After earning his NRL recall for the derby against former club the Titans, there was little time to settle in for Jesse Arthars - swiftly shifting into fullback for an injured Reece Walsh.
Starting on the wing for his first NRL appearance since in Round 27 last season, Arthars had to adapt quickly as a head knock, and now confirmed cheek fracture, saw Brisbane's number 1 star sidelined with 40 seconds remaining in the first half.
Scoring a try and running for a team-high 182 metres, Arthars made his presence count in his recall which came following a long-term injury to Grant Anderson and Josiah Karapani being stood down by the leadership group for disciplinary reasons.
“Stoked to be back in the team, but at the end of the day, I’m just proud of the boys," Arthars said following Brisbane's win.
"Unfortunately Reece got injured ... (but) coming into the team, I just wanted to make sure I did my job, so that was sort of all I was focusing on for the week and just happy to be back out there."
Jesse Arthars Try
With Walsh now ruled out for up to 4-8 weeks, Arthars said he would put his hand up to continue to deputise in the role if called on and was comfortable taking on the responsibility.
“I think it just comes down to the practice, I've done a lot of practice there and I'm confident to play there ... I'm confident playing anywhere, if they want me at one, then I'll make sure I'm training the best I can for the team," Arthars said.
“I've only played a few games in the NRL at fullback, but over my career, I've played quite a bit there and I've trained there a lot, so just try to do my best when I go back there."
The Māori All Stars representative however also had praise for another fullback contender in the Broncos squad, in Souths Logan team-mate Hayze Perham.
Yet to make his Broncos debut, Perham has returned from an ACL injury suffered in the 2025 pre-season and has been playing fullback for the Magpies, where Arthars started the season at centre and was another option for coach Michael Maguire.
“Hayze has been through it," Arthars said.
"He had an ACL last year which was really tough for him and to see him come back from that - I've obviously been at the same feeder team as him and he's been going really well - so I'd love to see one of the boys get an opportunity like Nio [Antonio Verhoeven] got (tonight), which is awesome.
“Whoever goes in the starting 17 will do the job, so if they put Hayze there, I've got full praise for him and I'll be getting behind him."
Maguire praised Arthars for his contribution following the win, saying both he and Perham were in contention for the custodian role for the Friday night derby match against North Queensland.
“Both (are options) … I'll assess the game," Maguire said.
“I'll enjoy going through the game (tonight) and working out what we do next, but Jesse was great.
“Jesse, he's a good man, the way he's been working away in the background, he's a first grader …
“I was able to then put him in there and he performed really well for the team.
“So look, I'll assess that as we go into the next game.”
In what ultimately proved to be a costly win, halves Adam Reynolds (Grade 2 adductor longus strain) and Ben Hunt (Grade 3 MCL tear) were also ruled out for the short-to-medium term, with both to join Walsh on the sidelines in Round 6.
Attention will now turn to Team List Tuesday and Brisbane’s squad announcement to see who will line up to take on the Cowboys in the traditional Queensland derby.
Match: Broncos v Cowboys
Round 6 -
home Team
Broncos
8th Position
away Team
Cowboys
7th Position
Venue: Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane
Match broadcasters:
- WatchNRL
