Broncos slim finals chances take another hit after "flat" performance

Brisbane Broncos legend Corey Parker has slammed his former club following their 41-16 thrashing at the hands of the Bulldogs in Round 21.

With their season very much on the line, the Broncos resembled witches hats during Saturday’s loss as the Bulldogs ran in eight tries and posted over 600 more running metres than Brisbane.

Over 40,000 fans at Suncorp Stadium were left stunned at the result and it has led Parker to question the team’s preparation ahead of the match.

“The Broncos, quite simply, didn’t adjust to the conditions or what was coming at them,” Parker said on SENQ.

“10 line breaks against the Brisbane Broncos. The Bulldogs were playing as a collective unit and it was a fault performance from the Broncos when their season was on the line.

“Preparation is the default that puts you in every contest. I can’t get my head around why the Broncos would be flat.

“40,000 people turned up to watch the Broncos put the cleaners through the Bulldogs and it didn’t happen. It didn’t even look like it was going to happen.

“The one thing I 100% know is that your preparation reflects what you see on the field.

“I’ve had good words from sources to say that the training at the Broncos reflects their play on the field. That is a concern.”

The loss now leaves the Broncos sitting precariously on the ladder in 13th position and are two games outside the top eight. Brisbane will face three top eight sides in their run home and another loss will likely see them eliminated from finals contention.

Parker believes that the mountain may be too high to climb for the Broncos who are less than 12 months removed from a Grand Final appearance.

“So much was on the line,” Parker continued.

“It was very underwhelming. There is no sugarcoating it.

“There hasn’t been the resilience from the team that we saw last year.

“In the last four years with the roster that they have had, they have only played in three finals matches.

“You just need to find a bit of inspiration and confidence. All the things that went wrong in the first half (were heightened) in the second half.”

The Broncos travel to the Gold Coast in Round 22 to take on the Titans on Saturday.