Walters ‘deserves another chance’

KEVIN Walters’s management has appealed for Broncos bosses not to sack the club legend in the wake of Brisbane’s stunning finals collapse.

Broncos chief executive Dave Donaghy began a forensic review on Tuesday, holding talks with players, and Walters will also be interviewed this week as Brisbane bosses demand answers for their lateseason implosion.

In the space of six weeks, the Broncos plummeted from fourth to ninth – putting Walters’s position as head coach under the microscope.

Walters is off contract next season but there are fears he may not survive for the 2023 premiership kick-off after missing the playoffs in consecutive seasons. The Broncos have a ruthless history of sacking coaches for just one finals failure, with Ivan Henjak (2010), Anthony Griffin (2014) and Anthony Seibold (2020) all moved on after missing the top eight.

But Walters’s agent Chris Orr warned the club of the dangers of sacking “Kevvie”, insisting he has vastly improved the Broncos during his two seasons in charge.

Inheriting a wooden-spoon outfit from Seibold, Walters advanced the Broncos to 14th in 2021 and had Brisbane in the top eight for 22 of 25 rounds this season, finishing with a win-loss record of 13-11.

“I think blind Freddy can see what a remarkable job Kevvie has done taking over the Broncos,” Orr said.

“The club was at rock-bottom when he took the reins.”

Walters’s 13 victories this year represented an 85 per cent improvement on the seven matches Brisbane won in his first season in charge at Red Hill in 2021.