Can Reece Walsh defy the curse of the untouchable fullback?
It’s the question that could well define 2026, and Brisbane’s hopes of going back-to-back.
Few players have had an end to the year like Walsh did last season.
But in rugby league, that kind of untouchable brilliance rarely equates to ongoing success.
Think Jarryd Hayne in 2009, Ben Barba in 2012, Tom Trbojevic in 2021 and Kalyn Ponga in 2023.
All Dally M winners who took their sides on memorable finals runs, seemingly unstoppable over an exhilarating stretch at the end of the year.
Of those four, none took their side to a finals win the following year, with injury -- and off-field issues in the case of Barba -- often preventing them from having the same impact.
Walsh’s run is somewhat different.
It came later, he missed the Dally M but delivered in the grand final to help Brisbane to their first premiership in 19 years.
But still, he begins this season facing the same challenge as each of those No.1s who for one brilliant year caught lightning in a bottle.
Of all fullbacks, only really James Tedesco - who plays in a much different style to the aforementioned group - has been able to reach the summit each year.
“I honestly think Reece can do it, I think injuries is a big thing, being in and out,” Tedesco, who won his second Dally M last year, told AAP.
“Guys over the years, fullbacks especially, have had great runs, and then they'll get injured, and they'll take time to get back to their best.
“I know Tommy's obviously had some issues with that.
“When your body's in a good position, and it feels 100 per cent, then you can just go out and play footy.”
The other challenge is the spotlight, both externally in the media and week-to-week from opposition teams.
“There's just an expectation that you play at that level every single week,” Cronulla half Nicho Hynes, who won the Dally M in 2022, said.
“There's times where you can't play at that level every week because you're the hunted and people come after you and do extra footage on you and work on you.”
Not that Hynes can see that being an issue for Walsh.
“He’s going to be able to deal with it,” Hynes said.
“He's probably a hungry guy and he spends a lot of time with Billy Slater in camps.
“Billy would be a mentor for him so Billy wouldn't let that happen to him.”
Brisbane remain the favourites to go back-to-back this season, while Penrith loom as the biggest threat with an unchanged roster for the first time since the start of their dynasty.
Hynes’ Sharks face arguably their biggest year under Craig Fitzgibbon, following two top-four finishes and with a bulging roster that has 15 players off contract.
The Dolphins loom as the jokers in the pack after the record-breaking points spree still saw them miss finals last year after an injury-ravaged season.
Melbourne face their biggest challenge in years following Ryan Papenhuyzen’s sudden retirement and Eliesa Katoa’s head knocks.
All eyes will be on rugby league’s richest man Dylan Brown and his arrival in Newcastle, while Canterbury have a full pre-season with Lachlan Galvin in the halves.
The Roosters are the other hot team of summer, with an all-star spine buoyed by Daly Cherry-Evans' shock defection from Manly and Reece Robson's arrival from North Queensland.
And then, of course, there is Tedesco, who at age 33 has proven year after year the fullback curse does not apply to him.
“The big thing for me is being available,” Tedesco said.
“Since my time here at the Roosters, touch wood, I haven't really had a major injury that has made me miss time and then take time to get back into my groove.
“I've really learned that from a young age.
“I went through with big injuries, and it really took time to invest in my body and mind to make sure I'm available and feeling my best every week.
“When your body's in a good position, and it feels 100 per cent, then you can just go out and play footy.”
