‘He’s a Broncos immortal now’: Reynolds’ road from unwanted to the top of the world

Adam Reynolds carried a niggling calf injury for more than a week before he broke down in the NRL grand final, but he is confident his body will hold together for one final year as the Broncos shoot for successive premierships.

Fresh from a second NRL title, Reynolds also said there was no bad blood with South Sydney, even though his childhood club refused to offer him a long-term deal due to concerns about his age and body.

Despite missing the final half hour of Sunday night’s dramatic 26-22 win over Melbourne in the decider, Reynolds played a pivotal role in helping the Broncos go all the way, including his match-winning conversion seven days earlier against Penrith in their preliminary final.

As prop Payne Haas said of 35-year-old Reynolds: “He came here to change the club, and people shouldn’t forget that. He taught us how to play footy properly. He deserves a lot of credit.”

Broncos chief executive Dave Donaghy, who met with Reynolds in his Rosebery living room and sold him the Brisbane dream midway through 2021, said: “It’s a bloody tough job being the halfback and captain of the Brisbane Broncos, but he’s taken everything in his stride, he’s led from the front – he’s a Broncos immortal now.”

There were whispers Reynolds might retire after adding to his 2014 premiership with South Sydney, but he said: “I will be playing again. The challenge is now trying to back it up and win again. These are the moments you play for. To achieve it now, at two great clubs, it’s something I will never forget.

“It gives joy to my four kids to see me run out each week. If that puts a smile on their face, I’m happy to continue doing that. I also love this team, I love the club. I’ll get my body right, and we’ll go again.

“I’ve battled injuries at the back end of this year, but I’ve got plenty of confidence in my body.

“It was a freakish thing that happened with my hammy in Melbourne. I tried to rush back. I tore the calf tonight, but I actually felt it in the lead-up to the Penrith game. We didn’t say anything. I’d sit in and out of training, and I thought I’d be fine to get through the whole game. We were lucky we had another couple of playmakers in the team.”

South Sydney fans will be wondering how their club could let Reynolds leave, especially given the little half has played in two grand finals since he left and South Sydney’s struggles to find a suitable No.7.

“Without Souths giving me an opportunity, I’m probably not in this position today – I’ll always be super grateful to them,” Reynolds said.

“I’ll always have amazing memories of that club. I still have great friends there. I received plenty of messages during the week from fans and the boys, including Latrell [Mitchell] and Cody [Walker], while I saw Damien Cook out here. They’re friendships you have for life.”