This is only the beginning of the Broncos' junior talent exodus if the club can't pull itself from a historic form slump, Brisbane great Sam Thaiday warns.
Yet Thaiday has also urged young players in the Broncos system to embrace the opportunity to build a dynasty from scratch at the once-mighty club.
Off the back of last year's historic wooden spoon, Brisbane have started this season 0-2 under new coach Kevin Walters, displaying many of their existing flaws. From last season to present, they are on a 13-game losing streak.
Having already lost superstar forward David Fifita to the Gold Coast, the Broncos are now reeling from young fullback Reece Walsh signing with the Warriors. Boom forward Brendan Piakura will join the Bulldogs, according to The Mole, while Kotoni Staggs, Xavier Coates and Tom Dearden are also being eyed-off by rival clubs.
Being fleeced of elite young players is an almost unprecedented problem for the Broncos. Yet Brisbane's glory days are long gone; once a replica Queensland team, the Broncos didn't have a single Maroons player in last year's State of Origin decider.
"This is a knock-on effect of the Broncos not going so well," Thaiday said on Wide World of Sports' QLDER.
"You win the wooden spoon last year, you have really started the season off great this year.
"We're going to start losing more and more of these younger talents and there's going to be more and more younger players that won't want to come to the Broncos if we don't build the Broncos back up to where it should be."
Thaiday, part of the club's last premiership team in 2006, urged Queensland juniors to see the big picture beyond the Broncos' current malaise.
"I'd like to see some of these guys be a little bit patient," he said.
"I would love to be a part of a rebuilding, I would love to be there when things turn around and things start going well. Then people want to come back and you are building your own little dynasty there.
"If I was a young forward and I saw a guy like Payne Haas, who I think is going to be a fantastic forward leader for many years to come, playing for NSW, playing for Australia and will lead the Broncos for a long, long time, I'd love to be a part of that.
"Patty Carrigan as well, another player who maybe even this year will play some Origin footy. There's some great young forwards there that are building their own careers; I'd love to be a part [of that] and I'd love to be hanging around them."
Inaugural Broncos captain and rugby league Immortal Wally Lewis said that Brisbane were mid-rebuild and urged Piakura to reconsider leaving the club.
"Young talent used to love coming to the Broncos and staying at the Broncos, they wanted that to be their life-long club," Lewis said on QLDER.
"Is it the suggestion of their management? Well, perhaps it is.
"I'd say to Brendan, just remain open-minded. You can stay at the Broncos for a long, long time, they're a wonderful club that can assist you.
"Sure, they're going through some tough times at the moment but they're on a bit of a rebuilding scheme to be able to promise well for the future. I guess they've got the chance to be able to do that.
"The forwards, there's a couple of very big, very powerful forwards at the Broncos and a couple that aren't playing at the moment through injuries as well, so this could be the start of something very beneficial for Brendan."
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