EXCLUSIVE: Darren Lockyer names new-look spine contenders for Brisbane Broncos' 2023 season
Brisbane legend Darren Lockyer has tipped teenage hooker Blake Mozer to come in and make a difference next season, as the Broncos look to pick up the pieces after a devastating end to their 2022 campaign.
While Reece Walsh and Adam Reynolds are penciled in at fullback and halfback, respectively, Lockyer said he wouldn't be surprised if the boom rookie comes in to claim the No.9 jersey.
"Reece is a quality talent - he'll come back in and play the one, obviously Adam Reynolds will stay there at the seven - there's still a bit of debate about the nine," he said on Nine's QLDER.
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"There is a young kid coming through, Blake Mozer. But you've still got Billy Walters and Cory Paix.
"There may be another one coming to the club, another hooker, but there'll be some competition for the hooker spot but I think there's high hopes internally for this young kid Blake Mozer coming through, who unfortunately just sustained a long-term injury at the back end of the year."
Mozer has been a part of the Broncos academy since he was 13, and trained with the NRL squad these season after graduating from famed rugby league nursery, Keebra Park High School.
In May, he re-signed at Red Hill until the end of 2025.
Darren Lockyer has named Blake Mozer as a potential solution to Brisbane's hooker woes. Getty
Lockyer said that alongside Mozer and Walsh, Ezra Mam should continue to hone his craft as the five-eighth in what would be one of the youngest combinations of No.1, 6, and 9 in the NRL - with Reynolds providing the veteran presence
"He's young, he's still learning. The six is still up for grabs but I think long-term, he's the man there," Lockyer said.
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But Paix, who shared time with Walters this year, shouldn't be forgotten either. The Broncos' attack looked a lot more polished when he was on the field, winning nine of 12 in games that he featured in.
"I see a lot of creativity in his play, certainly shining at the right time of the season and not doing so well at the wrong part - but I guess that pretty much was shared throughout the course of the team," Wally Lewis said.
"A lot of the guys, the confidence levels seemed to be damaged. Were they irreparable? I guess only time will tell."
There's no mincing words when it comes to the disappointment of the final few weeks of Brisbane season, and Lockyer said that it has to be finals or bust, regardless of who they opt to go with in those key positions.
"If you're looking at continual improvement, we've gone from 14th to ninth. And I think Kevin, everyone internally at the club, players, admin, would be thinking finals is definitely the target," he said.
"To play finals, we know that that's what the Broncos are about. It looked likely it was going to happen this year, but we fell short.
"We do need to look at the areas where we have to get better to play finals football."
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