Making it to the Grand Final is a major objective for every NRL team, second only to actually winning it. Teams dedicate eight months to competing, aiming to be among the final two and secure a chance at the trophy.
Last year, when the Brisbane Broncos faced the Penrith Panthers—who were the reigning champions—there was a sense that a new dynasty might be emerging. However, as the current season nears its end, the Broncos are in danger of making NRL history for a different reason. They are at risk of becoming the 12th team in NRL history to miss the finals the year after playing in the Grand Final.
As of the end of Round 25, the Broncos are positioned ninth on the ladder with a 10-12 record. They are in fierce competition with St. George-Illawarra, the Dolphins, Newcastle, and Canberra for the last spot in the top eight. If the Broncos fail to secure victories in their last two games, they will join a select group of teams that have fallen from Grand Finalists to out of the finals in just one year. The only other team to experience such a drop in the NRL era, which began in 1998, was the Parramatta Eels last year.
Since the NRL’s inception, only ten teams have suffered this kind of dramatic decline in a single season. The first instance occurred in 2000 when the St. George-Illawarra Dragons, having lost to Melbourne in the 1999 Grand Final, ended up 10th the following year. Among these teams, only three were premiership winners: the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs in 2004, the Wests Tigers in 2005, and the Melbourne Storm in 2009, who faced this fate due to a salary cap breach.
With only two matches remaining—against the Dolphins and the Melbourne Storm—the Broncos face a challenging road if they wish to continue their season into the playoffs. Should they fall short, they will join the ranks of a rare group of teams that have gone from Grand Finalists to missing the finals in a single season.
