It’s been almost 25 years to the day since the Broncos defeated his Bulldogs side in the 1998 grand final, but Jason Hetherington will have no mixed feelings about cheering for Brisbane in tonight's grand final.
Despite going down 38-12 in that decider, Hetherington will join the sellout crowd and will have no hesitation in throwing his full support behind his son, Broncos forward Kobe Hetherington, and the man who as halfback helped orchestrate his team’s downfall in that match, coach Kevin Walters.
“Oh, full noise, I’ll climb over the back fence if I have to, to get in,” Hetherington said.
“The ironic thing is … it was 25 years ago this weekend that the Broncos beat us, and ironically, Kobes is playing for the Broncos in a Kevvie and Alf-coached football team that I played against, so it moves very quickly.”
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While the senior Hetherington – who played in three grand finals in his NRL career in 1994, 1995 and 1998 – has been an active supporter of Kobe’s career, often travelling from his home base in Central Queensland to watch the Broncos play, he prefers to let his son figure out for himself how he wants to play his best football.
His pride in the way Kobe has played this season is there for all to see and he has encouraged him to soak up every moment of the week.
“He just works hard and is quite consistent I feel, maybe he started a little bit slow due to that injury at Christmas, where he tore his bicep off; but … I felt he dealt with it well and came back and I think he’s been a pretty consistent performer,” Hetherington said.
“He’s got his role in the team and he’s doing it well. He keeps that momentum going when he comes on with his leg speed and his defensive efforts and momentum, and keeps it rolling pretty well.
“It’s a really important role that he plays I feel – and that’s all the bench players – it’s important that they keep that momentum going and he does that well and certainly works hard defensively in the middle there.
“I think getting that opportunity to play a grand final is probably a bit surreal for him at the moment, but it’ll all come around.
“I’d tell all the players … embrace the week, enjoy it, because in the blink of an eye, it’s over and you’ll be getting ready for next year.
“Take it on board and soak it in and get yourself ready for the big one ... Don’t let it be a distraction, let it be an enjoyable period of your football career.
"Some will say ‘ah, it’s just another game’; but it’s not.
“To me, it wasn’t just another game – it’s actually a grand final game.
“At the end of the day, all the games that are played all year, they all lead to this period. It’s hard to win one game, let alone be consistent enough to get through to a grand final, and then win a grand final.
“It’s a big moment, it’s a big occasion for everyone involved.
"Not everyone gets to do it.”
As for how to approach the game, especially coming off the bench, Hetherington did offer some simple advice – go hard early.
“I think the best advice I’ll give Kobe will be that when he gets on there, he’s just got to get going early, just rip straight in early.
“Just rip in and get the job done early. Get your hands on the ball or make an early tackle and get yourself into the game, because before you blink, it’s over.”
While some have questioned the lack of finals experience in the Broncos squad coming up against a seasoned Panthers side gunning for a three-peat after making three grand finals in a row, Hetherington said there were plenty of people around the club who could help set the right mindset for the players.
“They have got (Adam) Reynolds and (Kurt) Capewell as players, but in the bigger picture as well – Kevvie has won six and Johnny Cartwright has been involved in a heap of them – when you look through their coaching staff, Alf’s been involved in them – there is a lot of experience in-and-around the players and the playing group, as well as the two who are still playing and been involved," Hetherington said.
"There’s a lot of experience around those young fellas for this week how to deal with it, how to approach it and what it’s all about.
Speaking about the build up to the game earlier this week, Kobe had every intention of doing just that after locking up his spot on the bench thanks to his consistent performances all season.
“You do get pretty excited, but you do have to sort of contain yourself, otherwise you use up all your energy just sitting there, but now I've sort of learnt to do it; you just get up, go for a few runs and then you’re pretty much into it,” Hetherington said of what his mental approach would be waiting to get into the action.
“You can’t miss (your) opportunities in those big games, you have to take every opportunity.
“(With) my role off the bench; I'm just going to go out there, tackle hard, run hard and just do what I have been doing.
“(Dad is) extremely proud, I think he was shedding a few tears – he doesn’t like to admit it – but I saw a few tears roll out of his eyes ... he's extremely proud; but we’ve just got to get the job done now.”