2006 Brisbane Broncos season
< 2005 2007 >
Darren Lockyer and Wayne Bennett with the NRL trophy after 2006 grand final.

The 2006 Brisbane Broncos season was the nineteenth in the club's history. Coached by Wayne Bennett and captained by Darren Lockyer, they won the NRL's 2006 Telstra Premiership, finishing the regular season in 3rd place before going on to defeat the first-placed Melbourne Storm in the 2006 NRL Grand Final (their 6th).

Season summary

The Broncos did not start the 2006 season well, suffering a 36–4 defeat by the previous year's runners-up, the North Queensland Cowboys in the first round. This was the 8th consecutive loss for the club and equalled the record for longest losing streak set in 2003. Round 2 saw the Broncos get their first win for the season and their first win since Round 21, 2005, with a 16–12 victory over the Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks (this was the third game in a row in which the Brisbane Broncos beat the Cronulla Sharks 16-12 at Toyota Park). The Broncos then went on to have a strong first half of the season, winning 11 of their first 17 games. Round 8 saw Brisbane produce their biggest comeback in the club's history when they came from 18–0 down at halftime to win 30–28 over the Canberra Raiders. But the year's biggest upset came when the team, missing key players through State of Origin, lost to the last-placed and previously winless South Sydney Rabbitohs 34-14 in Round 14.

After the 2006 State of Origin series finished, Brisbane once again suffered their "post-Origin Slump", losing five consecutive games from Round 18 to Round 23 inclusive. However, strong performances against the competition leaders Melbourne Storm (losing 18–12) and a resounding victory against the Canterbury Bulldogs 30-0 the following week saw a return to form. The Broncos then defeated the injury-struck Parramatta Eels 23-0 in Round 25 and then the New Zealand Warriors 36-12 in Round 26. It was the first time since 1999 that the Broncos conceded no points in consecutive rounds.

Brisbane was heading into the finals with momentum not seen since 2000, but lost to the St. George Illawarra Dragons 20-4 in what was the highest attended Broncos game ever played at Suncorp Stadium at the time. The following week Wayne Bennett agreed to terms to continue coaching the Broncos for a further two years.[1] The Broncos bounced back in the semi-final, defeating the Newcastle Knights by 50–6. Captain Darren Lockyer also became the Broncos' highest point-scorer with 1,077 (breaking Michael De Vere's record of 1,062 points). After trailing 20–6 at half-time against the Bulldogs in the grand final qualifier the team came back in the second half to earn a place in the 2006 NRL Grand Final with a 37–20 victory with Shaun Berrigan scoring a match-turning try in the second half.

It was the sixth time the Broncos made the Grand Final. Their opponents were the Melbourne Storm and the game was the first ever NRL Grand Final not to feature a New South Wales-based club. Despite heading into the game as underdogs, Brisbane won the match 15–8. This saw a fitting farewell to Broncos prop Shane Webcke who retired at the end of the season.[2] The win enabled the Broncos to maintain their perfect record in grand final matches and made Wayne Bennett the most successful coach in grand final history with 6 from 6 with the Broncos. In his first year of coaching he made the Grand Final with the Canberra Raiders but lost, making his record at this time 6 from 7. His current record is 7 from 9 having won a Grand Final with the St. George Illawarra Dragons in 2010.and losing a grand final against the cowboys in 2015

The Broncos were also named "Queensland Sport Team of the Year" at the Queensland Sport Awards.[3]

Match results

RoundOpponentResultBro.Opp.DateVenueCrowdPosition
Trial MatchCanberra RaidersWin28 2018 FebPort Macquarie Sports Stadium
Trial MatchMelbourne StormLoss105825 FebStadium Toowoomba
1North Queensland CowboysLoss43612 MarSuncorp Stadium46,22914/15
2Cronulla-Sutherland SharksWin161218 MarToyota Park14,22112/15
3Parramatta EelsWin301026 MarSuncorp Stadium25,5255/15
4St George Illawarra DragonsLoss12262 AprWIN Stadium13,7089/15
5South Sydney RabbitohsWin30128 AprSuncorp Stadium20,8167/15
6Sydney RoostersWin24614 AprSydney Football Stadium21,2464/15
7Penrith PanthersWin30623 AprSuncorp Stadium25,1333/15
8Canberra RaidersWin302829 AprSuncorp Stadium23,5823/15
9Newcastle KnightsLoss30327 MayEnergyAustralia Stadium21,2525/15
10Manly-Warringah Sea EaglesWin321013 MaySuncorp Stadium24,9914/15
11Bye4/15
12*Bulldogs RLFCWin25627 MaySuncorp Stadium30,5891/15
13New Zealand WarriorsWin23184 JunMt Smart Stadium7,7461/15
14South Sydney RabbitohsLoss143410 JunTelstra Stadium6,5372/15
15*St George Illawarra DragonsLoss161816 JunSuncorp Stadium32,9142/15
16Manly-Warringah Sea EaglesWin161025 JunBrookvale Oval16,0842/15
17Cronulla-Sutherland SharksWin26122 JulSuncorp Stadium25,8632/15
18*Melbourne StormLoss4107 JulOlympic Park15,4793/15
19Bye3/15
20North Queensland CowboysLoss102622 JulDairy Farmers Stadium24,6583/15
21Wests TigersLoss62030 JulSuncorp Stadium31,5003/15
22Canberra RaidersLoss18306 AugCanberra Stadium13,1373/15
23Melbourne StormLoss121813 AugSuncorp Stadium40,1955/15
24Bulldogs RLFCWin30018 AugTelstra Stadium26,1115/15
25Parramatta EelsWin23027 AugParramatta Stadium20,2534/15
26New Zealand WarriorsWin36123 SepSuncorp Stadium47,1933/15
Qualif. FinalSt George Illawarra DragonsLoss4209 SepSuncorp Stadium50,387
Semi-finalNewcastle KnightsWin50616 SepSydney Football Stadium20,081
Prelim. FinalBulldogs RLFCWin372022 SepSydney Football Stadium29,511
GRAND FINALMelbourne StormWin1581 OctTelstra Stadium79,609

Ladder

Pos Team Pld W D L B PF PA PD Pts
1 Melbourne Storm 2420042605404+201441
2 Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs 2416082608468+14036
3 Brisbane Broncos (P) 24140102497392+10532
4 Newcastle Knights 24140102608538+7032
5 Manly Warringah Sea Eagles 24140102534493+4132
6 St George Illawarra Dragons 24140102519481+3832
7 Canberra Raiders 24130112525573-4830
8 Parramatta Eels 24120122506483+2328
9 North Queensland Cowboys 24110132450463-1326
10 New Zealand Warriors 24120122552463+89242
11 Wests Tigers 24100142490565-7524
12 Penrith Panthers 24100142510587-7724
13 Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks 2490152515544-2922
14 Sydney Roosters 2480162528650-12220
15 South Sydney Rabbitohs 2430212429772-34310

1 The Melbourne Storm were later stripped of this minor premiership due to gross salary cap breaches.
2 The New Zealand Warriors were deducted 4 competition points due to gross salary cap breaches.

Crowds

The Brisbane Broncos had the biggest NRL season crowd average for 2006. The average crowd (including the Qualifying Final) for 2006 was 32,681

*=includes finals matches played at home or away
GamesPlayedCrowd TotalAverage
All Games28754,55026,948
Home Games*13424,91732,685
Away Games*15329,63321,976
Finals4179,58844,897

All Games*: Played:28 Total: 754,550 Average: 26,948
Home Games: Played: 13 Total: 424,917 Average: 32,685
Away Games: Played:15 Total: 329,633 Average: 21,976
Finals*: Played: 4 Total: 179,588 Average: 44,897

Grand final

BrisbanePositionMelbourne
Justin HodgesFullbackBilly Slater
Darius BoydWingMatt Geyer
Brent TateCentreMatt King
David StaggCentreGreg Inglis
Karmichael HuntWingSteve Turner
Darren Lockyer (C)Five-eighthScott Hill
Shane PerryHalfbackCooper Cronk
Shane WebckePropAntonio Kaufusi
Shaun BerriganHookerCameron Smith (C)
Petero CivonicevaPropBrett White
Sam ThaidaySecond RowDavid Kidwell
Brad ThornSecond RowRyan Hoffman
Tonie CarrollLockDallas Johnson
Corey ParkerInterchangeAdam Blair
Dane CarlawInterchangeJeremy Smith
Ben HannantInterchangeBen Cross
Casey McGuireInterchangeNathan Friend
Wayne BennettCOACHCraig Bellamy

Brisbane played against minor premiers the Melbourne Storm in the Grand Final and came out 15–8 winners. It was a perfect farewell for retiring prop Shane Webcke. The Broncos maintained their 100% win record in Grand Finals (1992, 1993, 1997, 1998, 2000 and 2006). The six Premierships make Wayne Bennett the most successful club coach in Australian club football history.

The 2006 NRL Grand Final

Brisbane 15 (TRIES: Hodges, Tate; GOALS: Lockyer 2/2, Parker 1/2; FIELD GOALS: Lockyer)

defeated

Melbourne 8 (TRIES: Turner, King; GOALS: Smith 0/1, Geyer 0/1)

Halftime: Brisbane 8-4

Referee: Paul Simpkins

Stadium: Telstra Stadium (Sydney)

Crowd: 79,609

Clive Churchill Medal: Shaun Berrigan (Brisbane)

When They Scored

10th Minute: Brisbane 2-0 (Darren Lockyer penalty goal)
14th Minute: Melbourne 4-2 (Steve Turner try)
19th Minute: Brisbane 8-4 (Justin Hodges try; Darren Lockyer goal)
48th Minute: 8-8 (Matt King try)
60th Minute: Brisbane 10-8 (Corey Parker penalty goal)
62nd Minute: Brisbane 14-8 (Brent Tate try)
73rd Minute: Brisbane 15-8 (Darren Lockyer field goal)

Honours

League

  • Telstra Premiership

Club

Players

Three Broncos players, Karmichael Hunt, Justin Hodges and Sam Thaiday were selected to make their international representative debut for Australia in 2006.

Bold Players Reperesentive Players for International or State in any year.

Full Backs

Wingers

Centres

Halves

Hookers

Props

Second row

Locks

Scorers

PlayerTriesGoalsFGPoints
Corey Parker463/890142
Darren Lockyer1319/24595
Tame Tupou130052
Darius Boyd110044
Justin Hodges101/1042
Shaun Berrigan90036
Karmichael Hunt70028
Greg Eastwood60024
Brent Tate50020
Shane Webcke40016
Brad Thorn40016
Brett Seymour30/1012
Michael Ennis06/11012
Petero Civoniceva30012
David Stagg30012
Sam Thaiday2008
Dane Carlaw2008
Frazer Anderson1004
Leon Bott1004
Casey McGuire1004
Tonie Carroll1004
Stephen Michaels1004
Shane Perry1004
TOTAL105895603

Gains

PlayerNotes
Brent McConnellfrom North Queensland Cowboys
Nathan Strudwickfrom John Paul College (Brisbane)
Thomas Bradford

Losses

PlayerNotes
Casey McGuireContract with Catalans Dragons (Super League)
Shane WebckeRetired at end of season
Leon BottContract with Cronulla Sharks
Neville CostiganContract Terminated for player misconduct, contract with Canberra Raiders
Brett SeymourContract Terminated for player misconduct, contract with Cronulla Sharks
Nathan DalyContract with Cronulla Sharks
Scott MintoContract with North Queensland Cowboys
Ben VaeauContract with North Queensland Cowboys
Joe ClarkeContract with North Queensland Cowboys

Re-signings

PlayerYears signedUntil the end of
Karmichael Hunt3 Years2009
Michael Ennis1 Year2007
Ben Hannant2 Years2008
David Stagg3 Years2009
Ian Lacey2 Years2008
Joel Moon2 Years2008

References

  1. Walter, Brad (2 October 2006). "Coach hails sweetest win". The Sydney Morning Herald. Fairfax Digital. Retrieved 16 December 2009.
  2. Magnay, Jacquelin (2 October 2006). "Lockyer's heroes embrace their victory". The Sydney Morning Herald. Fairfax Digital. Retrieved 16 December 2009.
  3. "Queensland Sport Awards Winners 1995–2008" (PDF). qsport.org.au. QSport. Archived from the original (PDF) on 27 November 2009. Retrieved 5 December 2009.
  4. "Honour Board". broncos.com.au. Brisbane Broncos. Archived from the original on 26 January 2014. Retrieved 22 December 2013.

27°27′53″S 153°0′34″E / 27.46472°S 153.00944°E / -27.46472; 153.00944 (Suncorp Stadium)

This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.