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Broncos issue statement following latest Folau story

Israel Folau. (Photo by Tony Feder/Getty Images)

The Brisbane Broncos have distanced themselves from reports they are keen to bring Israel Folau back to the NRL.

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The Broncos were linked in media reports to a potential move to sign the former Wallabies winger after he reached an out-of-court settlement with Rugby Australia earlier this week over his wrongful termination claim.

Within hours of the reports being published on Sunday however, the Broncos issued a brief statement saying they had no intention of bringing the 30-year-old back to Red Hill.

“Contrary to media speculation, the Broncos have not been part of discussions of any kind with the player,” the Broncos said in the statement posted on their website.

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“The club’s roster is settled for the 2020 season.

“We wish Israel well in the future.”

News Corp Australia reports Folau has been training hard to get himself fit for a preferred return to rugby league.

Folau’s sporting future is uncertain despite settling his claim with Rugby Australia rela ting to his axing over an infamous homophobic post on social media.

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ARL Commission chairman Peter V’landys has previously publicly insisted that a return to the NRL for devout Christian Folau would be difficult given his controversial stance on homosexuality is incompatible with the game’s ethos.

The News Corp Australia report claims Folau would be willing to allow the NRL to vet his future social media posts if it allowed him to move back to the competition.

Folau played for Melbourne and the Broncos in his four-season NRL career between 2007 and 2010 before switching codes to join expansion club GWS in the AFL.

He played 13 AFL matches for the Giants before joining rugby union in 2013 and going on to make 62 Test appearances for the Wallabies.

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Flankly 2 hours ago
'Absolute madness': Clive Woodward rips into Borthwick in wake of NZ loss

Borthwick is supposed to be the archetypical conservative coach, the guy that might not deliver a sparkling, high-risk attacking style, but whose teams execute the basics flawlessly. And that's OK, because it can be really hard to beat teams that are rock solid and consistent in the rugby equivalent of "blocking and tackling".


But this is why the performance against NZ is hard to defend. You can forgive a conservative, back-to-basics team for failing to score tons of tries, because teams like that make up for it with reliability in the simple things. They can defend well, apply territorial pressure, win the set piece battles, and take their scoring chances with metronomic goal kicking, maul tries and pick-and-go goal line attacks.


The reason why the English rugby administrators should be on high alert is not that the English team looked unable to score tries, but that they were repeatedly unable to close out a game by executing basic, coachable skills. Regardless of how they got to the point of being in control of their destiny, they did get to that point. All that was needed was to be world class at things that require more training than talent. But that training was apparently missing, and the finger has to point at the coach.


Borthwick has been in the job for nearly two years, a period that includes two 6N programs and an RWC campaign. So where are the solid foundations that he has been building?

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