For four years, the NRL’s biggest man has been held back. Will 2026 define him?

1 month ago 18

Four years of anticipation for what rugby league’s biggest man can bring will at last be realised as rookie Broncos enforcer Ben Te Kura pushes his case for an NRL breakthrough.

The tallest man in the competition’s history threatened to become Brisbane’s newest wrecking ball, only for injuries to curtail his ascent.

While still just 22, Te Kura, who stands at 205 centimetres, has only managed five first-grade appearances since his 2024 debut, and he featured just twice in the club’s run to a drought-breaking premiership last year after suffering a syndesmosis injury mid-year.

That setback followed Lisfranc surgery the year before, after Te Kura had established himself in the Queensland Cup, in which he scored 15 tries from 41 games for the Souths Logan Magpies, while averaging 104 running metres and almost 15 tackles per outing.

It was always going to take time for a man of Te Kura’s stature to get comfortable performing with his hulking frame, however the sight of him looking slimmed down and leaner at Red Hill suggested a breakout campaign beckoned.

And with two bench spots up for grabs from the Broncos’ triumphant grand final outfit after the departures of Kobe Hetherington (Manly) and Tyson Smoothy (England’s Wakefield Trinity), Te Kura’s Brisbane teammate, Corey Jensen, believes 2026 will mark the 122 kilogram wrecking ball’s rise to prominence.

“There’s no reason why not. Madge [coach Michael Maguire] has always been big on [saying] he won’t pick anyone on favour; it’s all about who’s out there working the hardest,” said Jensen, who will fight to stave off Xavier Willison to start alongside Payne Haas at prop.

“He’s working his way back. He’s had a bit of a foot injury so he’s been running with the rehab [group], and I think he actually progresses into skills, he was saying, next week. We all know how damaging he can be, so for him to be able to find some consistency will be really good, and he’ll go well for the club.

“He’s been unfortunate with a number of injuries, so he’s been a bit plagued by that, but he’s been training really hard in the rehab to get his body right. He’s a bit older now so he knows what he needs to do to get out on the field.”

In comparison to the early days of last year’s preseason, when journalists were welcome to view training at Red Hill, speak to the players, and learn of Maguire’s regimen, no post-training media opportunities had occurred this preseason until this week.

The plethora of players selected for international duties also ensured a slower burn, as did a delayed start to the preseason due to the length of the Broncos’ premiership run.

Emerging prospects such as Phillip Coates – the younger brother of Queensland Maroons winger Xavier Coates – have instead spearheaded the summer slog, while Ezra Mam has hit the ground running and is looking in imposing shape.

Friday’s session was more low-key than onlookers have come to expect – Maguire’s brutal fitness challenges are on hold, with gym work and light passing drills creating a more relaxed atmosphere – ahead of a two-week camp in Toowoomba in preparation for the Broncos’ World Club Challenge clash with Hull Kingston Rovers on February 19.

That clash in England may be without edge forward Brendan Piakura, who Jensen confirmed sustained a minor knee issue at training on Thursday but was “getting around the gym OK”.

“I don’t think it’s anything different that we’ve been doing, it’s just been one of those things where it’s been a shorter preseason for us,” Jensen said when asked why they had taken the more low-key approach.

“I only had a week and a half before Christmas, and have been back for a couple of days now. The guys who came in earlier, the train-and-trial guys, have really set a good precedent for the preseason.

“There’s been a couple of long days there – it’s very similar to the set-up we had last year. They know, scientifically, how to work us, and we have long days and shorter days, which are still intense but not as long.”

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