Defending premiers suffer fifth-straight defeat after Keano Kini’s late heroics
This is not the same Brisbane Broncos who pulled off a miracle en route to last year’s title. This is a premiership-winning team bereft of confidence, struggling for rhythm and reeling from two humiliating defeats before two hellish months.
Even wearing the popular all-black jerseys in support of the Black Dog Institute could not spark a thrilling first leg against the 16th-placed Gold Coast Titans in 2025; as Keano Kini’s absolute magic handed the defending champions their fifth consecutive defeat 28-23.
It looked like Brisbane had done enough to stop their losing streak when Adam Reynolds’ strike gave them the lead. But the Titans fullback had other ideas; Reece Walsh struggled for himself and recovered bravely as he charged the ball to seal a remarkable win.
The Broncos’ latest capitulation has left their title defense in freefall after squandering an early 12-0 lead following their shock defeat to the cellar-dwelling Dragons last week.
There were promising signs earlier, as fringe forward Brendan Piakura turned hitman against Tino Fa’asuamaleaui, then scored his first try of the night after his side had fallen short in several other raids.
Substitute Ezra Mam was given an early injection 15 minutes after Tom Duffy was sent off for HIA, and his scything run shortly after kick-off triggered a try for Kotoni Staggs.
But from there the wheels did not fall off, they exploded.
A mistake from Jack Gosiewski on his line gifted Kurtis Morrin a try; Phil Sami shrugged off Ben Hunt’s disastrous tackle attempt, evading Reece Walsh, who was tackled by a cork-covered quad, before turning on the afterburners to score.
Dazzling moves from the first half earned Jayden Campbell a double; The first was AJ Brimson’s support play on a line break, the second was his way to the line, fending off several defenders.
A mistake from Titans forward Klese Haas opened the door to a Broncos fightback, with Jesse Arthars racing for the corner and a miraculous Piakura strike from Grant Anderson leveling the shootout. Reynolds’ field goal was quickly forgotten thanks to Kini’s heroics.
Brisbane had one last chance after Reece Walsh cleared Josiah Karapani, but as the Titans cleared the scraps, the decision to introduce a ruckman with tackles on his arm and 30 seconds left on the clock proved a scare call.
Currently two wins out of the top six, the Broncos need to find their groove now or start booking an off-season break. Over the next eight games, Brisbane’s opponents are currently ranked 10th or higher, with their lowest-placed rivals the Cowboys yet to get a bye.
Walsh’s Maroons tryouts
There were early signs of hope that Walsh was about to enter the race; He was keen to insert himself into the competition and appeared to be running with unprecedented freedom and ferocity for much of his comeback from a facial fracture five weeks ago.
He may not have been the one-man wrecking crew that Broncos fans fell in love with in Walsh during his dazzling campaign that ended with the Clive Churchill Medal, but he was faultless, calm, willing and chivalrous after reports emerged that he had developed a fungus in his hip early in the contest.
Ultimately, the backline did not receive sufficient execution support from their team-mates despite the foundation laid by enforcers Payne Haas (187 running metres) and Xavier Willison, who racked up 212 meters from 20 carries in the absence of the injured Pat Carrigan (syndesmosis).
There’s no doubt Kalyn Ponga will retain Queensland full-back duties when coach Billy Slater names the second squad from State of Origin for the game on Monday, but there’s also a place on the bench.
Walsh’s Broncos teammate Gehamat Shibasaki will be sidelined for up to six weeks with a knee problem, while Mam was dumped on the Brisbane bench by Michael Maguire, dashing his hopes of retaining his place at the Maroons junction.
The Brisbane full-back finished with 249 running meters and 10 tackles, while the passing game gave Karapani the opportunity to get into open space and despite the result, that could be enough to earn a return to the Origin arena.
Slater’s message from the forgotten brochure
He appears to have fallen off the Origin radar since making two appearances for Queensland in 2020, but Sami gave Slater a final reminder that he is the man up to the job.
Although Titans teammate Jojo Fifita made almost no mistakes on his debut in game one, the more experienced winger combined security under the high ball with strong carries, which led to his individual effort to launch his team’s comeback.
Sami ran 264 meters in a mammoth display and if it wasn’t for the spark he provided Gold Coast may never have found the momentum swing they needed to engineer one of the most famous wins in their history.
