Matty Johns delivers harsh reality check for Reece Walsh in massive prediction about Broncos

Matty Johns has tipped Michael Maguire to work wonders with Reece Walsh and the Brisbane Broncos and implement a new system where hard work is the cornerstone, rather than talent. Maguire has been tasked with getting the Broncos back to the NRL powerhouse they should be, after an embarrassing fall to 12th on the ladder in 2024.

Just 12 months after making the grand final in 2023, the Broncos suffered their biggest fall from grace in club history and missed the finals completely. Maguire has since been brought in to replace former coach Kevin Walters, and he's already laying down the law and stamping his authority.

Maguire has put the players through some gruelling pre-season training sessions over the last two weeks, with many seen vomitting due to the intense work. Individuals have even been spotted with their own vomit buckets, and Johns says it's a sign that Maguire isn't mucking around.

Speaking on SEN radio on Monday afternoon, Johns said Maguire would make hard work the key component at the club, rather than talent and flashiness. The Broncos have a number of players with immense talent like Walsh and Ezra Mam, but there's been concerns they haven't been doing the hard yards at training.

"Doesn't that make a statement from Madge," Johns said about the vomit buckets. "It's just a little indication of what's going to happen. I think for Madge the buckets are a statement. He's saying 'righto boys, the fun times are over'. We are going to work hard."

Broncos need to rely on hard work rather than raw talent

Johns tipped Maguire to be a huge success and declared he's "exactly what they need". He added: "You see it often times with teams, and the Broncos are the classic example. Talent should be the icing on the cake, and when you rely on talent you're headed for failure.

"Great teams always make their bases the hard work and tough defence, the ability to grind, physical, teams don't want to play against you, and the talent should be the bonus on top. All the very best teams are like that and you hated playing against them."

Johns didn't mention Walsh by name, but you could make an argument he's the posterchild for someone who might have fallen into the trap of relying on their talent. The 22-year-old suffered a number of injuries in 2024 and couldn't find the same magical form he did in 2023.

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Payne Haas admits Broncos weren't working hard enough

Johns' comments come after Payne Haas admitted this week that the Broncos hadn't been working as hard as they probably should. Haas got a rude awakening when he worked under Maguire in NSW State of Origin camp earlier this year.

“I saw a few things that I won’t go into too much, but we needed to work harder,” he told the Courier Mail. “I was watching some of the other boys in the NSW team. The way they did things … I felt like we could be doing things better at the Broncos.

“Being in those rep camps, you learn from the best. You take away certain things and you talk about what these guys in other teams are doing and I feel we can implement it at the Broncos. I took away a lot from what ‘Madge’ (Maguire) said and what he stands for. That Origin camp made me think about how I should approach being in this team.”