Anthony Seibold was a hard taskmaster and Kevin Walters is a larrikin.
That’s one of the biggest differences between the two head mentors in the eyes of Brisbane Broncos enforcer Payne Haas.
Walters took over as Brisbane’s coach after the Broncos’ tumultuous 2020 season, in which the club had plummeted to its first wooden spoon in history under the guidance of Seibold.
Haas said Walters had already packed barrels upon barrels of laughter into his first off-season with the playing group.
“He’s cracking jokes a bit more with the young boys, getting them more involved with stuff and we’re cracking jokes at meetings and even on the field,” Haas told Wide World of Sports.
“We’re working hard but cracking jokes here and there too.”
When prompted on Walters’ favourite joke of the lot, Haas had an easy answer in mind.
“How he talks about his six premiership rings all the time,” Haas laughed.
“That’s his go-to joke with all us boys. He reminds us nearly every day.”
Walters tasted premiership glory with the Canberra Raiders in 1989 and won titles with Brisbane in 1992, 1993, 1997, 1998 and 2000.
Walters was overlooked for Brisbane’s coaching gig, a position the Broncos great had craved for years, when Seibold was installed as Wayne Bennett’s replacement at the end of the 2018 season.
But he’s now at the helm of the club at which he played 237 games between 1990 and 2000, a golden age in Broncos history in which Walters joined forces with Allan Langer, Gorden Tallis, Darren Lockyer, Wendell Sailor, Steve Renouf and a host of other champions.
Walters is now teaming up with the likes of Haas, Alex Glenn, Anthony Milford, Kotoni Staggs, Xavier Coates, Tom Deardon and Jake Turpin as the Broncos strive to fight back from their abysmal 2020 campaign.
Haas wasn’t critical of Seibold in his interview with Wide World of Sports, instead pointing out that his coaching style had thrived at other clubs.
“Anthony came from that Storm system and he had a harder approach. It works. Obviously last year it didn’t work but it does work for certain teams,” Haas said.
“You see the Storm and they’re thriving. We have to adapt and when it comes to adversity it’s not just a coaches’ problem; it’s some of us players’ problems and when adversity hits we crumble. That’s what we’ve got to fix this year.”
Walters emotional after securing dream job
For a daily dose of the best of the breaking news and exclusive content from Wide World of Sports, subscribe to our newsletter by clicking here!
