By Nick Wright
Billy Walters’ career renaissance has been the stuff of storybooks, and his latest move could have huge long-term ramifications for the Broncos.
The son of coach and Brisbane club great Kevin Walters has been unveiled as the side’s latest contract extension, his future now secured until the end of 2026.
Billy Walters celebrates scoring for the Brisbane Broncos against the North Queensland Cowboys.Credit: Getty Images
After a ruptured ACL suffered at the Wests Tigers, and cries of nepotism when he secured Brisbane’s No.9 jumper, the 30-year-old has defied the odds to become the Broncos’ top-line hooker.
“I’m really proud of the way Billy has improved his football here at the club,” Kevin Walters said. “We knew he would, but until you actually see the evidence of that [you never know].
“He’s fought hard to get every bit of his NRL career. Some players come in and get everything at their feet, but he’s had to fight really hard.
“That’s the proud dad moment, but also the proud Broncos moment.”
But could his resilience cost the Broncos another young man many pundits believe could be a generational talent?
Blake Mozer has been lauded as an NRL superstar in the making since his schoolboys days at Keebra Park, compared by some with the legendary Cameron Smith in his game style.
But the 19-year-old remains restricted to just 24 minutes of NRL action.
Those came in the round 27 defeat to the Melbourne Storm last year, when more than 20 players between the two teams were rested in anticipation for the finals.
Blake Mozer in action for Souths Logan Magpies.Credit: Dylan Parker Photography
Many would have been forgiven for believing it would mark the inauguration of a telling career. Another preseason under his belt, and he could make one of the Broncos’ two hooker duties his own.
But alas, the prediction did not eventuate. Tyson Smoothy was chosen to deputise for Walters in the same manner as he did en route to the grand final.
Smoothy impressed enough to garner a contract extension of his own, locked down until the end of 2025.
So, as Mozer plies his trade with the Souths Logan Magpies, is he still regarded as the future of the powerhouse outfit?
“He certainly does [fit into our future],” Kevin Walters said.
“We’ve been monitoring his progress in the Queensland Cup, and he’s been playing some good footy there, striking up some good combinations, so we expect him to play NRL here.
“Just at the moment Billy and Tyson have got the mortgage on those two positions, but we see Blake as a long-term player here.
“We expect him to play in the NRL this year, we’ll have no hesitation in playing him in our team, he’s just a young player coming through and still learning.”
The nature of the NRL itself could dictate those terms. Struggling clubs are on the lookout for new talent, and the importance of the hooker has become more apparent as the code becomes faster than ever before.
Teams on a rebuild mission could look to build a prosperous spine around a player like Mozer – off contract at the end of 2025.
When an average NRL career spans barely 40 games, an opportunity to make a living sooner rather than later is paramount.
But the Broncos coach has pleaded for patience, and it may well be wisdom worth considering for the rising star.
It is a path his son Billy went down, playing 56 of his 68 career games since arriving at the Broncos in 2022.
It is the way in which Ben Hunt rose from an interchange hooker for much of his first five years in the NRL to now being regarded as one of the game’s leading halfbacks and a State of Origin regular.
The benefits, Kevin Walters says, will come if Mozer keeps himself planted and willing to grow in Brisbane.
“Patience is a virtue, you need to be patient in life and particularly in rugby league,” he said.
“If you’re in a hurry to get somewhere too quickly, it often doesn’t work out for you. He’s doing some good things, but there are still some parts of his game he needs to work really hard on – which he is.”