"All the qualities": Former Broncos captain makes call on club's next captain

He might not have a contract for 2027.

But former Broncos captain Corey Parker believes that the club should appoint Billy Walters as its next captain.

With Brisbane’s captain Adam Reynolds confirming that 2026 would be his last year in the NRL, there has been an open question around who will be his replacement.

Among the reigning premiers, there are plenty of veterans in their leadership group capable of filling the void, with Ben Hunt going into his 19th season in the NRL alongside Pat Carrigan and Kotoni Staggs, who have spent their entire careers with the club.

However, the second-most-capped player in Broncos’ history should look beyond the leadership group and appoint Walters to the position.

“When I sit back, and I see who has influence on those around him, Billy Walters is a name that just keeps coming up to me,” Parker said on SENQ Breakfast.

“A number of players could be a captain on the Broncos and whoever they pick will do a great job.

“But when I think team first, when I think selflessness, when I think communicating towards the general public, when I think of work ethic, when I think of respect, accountability, these sorts of things, it's something that is just ingrained in Billy Walters.”

The former Queensland and Australian representative also noted that the son of club legend Kevin has shown an ability to have influence on the squad, having made an immediate impact after coming back from a ruptured ACL during last year’s final series.

“He plays a pivotal position. He'll have a huge influence over what is going on in terms of energy," he continued.

“I go back to last year through that run of injury when they had and what he was able to do. I go back to his immediate input he had for Brisbane in only a couple of (games ago) against the Dolphins.

“It was his first start, and he had immediate (impact), and I just stand back, and from a leadership point of view, he's got all the qualities.

“I think he's got the respect of his teammates (and) as I made mention, there's a number of guys. Obviously, people just go, Oh, Pat's done it before, Pat'll get it.

“I'm not so sure. I think you have to look at it from a holistic point of view, and go, well, who best suits us right now? What does that look like?

“For me, I think it'd be a great appointment if Billy Walters was given the captaincy of the Brisbane Broncos for a number of reasons, not just for one, for a number of reasons."

Should Walters be appointed, he and dad Kevin would become the first father-son combination to have both captained the club.

The Broncos play host to the Warriors on Saturday night at Suncorp Stadium.

SEN will have live coverage of the match from 7pm AEST with Broncos Radio, which can be heard on SENQ, SEN Track Brisbane, SEN Track Atherton, Ingham, Rockhampton & Darling Downs and on the SEN app.

The match kicks off at 7:35pm.