For the fifth consecutive year, the front-rower was named the Broncos’ player of the year.
Payne Haas beat off Adam Reynolds, Reece Walsh, and Patrick Carrigan for the trophy on Thursday night, becoming him the first player in Brisbane Broncos history to win five straight player of the year honours. At the club’s presentation night, the front-row player not only won three additional honors but also his fifth Best and Fairest trophy.
Haas received 80 votes to win the award for the fifth year running, ahead of Reynolds (64), Walsh (51) and Carrigan (35). In doing so, the NSW and Australia representative joined Allan Langer as the club’s only five-time winners of the award.
But Haas has gone one better than Langer, who didn’t win his five awards consecutively. The legendary halfback won four on the trot from 1993 to 1996, after winning his first in 1988.
It caps a sensational year for Haas, who was rewarded with his Australian Kangaroos debut when Mal Meninga announced his squad for the Pacific Championships on Tuesday. Haas averaged 187 running metres per game in 2023, with an average of 72 post-contact metres. He also made an average of 29 tackles per game at 99 per cent efficiency.
Haas also won the most consistent player, best forward and players’ player at Thursday’s awards night. The awards night success will come as some solace after a crushing loss in the grand final against Penrith.
The Broncos were up 24-8 with 20 minutes remaining and appeared to have one hand on the trophy. But Nathan Cleary put the Panthers on his back and produced an absolute masterclass for a 26-24 comeback victory. It marked the biggest deficit ever overcome in an NRL grand final.
Reece Walsh wins award amid grand final heartache
Elsewhere on Thursday night, Walsh won the award for back of the year after his sensational breakout season. However the gong probably won’t go very far in lifting his spirits.
The 21-year-old was completely devastated after an underwhelming performance in the grand final, which culminated in the fullback being caught out of position for Cleary’s match-winning try. Walsh couldn’t bring himself to speak to reporters in the sheds after the game, and appeared to be in tears at one stage during a fan day on Tuesday.
To make matters worse, he was also controversially left out of Meninga’s Kangaroos squad when many had been calling for him to replace the incumbent James Tedesco. Walsh easily outshined Tedesco at club and State of Origin level in 2023, but wasn’t recognised with national team selection.
He also wasn’t eligible for fullback or player of the year awards at the recent Dally M Medal because of a three-game suspension he incurred earlier this season for abusing a referee. Any player who cops a three or more game suspension becomes ineligible for Dally M awards.
Amid his heartbreak, Walsh was also mocked by a number of Panthers players in the days after the grand final. In a video uploaded to social media on Tuesday, Panthers players Moses Leota and James Fisher-Harris appeared to mock Walsh in light of an incident with a fan before the grand final.
Walsh was filmed telling a Panthers fan “I’ll take your mum’s” after the fan said Leota was going to “take his head off” in the decider. In the new video, Fisher-Harris can be heard saying “your mum” before cracking up laughing. Another player says “Whose mum? Whose mum?”, before Leota says “your dad”.
Fisher-Harris also sparked criticism last year when he started a “we hate Parra” chant after the Panthers’ grand final win over the Eels. He also declared “Parra are our sons”, with the Panthers being labelled “arrogant” and “classless” for the way they celebrated.
