Anthony Seibold has revealed his devastation over the prospect club legend Darius Boyd having to retire at season's end without a proper send-off, with the NRL competition on hold due to the coronavirus crisis.
Boyd, the Broncos' former captain who was replaced in the role by Alex Glenn over the pre-season, recently announced 2020 would be his final year in the NRL.
The 321-game veteran and two-time premiership-winner will call time on his career at Red Hill where it all started in 2006, having also had brief stints at the Dragons and Knights.
But with the 2020 season no certainty of returning amid the ever-growing coronavirus outbreak currently gripping the nation, the Broncos' exhilarating win over the Rabbitohs in round two could've been Boyd's last game.
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And that, Seibold says, would be a devastating way for things to end for Boyd, a man the second-year coach described as a "true legend".
“It would be a real shame,” Seibold told Fox League Live when asked about Boyd's career potentially coming to a premature end.
“The competition needs to get back for a lot of reasons, but one of the reasons, purely from a selfish point of view, would be that we wouldn’t get to send off Darius in the fashion that he should be sent from our game.
“There’s very few players who have played over 300 games, won have premierships at two different clubs and achieved all the individual accolades that he has with his representative football.
“Darius has made the right decision and the smart decision I thought announcing that before the start of the season. It took a lot of pressure off himself and off our club.
“I think people, whether they’re in the media or fans of our game, would like to have celebrate Darius’ career.
“He won’t go round next year. He’s made that decision and he’s really comfortable and clear in what he wants to do next and he’s in a really good stage of his life.”
Broncos' boss Anthony Seibold on what the NRL's postponement means for Darius Boyd's planned retirement.
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The looming retirements of some of the game's greats like Boyd is just one of the harsh realities facing the NRL community as it comes to terms with the competition's suspension.
Another is the crushing financial burden now hanging over all 16 clubs with a number of key revenue streams coming to an abrupt halt.
It's been reported as much as 80 per cent of the industry are being impacted by staff cuts as clubs fight hard to stay afloat.
Whilst the NRL has pledged to do what it can to provide financial assistance, allocating a reported $600 million in funding over the next three months, many are predicting some clubs may not survive should the game not return in 2020.
Seibold admits the Broncos, one of the league's richer franchises, haven't been immune to these stark financial difficulties.
“We’re feeling the financial pain," Seibold said.
“It’s a real feeling and a real reality check for everyone when you see on the news the lines to Centrelink and that’s not being over the top of things – that’s a fact. People are losing their jobs.
“There are going to be some challenging times for our staff both in the football department and also the administration side of things.
“Paul and his executive team and the board are working through that process at the moment, but we’re certainly not immune to what some other clubs are going through.
“One thing that Paul’s done a fantastic job of over the last 10 years in his role as CEO is he’s been able to put money in the bank.
“The facility that we’re in we don’t owe and money in, the club’s got money in the bank.
“But these are really trying times financial times because there’s no income at the moment.”
