Reece Walsh and Selwyn Cobbo spotted in 'concerning' scenes at Brisbane Broncos training

It's only December, but new details about Reece Walsh and Selwyn Cobbo at pre-season training might come as a concern to Brisbane Broncos fans. New coach Michael Maguire has been putting the Broncos through their paces in some gruelling pre-season training sessions, trying to change the culture and attitude at the club.

Maguire is hoping to get Walsh back to his brilliant best after a slightly sub-par season in 2024, while Cobbo is trying to impress the new coach in the hope he'll be re-signed beyond 2025. The Broncos have reportedly put contract talks on hold until Cobbo completes pre-season training, but it's believed one of he or Kotoni Staggs might be forced out due to salary cap restraints.

On Monday, the players were put through a fitness test, which was won by Jordan Riki in his first session back at the club after international duty with New Zealand. But according to sport reporter Ted Roker of Channel 10 in Brisbane, there were some concerning scenes at the other end of the scale.

Roker, who attended the training session at Red Hill, reported that Walsh and Cobbo were at the very back of the pack with veteran front-rower Martin Taupau. Roker also reported that Jock Madden and Billy Walters were near the front of the field, even though Madden has reportedly been told he's free to look elsewhere due to the club's signing of Ben Hunt.

Walters has also been linked to rival clubs and appears to be on borrowed time in Brisbane. Father Kevin was recently sacked as Broncos coach, and Hunt's arrival would also seemingly make Billy surplus to requirements once Ezra Mam is available.

Reece Walsh fitness a concern after training revelation

The fact that Walsh was reportedly lagging at the back comes in complete contrast to what teammate Jesse Arthars said last week. The winger said Walsh and Payne Haas had been leading the way throughout the pre-season, even though Haas recently underwent knee surgery.

"Payne is always up there. He has sort of been in and out with his injury but he's always ripping in," Arthars said last week. "And Reece has been going pretty hard. Everyone's doing pretty well.

"It's obviously a different training regime this year, so I guess the boys have been adapting to that over the last couple of weeks. The boys are going through their paces at the moment so it's good to see everyone hurting, and hopefully we'll benefit come Round 1. It's refreshing to see what Madge brings. We’re obviously still learning, it's still early days for us, but I think Madge has been really good so far."

Can the Broncos retain Selwyn Cobbo and Kotoni Staggs?

Maguire is said to be considering switching Cobbo back to the wing after he played most of 2024 in the centres. “Selwyn is potentially a wing option, yes,” the coach told The Courier Mail. “Sel can definitely play on the wing and at centre at a high level, so I need to look at the balance of the team.

“With the wingers in this day and age, they play a different style. Selwyn is a good sized body and he is pretty handy at bringing the ball back, so I’m working out at the moment the best way to go with Selwyn."

Arthars said he's hopeful the Broncos could find a way to keep both Cobbo and Staggs. Hunt's arrival comes on the back of Walsh signing a $5 million contract extension, while Haas, Mam and Patrick Carrigan are all on big-money deals. But Adam Reynolds is likely to retire at the end of 2025, and the Broncos have a number of hookers they could offload to free up cap space to retain Cobbo and Staggs.