Maguire: ‘A challenge like the Broncos makes you hungry for more’

Michael Maguire has made it very clear he walked away from the final year of the New South Wales Blues job to take on the Broncos “challenge” for one reason: Rebuilding the prestigious club was too enticing to ignore.

“Madge” was crowned the newest head coach at Red Hill on Tuesday morning, signing a three-year contract with the NRL club through to 2027.

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While Maguire’s big job won’t truly get started for a few weeks, the 50-year-old has already appeared in the media as the new Brisbane boss, declaring at a presser after the club’s coaching announcement that he’s “build a character around the team”—something many could already see was lacking somewhat through Kevin Walters’ reign.

Maguire has led some of the NRL’s biggest brands, including South Sydney who he led to a premiership in 2014, but he admitted Brisbane ranks very highly as one of Australia’s glamour clubs. “It’s not the first time I’ve talked about wanting this role. I love the big clubs. All NRL clubs are big in their own way but the Broncos mean a lot to the town. They fill a big space in the competition.”

More importantly, before he gets down to the nitty gritty, it sounds like Maguire’s going to bask in the appointment; he’s been interested in leading Brisbane’s Red Hill powerhouse to glory since as early as 2018 when he just missed the role to Anthony Seibold.

“I just like that Brisbane’s got that prestige, it’s a huge club and brand,” the now ex-Blues coach, who last led an NRL team in 2022, said. “A challenge like that makes you hungry for more.”

The Broncos picked Anthony Seibold over Madge (and several others) back in 2018.

Not everyone’s so convinced on Madge, especially considering his time with the Wests Tigers—the last time he commanded a roster in the NRL—saw him miss the finals every year and publicly feud with the board several times. Broncos legend Gorden Tallis has been particularly outspoken, suggesting Madge won’t do any better than Walters.

That’s not something the 50-year-old helmsman is going to take into account though: He’s backed himself to win a premiership with the Brisbane roster he’s inherited from Walters heading into 2023, though it may need a few tweaks.

The troops are most definitely there for a title push too; it was only 12 months ago that the Broncos were preparing for the big dance. They even led that decider against the Penrith Panthers for 65 minutes until a Nathan Cleary masterclass turned the tide.

The star-studded roster is a particular boon for any new coach, with Madge now getting the chance to work with young gun superstars like Reece Walsh, Ezra Mam, Pat Carrigan, and Kotoni Staggs. He already has some experience tutoring Payne Haas too, whose been a very key part of the New South Wales setup for some years now.

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Between the roster and Madge’s proven success, the Broncos seem set to rise—all that remains to be seen is how quickly the new boss can inject his hard-hitting DNA into the slumbering giant.