Cooper Cronk's truth bomb for Broncos as Reece Walsh called out over ugly teammate incident

NRL great Cooper Cronk has leapt to the defence of Reece Walsh after the Broncos star was heavily criticised for giving teammate Corey Oates a spray as Brisbane were battered 46-18 by a rampant Titans side. Leading 18-10 at halftime, the Broncos were blown away by their southeast Queensland rivals in a one-sided second half on the weekend as the Titans racked up seven unanswered tries.

Following the game, many fans and pundits were quick to criticise the Broncos fullback for blaming his teammate after an error, with the moment sparking fears that there could be some serious disharmony among the ranks at Brisbane. As the game hung in the balance at 28-18 on Saturday with 14 minutes to play, the Broncos blew a costly chance to reduce the deficit. On the attack from the scrum, Walsh drifted to the left and threw a hospital pass to Oates who dropped the ball as he was crunched by Titans back Phil Sami.

Walsh immediately went to the veteran winger and gave him a massive spray, prompting Fox League’s Paul Crawley to call out Walsh's "ego problem". But Adam Reynolds defended Walsh post-match despite admitting he let his frustrations get the best of him. “It’s part of learning and he’s still a young kid,” Reynolds said.

“He’s still growing into his role. He’s a competitor and he tries hard and he’s going to get errors in his game but we believe in Reece and those things happen.”

And on NRL 360 on Tuesday, Cronk also leapt to the defence of the hot and cold fullback, stating Walsh had every right to lose his cool as Oates should have caught the pass. “I’ve given a bake and I’ve copped a bake,” he said. “Oates has got to catch the ball, that’s just the way we operate,” he said.

Broncos legend Gorden Tallis agreed with Cronk and said it is all part of first-grade football. The Queensland great said legendary playmakers Andrew Johns and Jonathan Thurston often gave teammates almighty sprays and said it is better for players to have it out on the field instead of pretending that it is all fine.

“I tell you what I dislike, I dislike when a side loses and they walk up and they pat (each other on the back) and they smile,” he said. “When two blokes have it out there and they move on, I would rather that in my footy team. I’d rather that because then it’s gone.”

Broncos insist there's no disharmony despite poor form

Walsh's spray mixed with clear frustrations on the field has led many to question if there is disharmony in the ranks at Brisbane. The Broncos have been unable to replicate the form that saw them emerge as premiership contenders in 2023, where they fell painfully short of winning it all last year.

And Cronk believes the reason they haven't been able to put together those performances in 2024 is because the playing group isn't working for one another. “You can sit there and point the finger (at one player)," Cronk said. "Ultimately I think it’s that cohesion as a group and the work ethic (that’s hurt them) because when they were humming last year they were working hard for one another."

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But Broncos lock Pat Carrigan insists there is no disharmony in the group, despite the side sitting six outside the top eight. "We are (united)," Carrigan said on Tuesday.

"I think for us, our feedback happens in a public forum and as a group, we're really close-knit and I think the relationships that we have provide an opportunity for us to be able to give feedback on the run and help each other out.

"I think that just comes to how competitive we are as a group, but in terms of any fractures; there's nothing like that. It's just some frustrations that come with footy sometimes. But in terms of being mates, in our connectivity; it couldn't be any better."