Broncos axe Maroons star Mam after Dragons loss

By JOEL GOULD

Brisbane Broncos coach Michael Maguire threatened to swing the axe and he has swung it hard, with Indigenous star Ezra Mam dropped to the bench and young gun Tom Duffy recalled at five-eighth for this weekend’s NRL round.

Last week Mam was sitting on the Queensland bench and hoping to be injected into the opening State of Origin clash.

Instead he’s been ejected from the Broncos starting side and is no guarantee of getting on the field at Suncorp Stadium on Saturday night against Gold Coast.

The Broncos have lost their past four games and 2025 premiership winner Mam has been underwhelming.

Former North Queensland playmaker Duffy, just 22, has been outstanding in the three NRL games he has played for the Broncos.

Broncos young gun Tom Duffy has been named at five-eighth for Brisbane. (AAP PHOTOS)

Brisbane’s 30-26 loss to last placed St George Illawarra on Sunday hurt Mam’s chances. He was off the pace and the Dragons took a 30-8 lead. He did have a leg issue and came to the bench briefly but went straight back on.

“Obviously we’re not getting the starts right, we’re not matching intensity at times and it’s not good enough,” Maguire said.

Maguire said he was not afraid to make changes and he has done so to try to ignite the 11th placed Broncos.

The club has employed Melbourne and Queensland legend Cameron Smith as a consultant to assist the senior leaders and spine members in a mentoring role. Smith was at Brisbane HQ at Red Hill on Tuesday to pass on his wisdom.

Brutal assessment

Veteran half Ben Hunt, who is coming off the bench these days, said the post-match barrage from Maguire after the Dragons loss was brutal.

“As you could imagine, he wasn’t real happy after that one,” Hunt said.

“Deservingly, he ripped into us, he really did.

“We need to have a look at ourselves and sort it out or the season’s going to disappear pretty quickly.

“I’m sure Madge (Maguire) is going to do some searching and there’ll probably be some changes to the team because enough is enough.”

Mam, who trained with the Broncos on Tuesday and moved freely, is the man to feel the coach’s wrath.

Tom Duffy (l) will partner Adam Reynolds (r) in the halves for Brisbane. (AAP PHOTOS)

Duffy has been fine-tuning his craft and will feel comfortable in the halves alongside captain Adam Reynolds, with whom he has forged a strong bond.

“He’s a great fella and you can just sit down and have a coffee and talk footy or even just away from footy, talk about life with him, so he’s been really good,” Duffy said recently.

“Just watching him and training with him and Dozer (Hunt) just going about their work, you just learn stuff being so close to them that you otherwise wouldn’t.

“Then if there’s something you need to ask about, they’re not withholding any information.

“They’re at the age where they want to give on what they’ve learned, and I’m really grateful for that. They have been unreal.”

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