Broncos star Selwyn Cobbo has claimed resurfaced comments from him saying he didn’t think Kevin Walters was a good coach have been “taken out of context”.
The comments, made on the Back of the 135 podcast last October, resurfaced on Saturday night.
When asked what he thought of Walters’ coaching, Cobbo was frank with his answer.
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“I reckon he’s a good person,” he said.
“He’s a good person, like a good bloke but I don’t think he’s a good coach. He’s not the best coach but he’s alright.
“I feel like he’s just a good person but I don’t reckon he’s a coach. Even though he experienced footy, been through all the grand finals and all that, but I feel like he’s not a coach.
“But he’s a good person, a good bloke and does a lot for the club. But the way he coaches is a bit weird, I guess. He’s a good person though. He’s an alright coach.”
In a statement released Sunday morning, Cobbo did a complete 180 and described Walters as a “very good coach”.
“Today’s article on a podcast I did last year has been taken out of context. It was two guys chatting and joking about silly things like the comments about Kev that had been made by Tyson (Gamble),” Cobbo said.
“The fact is that Kev is a very good coach, as are all of our coaches at the Broncos.
“I was lucky enough to play Origin for Queensland last year and that is off the back of the coaching of Kev and his team.”
Gamble – who departed for the Knights at the end of last season – came under fire in September for comments he made on another podcast criticising Walters.
He said while Walters was the coach, the game had changed since he last played and that players were more comfortable going to Adam Reynolds.
In the statement, Cobbo said Walters “taught him a lot” about how to adapt to life in the NRL.
“Kev has taught me a lot since coming into the NRL squad and provided me with great support as I adjusted to the professionalism of NRL,” he said.
“I was late to training a few times and instead of cutting me, he educated me and supported me.
“When I felt burnt out late in the year, Kev rested me and when he thought I was ready he gave me more responsibilities.
“I have already contacted Kev to apologise and I’d like to extend that to his family and the whole Broncos club for this unwarranted attention over some silly comments from me.”
The Broncos will get their 2023 campaign underway against the Panthers at BlueBet Stadium on March 3.
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