Brisbane CEO Paul White has dismissed speculation that Matt Lodge missed out on the Broncos captaincy because the NRL club had been wary of the potential backlash.
While White described new Brisbane skipper Alex Glenn as "the right choice", he hinted that Lodge would one day get his chance to lead the NRL club despite his controversial past.
Lodge was an early favourite to take over the Broncos reins from Darius Boyd this year after turning his life around since a 2015 New York drunken rampage.
However the speculation sparked a chorus of disapproval from Broncos greats, with club legend Glenn Lazarus saying the prospect of the once troubled forward becoming club captain made his blood boil.
In the end veteran back-rower Glenn was given the nod to be Brisbane's 2020 captain on Friday, replacing the under fire Boyd who had held the reins since 2017.
Asked if Brisbane had opted for the popular Glenn over Lodge to avoid a backlash, White said: "Not at all.
"I have a close personal relationship with him. We have gone through a bit together.
"Lodgey's time will come. He is part of that leadership group."
Broncos coach Anthony Seibold also clearly had a high regard for Lodge, saying the 24-year-old was in their "next generation of leadership".
And Seibold hoped Lodge would develop further as a leader under Boyd's guidance in 2020.
"Alex takes over from Darius who is a legend of our club and maintains a leadership position within our squad," Seibold said.
"His job will also entail developing our next group of leaders in Matt Lodge, Pat Carrigan, Brodie Croft, Tevita Pangai and Payne Haas."
However, White was confident Seibold had made the right call by anointing Glenn - a veteran of 259 games for Brisbane - as club captain.
"Lexy (Glenn) for me is the obvious and the right choice at this time for our club," he said.
Australian Associated Press
