Reece Walsh has insisted his month on the sidelines did not leave him suffering from a crisis of confidence, and conceded his form had not warranted a State of Origin recall.
Since making his return from a fractured cheekbone, Walsh and the Broncos have endured four straight losses to leave their premiership defence in freefall.
Aside from a scintillating second half against the Roosters, the mercurial fullback has been unable to recapture the form which garnered a Clive Churchill Medal and Kangaroos debut last year, and culminated in his omission from the Queensland Maroons squad for the game one defeat.
When Walsh suffered his injury against the Titans in round five โ the same rivals they face on Saturday โ it was the second time in two years he had sustained such a blow, following his clash with centre Taylan May in 2024.
โItโs one of those injuries where it is what it is, Iโve just got to keep moving forward, keep playing my best footy and upholding those standards that put me in a good spot.โ
Much of the commentary surrounding the Maroons game one squad was the absence of Walsh. Kalyn Ponga was preferred in the No.1 jumper, while Ezra Mam and Gehamat Shibasaki took the backline bench options.
Shibasaki has since suffered a knee injury, ruling him out for up to six weeks, while Mam has been relegated to Brisbaneโs six-man bench this week.
Walsh harbours a close relationship with Queensland coach Billy Slater, but was adamant his hopes of helping the Maroons save the series would only happen if he could arrest his sideโs slump.
โObviously as a young Queenslander all you want to do is grow up and play for Queensland, so to not be named and not get that call was disappointing, but I know the standard it takes to play for Queensland,โ Walsh said.
โIโm a realist, and Iโm honest with myself, and I probably havenโt been living up to those standards that it takes to wear that Queensland jersey. I feel like thatโs what makes it so great, once you put that jersey on you know what it takes to get back there.
โI understand I havenโt been upholding those standards, but itโs about putting in the hard work here at training and relaying that back onto the field. Itโd be nice to be in that arena and be amongst the Queenslanders, but my full focus right now is on playing good footy for the Broncos.โ
The Broncos slide down the ladder comes as parallels are being drawn between this yearโs group and last yearโs premiership outfit, who endured a four-game losing run before debuting the all black mental health jersey.
Frustrations are evident within the Brisbane camp, after Payne Haas tore strips off his side in an interview with ABC following the St George-Illawarra defeat, in which he claimed the squad were โall talkโ and failing to back it up on the field.
In what was the superstar propโs first game back from a knee injury, he ran for 281 metres and made 33 tackles.
Walsh had no issue with Haasโ comments, and stressed that such an honest review showcased the quality of leader the star prop was within the Broncosโ ranks.
โThere was a point last year where we were going through the same sort of rollercoaster, and we had the same conversations in-house. It just shows the quality we have here at the club and the quality of leader Payno is,โ Walsh said.
โHe doesnโt leave any stone unturned, and he tells you to your face how it is. For us as players, those are the conversations you want to be having.
โItโs not ideal to be having them and having the losses, but I feel like if we werenโt having them weโd be taking the piss. Weโve got to respect it, honour it, and keep showing up every day and work hard.โ
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