Broncos ‘cattledog’ set to bark 30 years after old man
Joel Gould |
Brisbane workhorse forward Kobe Hetherington will join Manly next year, but there is unfinished business to attend to in the grand final to make it 1-1 with his legendary father Jason.
Bench weapon Kobe is referred to by his captain Adam Reynolds as the side’s “cattledog” because he is always there to do the hard yards, come rain, hail or shine.
Kobe is one of 10 survivors in the current 17 that lost 26-24 to Penrith in the 2023 heartbreaker decider, but he gets a chance to right that wrong against Melbourne on Sunday.
Next year the 26-year-old will join the Sea Eagles on a four-year deal.
Jason, a skilled and tough hooker for Queensland and the Bulldogs, lost the 1994 grand final against the champion Canberra side, before shining the following year when the Bulldogs upset Manly in the decider. His last grand final was the 1998 loss to the Broncos.
“Hopefully Kobe gets the win in 2025 and it will be 30 years since I won mine in 1995,” Jason told AAP.
“It was Mal Meninga’s last year in 1994 for Canberra and Baa’s (Terry Lamb’s) supposed last for us in 1995. The fairytale scripts were written for those two, which they deserved. It is Kobe’s last Broncos game, so hopefully the script is written for him.”
Kobe, who will play his 105th NRL match for the Broncos, said the Hetherington clan were due another premiership.
“We were just talking about it the other night. It will be five grand finals between us now,” Kobe said.
“He’s won one, so I have to get one back on him. It’s pretty special. It will be good to have him there for the grand final.”
As a child Kobe and his twin brother Zac would help Jason in the family cattle yard in rural Central Queensland. Jason would brand the calves, then tell the pair to wrangle and ride them.
“They’d have skin off them and there would be bloody dust flying,” Jason recalled.
From tackling calves to bringing down Storm giant Stefano Utoikamanu is a leap in the challenge stakes, but Kobe won’t die wondering. He won’t leave anything in the tank in his last Broncos match.
“There will be no stones unturned, that’s for sure,” he said.
“I will go in flying and put my best foot forward for this club. This club has given me so much. The least I can do is go out with a bang.
“I don’t really want to talk about next year too much just yet. I have got a grand final to play. My heart and soul is with the Broncos.”
Kobe took time to get his NRL shot, and there was a moment when he considered getting a job in the mines.
“It’s the hard work and the toiling. He wasn’t a schoolboy superstar as such,” Jason said.
“He was a late developer physically, but the Broncos were patient with him and gave him time to grow and develop. He’s had the hard times, good times, trying times and injuries.
“There were a few times I’ve had to have the conversations with him to stick with it and hang in. He’s done the hard work.
“I am proud of him anyway, but I’d just be so happy for him to win it. I know what’s it like to win one.
“The Broncos had nine fingers on the trophy in 2023, so to go one better would be nice for them.”
Kobe is still burning from the Broncos’ late collapse against the Panthers two years ago.
“It hurt. It still hurts you today. There are 10 of us from that 2023 grand final and we know how it feels to lose a grand final,” he said.
“We have just got to make sure we win it. We have got to play for 80 minutes. That’s what we have been doing, playing right until the last minute. We didn’t do that in 2023.”
AAP
