Brisbane captain Alex Glenn has defended besieged playmaker Anthony Milford, saying it is the team's fault that their marquee man isn't firing.
The battling Broncos have copped plenty of criticism, booed off the field by their own fans before losing to lowly Gold Coast last NRL round before revelations some players had received death threats on social media.
Milford has arguably copped the brunt of the abuse after Brisbane slumped to five straight losses with calls for young playmaker Tom Dearden to replace the misfiring five-eighth only getting louder.
Glenn admitted plenty was expected from their $1 million-a-season man, who is the highest paid player in Broncos history.
However he said Brisbane weren't giving their star a chance to shine as they struggle with a poor completion rate and the six-again rule.
"He's our highest paid player and has a lot of demands on how he plays out on the field but it's a team sport," Glenn said.
"Milf can't do everything himself. He needs players around him and we have got to put our hands up.
"Milf can't do what he does on the field when we don't have possession.
"We have been playing with 40 per cent possession. You can't put any pressure on opponents like that - we have been defending the whole time."
Milford said being booed by their own fans stung but he had blocked out the "outside noise" as he tried to reignite his combination with halfback Brodie Croft.
They get another chance in Saturday's NRL clash with Warriors after Broncos coach Anthony Seibold again stuck solid with his halves, keeping Dearden on the bench.
"It (fans booing) was pretty hard. But it was our fault and we need to get out of this mess we are in at the moment," Milford said.
"There are a lot of critics coming our way but that is part and parcel of playing rugby league at such a big club as the Broncos - it comes with the job.
"I don't really listen to the outside noise unless it is coming from the players (or) Seibs.
"It's been a tough old slog but we are sticking together. We know what we are doing wrong and trying to fix it."
Australian Associated Press
