# 2015 Brisbane Broncos season

The 2015 Brisbane Broncos season was the 28th in the club's history. Coached again for the first time since 2008 by returning foundation coach, Wayne Bennett, and captained by Justin Hodges, they competed in the NRL's 2015 Telstra Premiership. The Broncos finished the regular season in 2nd place to make the play-offs, going on to reach the 2015 NRL Grand final in which they were defeated by the North Queensland Cowboys.

## Season summary
### Milestones

* Round 1: Adam Blair, James Gavet and Anthony Milford made their debuts for the club.
* Round 1: Corey Parker played his 300th career game.
* Round 2: Kodi Nikorima and Joe Ofahengaue made their first grade debuts.
* Round 2: Andrew McCullough played his 150th career game.
* Round 4: Jarrod Wallace scored his 1st career try.
* Round 5: Mitch Garbutt made his debut for the club.
* Round 7: Alex Glenn played his 150th career game and Jack Reed his 100th career game.
* Round 7: Daniel Vidot scored his 50th career try.
* Round 8: Anthony Milford played his 50th career game.
* Round 8: Corey Parker kicked his 500th career goal.
* Round 9: Lachlan Maranta played his 50th career game.
* Round 10: Adam Blair played his 200th career game.
* Round 11: Joe Boyce made his first grade debut.
* Round 12: Matt Parcell made his first grade debut.
* Round 20: Kodi Nikorima scored his 1st career try.
* Grand Final: Justin Hodges played his final career game.
* Grand Final: Brisbane Broncos lose their first grand final.

## Squad Movement
### Gains

| Player | Signed From | Until End of |
| Adam Blair | Wests Tigers | 2017 |
| Darius Boyd | Newcastle Knights | 2017 |
| Greg Eden | Hull Kingston Rovers | 2016 |
| Mitch Garbutt | Melbourne Storm | 2017 |
| James Gavet | Wests Tigers | 2016 |
| Anthony Milford | Canberra Raiders | 2016 |
| Matt Parcell | Ipswich Jets | 2015 |
| Travis Waddell | Newcastle Knights | 2016 |

### Losses

| Player | Signed To | Until End of |
| Ben Barba | Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks | 2017 |
| Marmin Barba | Ipswich Jets | ? |
| Cameron Cullen | Mackay Cutters | ? |
| Mitch Garbutt | Leeds Rhinos (Mid-Season) | 2017 |
| Jake Granville | North Queensland Cowboys | 2016 |
| David Hala | Gold Coast Titans | 2016 |
| Ben Hannant | North Queensland Cowboys | 2015 |
| Josh Hoffman | Gold Coast Titans | 2017 |
| Martin Kennedy | Sydney Roosters | 2016 |
| Stewart Mills | Released | - |
| Duncan Paia'aua | Queensland Reds (Rugby Union) | 2016 |

### Re-signings

| Player | Club | Until End of |
| Josh McGuire | Brisbane Broncos | 2017 |
| Andrew McCullough | Brisbane Broncos | 2017 |
| Kodi Nikorima | Brisbane Broncos | 2016 |
| Joe Ofahengaue | Brisbane Broncos | 2017 |

### Contract lengths

| Player | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | Source |
| Todd Lowrie | Brisbane Broncos | Newcastle Knights | | |
| Alex Glenn | Brisbane Broncos | | | |
| Justin Hodges | Brisbane Broncos | | | [26] [27] |
| Jordan Kahu | Brisbane Broncos | | | |
| Matt Parcell | Brisbane Broncos | | | |
| David Stagg | Brisbane Broncos | | | |
| Zach Strasser | Brisbane Broncos | | | |
| Sam Thaiday | Brisbane Broncos | | | |
| Daniel Vidot | Brisbane Broncos | | | |
| Dale Copley | Brisbane Broncos | Brisbane Broncos | | |
| Greg Eden | Brisbane Broncos | Brisbane Broncos | | |
| James Gavet | Brisbane Broncos | Brisbane Broncos | | |
| Matt Gillett | Brisbane Broncos | Brisbane Broncos | | |
| Lachlan Maranta | Brisbane Broncos | Brisbane Broncos | | |
| Anthony Milford | Brisbane Broncos | Brisbane Broncos | | |
| Kodi Nikorima | Brisbane Broncos | Brisbane Broncos | | |
| Corey Parker | Brisbane Broncos | Brisbane Broncos | | |
| Travis Waddell | Brisbane Broncos | Brisbane Broncos | | |
| Jarrod Wallace | Brisbane Broncos | Brisbane Broncos | | |
| Adam Blair | Brisbane Broncos | Brisbane Broncos | Brisbane Broncos | |
| Darius Boyd | Brisbane Broncos | Brisbane Broncos | Brisbane Broncos | |
| Ben Hunt | Brisbane Broncos | Brisbane Broncos | Brisbane Broncos | |
| Andrew McCullough | Brisbane Broncos | Brisbane Broncos | Brisbane Broncos | |
| Josh McGuire | Brisbane Broncos | Brisbane Broncos | Brisbane Broncos | |
| Corey Oates | Brisbane Broncos | Brisbane Broncos | Brisbane Broncos | |
| Joe Ofahengaue | Brisbane Broncos | Brisbane Broncos | Brisbane Broncos | |
| Jack Reed | Brisbane Broncos | Brisbane Broncos | Brisbane Broncos | |

## Ladder

2015 NRL seasonvte :
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | B | PF | PA | PD | Pts |
| 1 | Sydney Roosters | 24 | 18 | 0 | 6 | 2 | 591 | 300 | +291 | 40 |
| 2 | Brisbane Broncos | 24 | 17 | 0 | 7 | 2 | 574 | 379 | +195 | 38 |
| 3 | North Queensland Cowboys (P) | 24 | 17 | 0 | 7 | 2 | 587 | 454 | +133 | 38 |
| 4 | Melbourne Storm | 24 | 14 | 0 | 10 | 2 | 467 | 348 | +119 | 32 |
| 5 | Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs | 24 | 14 | 0 | 10 | 2 | 522 | 480 | +42 | 32 |
| 6 | Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks | 24 | 14 | 0 | 10 | 2 | 469 | 476 | −7 | 32 |
| 7 | South Sydney Rabbitohs | 24 | 13 | 0 | 11 | 2 | 465 | 467 | −2 | 30 |
| 8 | St. George Illawarra Dragons | 24 | 12 | 0 | 12 | 2 | 435 | 408 | +27 | 28 |
| 9 | Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles | 24 | 11 | 0 | 13 | 2 | 458 | 492 | −34 | 26 |
| 10 | Canberra Raiders | 24 | 10 | 0 | 14 | 2 | 577 | 569 | +8 | 24 |
| 11 | Penrith Panthers | 24 | 9 | 0 | 15 | 2 | 399 | 477 | −78 | 22 |
| 12 | Parramatta Eels | 24 | 9 | 0 | 15 | 2 | 448 | 573 | −125 | 22 |
| 13 | New Zealand Warriors | 24 | 9 | 0 | 15 | 2 | 445 | 588 | −143 | 22 |
| 14 | Gold Coast Titans | 24 | 9 | 0 | 15 | 2 | 439 | 636 | −197 | 22 |
| 15 | Wests Tigers | 24 | 8 | 0 | 16 | 2 | 487 | 562 | −75 | 20 |
| 16 | Newcastle Knights | 24 | 8 | 0 | 16 | 2 | 458 | 612 | −154 | 20 |

## Fixtures
### Pre-season

| Date | Round | Opponent | Venue | Score | Tries | Goals | Attendance |
| Saturday, 7 February | Trial 1 | North Queensland Cowboys | Stadium Mackay | 6-18 | Nikorima | Milford (1/1) | 8,000 |
| Saturday, 21 February | Trial 2 | Wigan Warriors | DW Stadium | 14-12 ET (12-12) | McCullough, Maranta | Parker (3/4) | 20,842 |
| Legend: Win Loss Draw ||||||||

#### NRL Auckland Nines

The NRL Auckland Nines is a pre-season rugby league nines competition featuring all 16 NRL clubs. The 2015 competition was played over two days on 31 January and 1 February at Eden Park. The Broncos feature in the Piha pool and played the Bulldogs, Sharks and Roosters.
Piha Pool :
| Team | Pld | W | D | L | PF | PA | PD | Pts |
| Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 68 | 22 | +46 | 6 |
| Sydney Roosters | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 30 | 30 | +0 | 4 |
| Brisbane Broncos | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 21 | 37 | -16 | 2 |
| Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 10 | 40 | -30 | 0 |
| Date | Time (Local) | Round | Opponent | Venue | Score | Tries | Goals |
| Saturday, 31 January | 3:10pm | Round 1 | Sydney Roosters | Eden Park | 4-6 | Nicholls | Milford (0/1) |
| Saturday, 31 January | 7:30pm | Round 2 | Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks | Eden Park | 4-31 | Whitchurch | Milford (0/1) |
| Sunday, 1 February | 2:05pm | Round 3 | Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs | Eden Park | 13-0 | K. Nikorima J. Nikorima | Milford (2/2) |
| Legend: Win Loss Draw ||||||||

### Regular season

| Date | Round | Opponent | Venue | Score | Tries | Goals | Attendance |
| Thursday, 5 March | Round 1 | South Sydney Rabbitohs | Suncorp Stadium | 6 – 36 | Gillett | Parker (1/2) | 36,057 |
| Friday, 13 March | Round 2 | Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks | Remondis Stadium | 2 – 10 | Oates, Maranta | Parker (1/1), Hunt (0/1) | 8,369 |
| Friday, 20 March | Round 3 | North Queensland Cowboys | Suncorp Stadium | 44 – 22 | Maranta (2), Hunt, McGuire, Parker, McCullough, Hodges, Kahu | Parker (6/8) | 40,047 |
| Sunday, 29 March | Round 4 | New Zealand Warriors | Mt. Smart Stadium | 16 – 24 | Oates, Maranta, Wallace, McCullough | Parker (4/5) | 14,670 |
| Friday, 3 April | Round 5 | Gold Coast Titans | Cbus Super Stadium | 16 – 26 | Milford (2), Dodds (2) | Parker (3/3), Hunt (2/2) | 15,432 |
| Friday, 10 April | Round 6 | Sydney Roosters | Suncorp Stadium | 22 – 18 | Hunt (2), Glenn | Parker (5/5) | 35,630 |
| Friday, 17 April | Round 7 | St. George Illawarra Dragons | WIN Jubilee Oval | 12 – 10 | Vidot, Thaiday | Milford (1/1) | 13,029 |
| Saturday, 25 April | Round 8 | Parramatta Eels | Suncorp Stadium | 28 – 16 | Milford (2), Reed, McGuire | Parker (6/7) | 34,398 |
| Friday, 8 May | Round 9 | Penrith Panthers | Suncorp Stadium | 8 – 5 | Kahu, Oates | | 24,566 |
| Friday, 15 May | Round 10 | North Queensland Cowboys | 1300SMILES Stadium | 31 – 20 | Maranta (2), Kahu | Parker (4/4) | 24,531 |
| Monday, 25 May | Round 11 | Newcastle Knights | Hunter Stadium | 18 – 31 | Reed (2), Milford, McCullough, Oates | Kahu (4/4), Hunt (1/2), Milford (FG) | 12,673 |
| Saturday, 30 May | Round 12 | Canberra Raiders | GIO Stadium | 12 – 24 | Reed, Kahu, Maranta, Oates | Parker (4/5) | 10,090 |
| Friday, 5 June | Round 13 | Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles | Suncorp Stadium | 44 – 10 | Vidot (2), Milford (2), Hodges, Hunt, Reed, Kahu | Kahu (6/9) | 28,691 |
| | Round 14 | Bye | | | | | |
| Sunday, 21 June | Round 15 | Melbourne Storm | AAMI Park | 12 – 14 | Maranta, Reed, Oates | Kahu (1/3) | 14,278 |
| Friday, 26 June | Round 16 | Newcastle Knights | Suncorp Stadium | 44 – 22 | Maranta (2), Gillett (2), Oates, McCullough, Milford, Boyd | Parker (5/7), Hunt (1/1) | 27,246 |
| | Round 17 | Bye | | | | | |
| Saturday, 11 July | Round 18 | Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs | ANZ Stadium | 8 – 16 | Vidot, Thaiday, Blair | Parker (1/2), Kahu (1/1) | 16,253 |
| Sunday, 19 July | Round 19 | Wests Tigers | Suncorp Stadium | 42 – 16 | Maranta (3), Glenn (2), Wallace, Reed, Oates | Parker (4/8), Kahu (1/2) | 37,260 |
| Friday, 24 July | Round 20 | Gold Coast Titans | Suncorp Stadium | 34 – 0 | Parker, Boyd, Hunt, Wallace, Nikorima, Glenn | Parker (3/5), Kahu (2/2) | 27,664 |
| Saturday, 1 August | Round 21 | Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles | Central Coast Stadium | 44 – 14 | Hodges, Maranta, Reed | Kahu (1/2), Parker (0/1) | 16,280 |
| Friday, 7 August | Round 22 | Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs | Suncorp Stadium | 16 – 18 | Oates (2), Parker | Parker (2/3) | 34,082 |
| Friday, 14 August | Round 23 | St. George Illawarra Dragons | Suncorp Stadium | 32 – 6 | Hunt (2), Kahu, Maranta, Milford, Copley | Parker (3/4), Milford (1/1), Kahu (0/1) | 33,480 |
| Saturday, 22 August | Round 24 | Sydney Roosters | Allianz Stadium | 12 – 10 | Kahu, Oates | Kahu (1/1), Parker (0/1) | |
| Thursday, 27 August | Round 25 | South Sydney Rabbitohs | Allianz Stadium | 12 – 47 | Hunt (3), Milford (2), Kahu, Oates | Parker (5/6), Kahu (2/2), Milford (FG) | 12,036 |
| Thursday, 3 September | Round 26 | Melbourne Storm | Suncorp Stadium | 8 – 15 | Reed | Parker (0/1), Parker (PG), Milford (PG) | 44,015 |
| Legend: Win Loss Draw Bye ||||||||

### Finals

| Qualifying and elimination finals | Qualifying and elimination finals | Qualifying and elimination finals | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Preliminary finals | Preliminary finals | Preliminary finals | Grand final | Grand final | Grand final |
| 11 Sept, Sydney Football Stadium | 11 Sept, Sydney Football Stadium | 11 Sept, Sydney Football Stadium | | | | | | | | | |
| 1 | Sydney Roosters | 18 | | | | | | | | | |
| 4 | Melbourne | 20 | 18 Sept, Sydney Football Stadium | 18 Sept, Sydney Football Stadium | 18 Sept, Sydney Football Stadium | | | | |
| | | | Sydney Roosters | Sydney Roosters | 38 | | | | |
| 12 Sept, Stadium Australia | 12 Sept, Stadium Australia | 12 Sept, Stadium Australia | Canterbury | Canterbury | 12 | 26 Sept, Melbourne Rectangular Stadium | 26 Sept, Melbourne Rectangular Stadium | 26 Sept, Melbourne Rectangular Stadium | | | |
| 5 | Canterbury | 11 | | | | Melbourne | Melbourne | 12 | |
| 8 | St. George Illawarra | 10 | | | | North Queensland | North Queensland | 32 | 4 Oct, Stadium Australia | 4 Oct, Stadium Australia | 4 Oct, Stadium Australia |
| | | | | | | | | | Brisbane | Brisbane | 16 |
| 13 Sept, Sydney Football Stadium | 13 Sept, Sydney Football Stadium | 13 Sept, Sydney Football Stadium | | | | 25 Sept, Lang Park | 25 Sept, Lang Park | 25 Sept, Lang Park | North Queensland | North Queensland | 17 |
| 6 | Cronulla | 28 | | | | Brisbane | Brisbane | 31 | | |
| 7 | Souths | 12 | 19 Sept, Willows Sports Complex | 19 Sept, Willows Sports Complex | 19 Sept, Willows Sports Complex | Sydney Roosters | Sydney Roosters | 12 | | |
| | | | North Queensland | North Queensland | 39 | | | | | | |
| 12 Sept, Lang Park | 12 Sept, Lang Park | 12 Sept, Lang Park | Cronulla | Cronulla | 0 | | | | | |
| 2 | Brisbane | 16 | | | | | | | | | |
| 3 | North Queensland | 12 | | | | | | | | |
| Date | Round | Opponent | Venue | Score | Tries | Goals | Attendance |
| Saturday, 12 September | Qualifying Final | North Queensland Cowboys | Suncorp Stadium | 16 – 12 | Hunt, Milford | Parker (4/4 (2 Penalty Goals)) | 50,388 |
| Friday, 25 September | Preliminary Final | Sydney Roosters | Suncorp Stadium | 31 – 12 | Boyd, Hunt, McCullough, Oates, Milford, Reed | Parker (2/4), Kahu (1/2), Milford (FG) | 51,826 |
| Sunday, 4 October | Grand Final | North Queensland Cowboys | ANZ Stadium | 16 – 17 | Corey Oates, Jack Reed | Parker (2/2) (1 Penalty Goal), Kahu (2/2) (1 Penalty Goal) | 82,758 |
| Legend: Win Loss Draw ||||||||

## Statistics

| Name | App | T | G | FG | Pts |
| Adam Blair | 23 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| Joe Boyce | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Darius Boyd | 18 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 12 |
| Dale Copley | 9 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| Mitchell Dodds | 19 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 8 |
| Mitch Garbutt | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| James Gavet | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Matt Gillett | 26 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 12 |
| Alex Glenn | 25 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 16 |
| Justin Hodges | 20 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 12 |
| Ben Hunt | 26 | 12 | 4 | 0 | 56 |
| Jordan Kahu | 22 | 9 | 22 | 0 | 80 |
| Lachlan Maranta | 20 | 15 | 0 | 0 | 60 |
| Andrew McCullough | 27 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 20 |
| Josh McGuire | 13 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 8 |
| Anthony Milford | 27 | 13 | 3 | 3 | 61 |
| Francis Molo | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Kodi Nikorima | 20 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| Corey Oates | 25 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 56 |
| Joe Ofahengaue | 14 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Matt Parcell | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Corey Parker | 24 | 3 | 66 | 0 | 144 |
| Jack Reed | 24 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 44 |
| David Stagg | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Ashley Taylor | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Sam Thaiday | 23 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 8 |
| Daniel Vidot | 8 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 16 |
| Jarrod Wallace | 25 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 12 |
| Aaron Whitchurch | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Totals | | 111 | 95 | 3 | 637 |
Source:

## Representatives

The following players have played a representative match in 2015.
| | All Stars match | City Vs Country | ANZAC Test | Pacific Test | State Of Origin 1 | State Of Origin 2 | State of Origin 3 | Kiwis Tour |
| Darius Boyd | - | - | - | - | Queensland | Queensland | Queensland | - |
| Matt Gillett | - | - | - | - | Queensland | Queensland | Queensland | - |
| Justin Hodges | Indigenous All Stars | - | - | - | Queensland | Queensland | Queensland | - |
| Josh McGuire | - | - | - | Samoa | Queensland | Queensland | - | - |
| Corey Parker | NRL All Stars | - | Australia | - | Queensland | Queensland | Queensland | - |
| Sam Thaiday | - | - | Australia | - | Queensland | Queensland | Queensland | - |
| Daniel Vidot | - | - | - | Samoa | - | - | - | - |
| Adam Blair | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | New Zealand |
| Alex Glenn | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | New Zealand |
| Jordan Kahu | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | New Zealand |
| Kodi Nikorima | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | New Zealand |

## Honours
### Club

* Paul Morgan Medal: Corey Parker
* Clubman of the Year: Justin Hodges
* Rookie of the Year: Kodi Nikorima
* Best Back: Ben Hunt
* Best Forward: Sam Thaiday
* Most Consistent: Andrew McCullough