Latest news with #BenIkin
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
NRL fans all say same thing about Ben Ikin amid embarrassing new low for Broncos
Brisbane Broncos fans are urging the NRL club to try and lure Ben Ikin back after a stunning fall from grace since his departure. Ikin was formerly the head of football at the Broncos, but departed in 2023 to become the CEO of Queensland Rugby League. His time at the club was marred by rumours he didn't see eye-to-eye with then-coach Kevin Walters, and his departure came after his role was scaled back significantly. Walters initially reported to Ikin, but that was changed so Walters could get around Ikin and report straight to CEO Dave Donaghy. When leaving the Broncos in 2023, Ikin said: 'The short answer is I came in expecting to do a certain number of things, some of those things dropped off, and I picked up some other projects." Although the Broncos made the grand final in 2023, they've fallen off a cliff since Ikin's departure. They finished 12th in 2024 (which led to Walters being sacked), and are 11th after 13 rounds in 2025 under new coach Michael Maguire. Questions are starting to emerge about the leadership at the club, particularly at board level. Ikin's name has been mentioned a number of times in recent weeks as someone who might be able to fix the joint and get the club back on track. One person wrote on social media: "The Broncos messed up major when they let Ben Ikin walk." Another commented: "Bring Ben Ikin back no matter what it takes. This club is a joke and should be viewed as one." While a third added: "When Ikin was pushed out because Kevvie had his ego bruised, that was the end. Ikin got practically zero credit for turning the place around - now we are back in the same hole as 2020/21." Late last year, the Broncos tried to poach the Melbourne Storm's highly-rated general manager Frank Ponissi, but he decided to remain under Craig Bellamy. It was a clear indication the Broncos realised they're lacking what Ikin provided in his role, which they haven't been able to fill. The dude had them on the straight and narrow. It still baffles me to this day why they couldn't see all the good he'd done and throw the chequebook at him. — Rupert McDougall (@RupertMcDougall) June 2, 2025 Bring back Ben ikin — Ben (@buskya2) May 31, 2025 Fire everyone. Release every player except, like, Pat and Reyno and start over. Bring Ben Ikin back no matter what it club is a joke and should be viewed as one. — Lukas (@NotPatCarrigan) May 31, 2025 Thank you. When Ikin was pushed out because Kevvie had his ego bruised, that was the end. Ikin got practically zero credit for turning the place around - now we are back in the same hole as 2020/21. — Ben (@orca_chaser) May 31, 2025 It came after the club was forced to deny rumours of Ikin's return when Walters was sacked in October. Ikin was noticeably absent on NRL grand final day, when he was expected to be in attendance for the State Championship final. Instead it was chairman Bruce Hatcher acting as the QRL's representative, and he presented the trophy to the Newtown Jets after the game. Ikin's absence sparked rumours he may have left his QRL role, with many suggesting he could be on the verge a return to the Broncos. But Broncos chairman Karl Morris later said: 'We are very happy with Dave (Donaghy as CEO). We have never had more members and sponsorship, but it's also about winning on the field and that's our goal every year.' RELATED: Payne Haas could link with brother as manager makes call on future NRL fans left saddened over news about Tim Sheens and Robbie Farah With the Broncos in desperate need of an overhaul, many believe Ikin is the man for the job. Whether or not he'll leave Queensland Rugby League and return to the role at the Brisbane club remains to be seen.
ABC News
21-05-2025
- Sport
- ABC News
No matter what happens in his Origin debut, history beckons for rookie maroon Robert Toia
There have been plenty of bolters in State of Origin's 45-year history, but in some respects newly minted Queensland centre Robert Toia already stands alone. With just 10 NRL games under his belt as he prepares for his Maroon debut on Wednesday night, you have to dig deep into the annals of Origin history to find anything like the 20-year old Rooster. Since the Broncos entered the NSWRL in 1988 and Queensland no longer selected players straight from the Brisbane premiership, only two players have made their first grade and Origin debuts in the same year. Both of them — Willie Carne in 1990 (six games) and Ben Ikin in 1995 (four games) — came off the bench when they became the two-least experienced Origin players of all time. It was the same for New South Wales forward Payne Haas in 2019 (10 games) when he set the NRL-era record. When Toia hits the Lang Park turf he will break Jim Leis's record as the least-experienced starting player in Origin history. It's currently shared by Trent Barrett, who debuted at five-eighth for the Blues in the third game of the 1997 series when there were no Super League players selected, and Jim Leis, who played lock for New South Wales in the first ever Origin match back in 1980. It's a measure of how dramatic Toia's ascension really is that we must look to split competitions and the very dawn of these times for anything similar. An Origin debut under those circumstances would take something exceptional no matter what, let alone with Toia likely being asked to handle Latrell Mitchell and the rest of the New South Wales left edge. According to Brent Tate, who currently shares the record for fewest matches before a Queensland debut in the NRL era — another record Toia will break in Origin I — the challenge shouldn't intimidate the young Rooster but inspire him. "I heard Billy (Slater) say during the week that Queensland chooses you and that's a great analogy," Tate said. "He's in the team for a reason. Billy and the state believe in him and he's got a huge task, marking Latrell, but it's not something he should be worried or afraid of — he should be up for the challenge in his own mind, 'how is Latrell going to contain me?' "That's the aggressive mindset you have to play with, you have to play tough. "Enjoy every minute of it but know that when Wednesday comes around you have to be big, you have to be aggressive, you have to play your best game of footy." Tate had played just 14 NRL matches when he was picked for the 2002 decider, playing the final 25 minutes at centre as Queensland secured a draw to retain the shield. He says now that he was too young to truly grasp what was happening, which means he was too young to be afraid and, like Toia, initially thought the call telling him he'd be a maroon was a gee up from a teammate. "If you've ever been in a footy club you know it's a tough school, you wouldn't put it past the boys doing that. But when you've played a handful of games it can be surreal, so you do wonder. It's a call you never forget," Tate said. "My whole first week was all about excitement, I wasn't nervous at all. It wasn't until I ran out there that I realised the enormity of it all and it was an out-of-body experience. "I took my position and looked down to see I was wearing the maroon kit, I looked up and saw the blue jerseys and that's when it hit me — holy shit, I'm playing State of Origin football. "It happens so fast you're almost too naïve to understand the enormity of it. You ride the wave of emotion and enjoy every second of it, that's how it was for me." To some, Toia has seemed like an Origin prospect for some time, even accounting for this very early start. Roosters teammate Connor Watson, who will come off the bench for New South Wales on Wednesday, remembers when Toia first showed up at the Tricolours as a 17-year old to train with the top squad. "He was setting up and scoring tries against the first-grade squad, so straight away you could tell he was going to be a freak," Watson said. "He probably didn't think getting picked in Origin would happen this quickly for him but you could always see the talent, he always felt like he would be an Origin player. "To do it after 10 games, it shows how special a talent he is." Toia's 10 games with the Roosters have been impressive while also being sprinkled with moments of inexperience you'd expect from any player just beginning his time in first grade. Two weeks ago, Toia scored a powerful double against the Dolphins at Magic Round and set a new season high for run metres. It showed the best of him — his speed, his power and his strength. In his next game, he dropped the ball while trying to put it down against Canterbury without a defender in sight. Which showed that he is still young, still learning, still finding his way. Teething problems take time to pass. Consistency at the top level is a skill that can only be learned through experience and even for his age Toia hasn't had the same time to do it as most. A series of knee injuries and a broken jaw mean he had played just 12 games in the past two seasons before 2025. Even so, he's played more NSW Cup games than he has NRL games. It might have cost Toia valuable time to settle into the NRL ahead of what will be the biggest night of his life, but Watson — no stranger to injury himself — believes it's given Toia a greater maturity and perspective. "You don't take things for granted as much. That was part of my mentality of enjoying the experience because when you're away from the game it can really test your love for the game," Watson said. "You have time to reflect, and Rob's had those two ACL's, so when he's come back he's really enjoyed his training. He's been really diligent. "That's really come through in the thing that's impressed me so much this year, which is his attitude and mentality in defence. "He's put that first and he's wanted to do a good job defensively and he has done that." That defensive aptitude will be put to the ultimate test on Wednesday night. Mitchell and the rest of the NSW left edge would feature heavily in Laurie Daley's game plan regardless of who was opposite them, but given Toia's inexperience he will no doubt be targeted. Even if there are many more Queensland nights to come, this might be the greatest challenge he ever faces. Never again will he be asked to confront such an unknown and nobody in the history of State of Origin football has been asked to do such a big job with such little experience. If things backfire it might be as a footnote, a factoid for the trainspotters to pull out at a trivia night — the rookie who got cast into the Origin fires with so few NRL appearances you can count them on your fingers. But it could also be as the newest piece of the story Queensland tells itself over and over, the one that starts with an unheralded maroon becoming more than he ever thought he could be when his state needed him. Ten games is not a long time to learn how to be a hero, but 80 minutes of Origin football can be enough to become one.
Daily Mail
25-04-2025
- Sport
- Daily Mail
Queensland Rugby League boss calls for a FIFTH team to be based in the Sunshine State - as NRL agrees in principle to expansion with Perth Bears
The rugby league heartland of Ipswich and its western environs are ripe for the NRL to insert a 20th side, Queensland Rugby League boss Ben Ikin insists. The Australian Rugby League Commission (ARLC) has agreed in principle to a revised proposal from the Western Australia government for an NRL team in Perth in 2027 which will resurrect, in an affiliation, foundation club North Sydney Bears. PNG will be the 19th team in 2028. When the former Western Corridor bid, now known as the Jets, was forged 18 years ago, former NRL boss David Gallop toured the region and said the game had to go 'where the fish are biting'.' The rugby league heartland produced the Walters brothers, Allan Langer and further west the likes of Shane Webcke, Steve Price and Darren Lockyer. The Jets, slated to be based in Ipswich but with an affiliation with Newtown Jets, has QRL boss Ikin's backing as the next NRL franchise. '(PNG) gets us to 19 teams so it makes sense that we get to 20 to fully realise the broadcast rights opportunity,' he said. 'Then you can have 10 games and maybe the chance to split up into conferences and do some good things with the draw. 'That (western corridor) region has such a rich rugby league history and from a population perspective is one of the fastest growing in the country, and it is rugby league mad. 'The AFL are out there with an elite presence (at the Brisbane Lions' home base in Springfield) and we are not. 'It makes sense to me that once you get through the logistically challenged franchises in PNG and Perth then you can potentially bolt on and make team number 20 something you could switch on really quick.' The Queensland boss hailed the return of a Perth-based side for the first time since 1997 and the return of the Bears who he played for in their last season in the NRL in 1999. 'Anyone who loves the game and there's lots of us, we want more people to love the game the way we do,' he said. 'So taking the game we love back to the other side of the country and giving them another chance to see the best version of what we do in the NRL can only be good for rugby league. 'If Super League taught us anything it is that history counts,' Ikin added. 'It can't be manufactured. The Bears survived for a long time at the top end of the game and continued to exist while not being afforded the opportunity. 'It is a credit to all the people that kept it alive and to see the history that all those good people believed in re-emerge in the elite version of what we do is magnificent.' The Ipswich-based Jets bid would also add the romantic notion of revitalising foundation club Newtown Jets. 'Who doesn't like a bit of romance in rugby league? To have that brand in the elite national competition would be special,' Ikin said. 'In that western region effectively you will drag in Brisbane central like the (Brisbane) Tigers, the Ipswich Jets as another pathways club and the Western Clydesdales out there in Toowoomba. 'The road that connects the two most-western of those pathways clubs is called Darren Lockyer Way. 'If that doesn't make sense from a rugby league perspective I don't know what will.'
