Anthony Milford's Broncos career has hit rock bottom, with the $1 million-a-season half sent back to train with reserve grade with his axing for the club's Round 6 clash with the Panthers all but inevitable.
After a bright start to the season that earned him one Dally M vote in Brisbane's first round loss to the Eels, Milford's form has frustrated coach Kevin Walters, admitting last week that he hadn't done enough this season to earn a new deal.
Milford's lucrative contract with the Broncos expires at the end of this season and Walters' decision to dump him from first grade all but assures he will be at a different club next season.
The 26-year-old five-eighth may not be the only casualty following Brisbane's 35-6 loss to the Rabbitohs last Thursday, with young centre Tesi Niu also sent back to reserve grade for today's training session.
Niu looks set to be replaced by Jesse Arthars, whiled Milford is likely to lose his place in the side to Brodie Croft, who started the season as the Broncos' first-choice No.7 but made way for Tom Dearden a fortnight ago.
Thursday night's clash with the Panthers will complete the full cycle of starting halves combinations for the Broncos, with Walters unable to settle on any one of his three recognised halves so far this season.
It's a huge problem for the club and has been exacerbated by the recent speculation that Dearden is exploring a move away from the Broncos after being unable to get a consistent shot as the club's first-choice No.7 despite impressing in flashes over his first two seasons.
Dearden was last week reportedly sounded out by a third party attempting to broker an immediate club switch that would send him north to the Cowboys, where Michael Morgan's retirement and Jake Clifford's impending move to the Knights has cleared a path for a new halfback to be signed.
MORE TO FOLLOW…
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.