues coach says. 'When you've been given the gift of a motor like Payne's got, you let him go after the higher end of what he can do. His dedication to training rubs off on everyone.' Haas, in turn, has relished the coach's challenge for him. For a man playing rugby league's hardest role, he has always spoken exceptionally softly, and only when necessary. Blues staff and skipper Isaah Yeo have noticed a distinctly louder figure in meetings and forward huddles this series, all while Haas nurses his body into each brutal contest and then dominates them. 'That's been Madge's challenge for me,' Haas says. 'I think on the field, my leadership has always been there in my actions. But I'm a pretty quiet guy. So it takes a bit to speak up, and I still shit myself whenever I have to jump up and talk in front of people. Loading 'I've struggled with public speaking, but Madge has pushed me to become a voice in our meetings and speak up to lead a bit of our culture. Of course, you have to practice what you preach too. That's really important to me, I don't want to lose myself. 'I'm not always going to talk, but when I do, I want my point to be strong and have meaning. That's what I've taken on board this year, going beyond just how I act and play.'
