Brisbane coach Kevin Walters has returned refreshed and hungry for NRL success from a visit to see old friend and Tottenham manager Ange Postecoglou in England.
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Walters toured Premier League club's facility in London before a trip to the headquarters of the NFL's Los Angeles Rams.
"It was a personal development tour where I went to see how other organisations work, their set-ups, coaching structures and sharing information around everything to do with our games," Walters told AAP.
The Broncos have a mantra of being "hungry and humble" in their quest for success and Walters said Postecoglou was of the same mind.
Both men coach glamour clubs. Tottenham, currently fifth in the Premier League in Postecoglou's first season in charge, have a rich history but have not won the English top division in more than 60 years.
Walters, who won five premierships as a player with Brisbane, is on a mission to end what is now an 18-year title drought.
"Ange is a very good operator. His personality is probably the biggest thing that stands out for me, where he is humble about everything he does," Walters said.
"Tottenham are one of the bigger clubs in the Premier League but Ange is not taking that for granted.
"He is working as hard as he has ever worked he tells me which is refreshing for us to hear because we are all working hard to get where we want to go too."
Both coaches are under immense pressure with the two clubs scrutinised and in the media spotlight more than most. Failure is not tolerated.
"There are those expectations on our clubs but I spoke to Ange about that too," Walters said.
"He is certainly a realist and understands that you have got to put things in place and over time those structures pay off.
"He is new but very confident in the staff and roster that he has in place that he can do very well, as are we."
The catch-up was more than just business.
"It was good to share the old friendship because we got together when I was at the Melbourne Storm (as assistant coach) and Ange was coaching Melbourne Victory," Walters said.
The LA Rams visit was a reconnaissance mission ahead of the Broncos trip to play the Sydney Roosters in Las Vegas in March in round one of the NRL.
Brisbane will base themselves in Los Angeles ahead of the game.
"We will be using the Rams' facilities so I touched base with their staff about the transition," Walters said.
"They won't be training when we are there because their NFL season will be finished so we were making sure we have the right capabilities and training facilities to get our boys prepared for round one."
The Broncos let slip a 16-point lead in the 2023 NRL grand final loss to Penrith but Walters is not kicking stones. His recent trip has him convinced Brisbane are on the right track.
"I am refreshed but I have been refreshed from this year alone," Walters said.
"A lot of people look at the grand final negatively but I am certainly not. From where we have been to where we want to go there are steps ... and we are making good steps."
Australian Associated Press
