Lockyer urges spine chill rather than halfback haste
DARREN Lockyer believes the Broncos need to delay their hunt for a halfback.
The Brisbane great has urged his former club to not rush into a decision when it comes to replacing Dragonsbound Ben Hunt for 2018.
He says that they need to hold off on a succession plan, see how their remaining spine play together in 2017 and make their decision from there.
Broncos CEO Paul White has already confirmed the club will go to the market for a new No. 7 while current Brisbane utility Kodi Nikorima has thrown his hand up for the job.
But Lockyer believes the search should wait so Brisbane can assess who will fit the team best instead of picking the first available halfback.
“I don’t think you can make that call on what you want to do beyond Ben Hunt right now,” he said.
“The Broncos need to keep their options open and as the season progresses, they’ll get a more definitive idea of where they want to go.
“A big part of our spine is leaving the club. It’s now those two options – identify someone within or go out to the market to find replace him.
“The hard part is, guys like Kodi are not going to get a lot of time to give you a gauge on whether they can handle that position.
“As the season progresses, if Anthony Milford and Darius Boyd and Andrew McCullough are all playing well then you probably start to think, maybe those three can handle someone to the role of the spine moving forward.”
Lockyer said if the spine was playing strongly, it would be easier to use someone like Nikorima in the role going forward despite his inexperience as a starting player.
He also said it would be interesting to see how the spine, including Hunt, responded to that increased pressure this year.