In a gripping edition of Fox League’s Face to Face, Brisbane Broncos coach Kevin Walters talked candidly about his relationship with NSW great Tommy Raudonikis, his family, and some amusing stories about Alfie Langer.
Walters told Yvonne Sampson about how his family watched the legendary Arthur Beetson go wild at Lang Park during the inaugural State of Origin game.
“We were no chance of getting tickets,” Walters stated. With a pair of pliers in hand, (dad) made a hole in the fence. Together with perhaps ten thousand other Queenslanders, we all just climbed through. It was during the full day!
Being present when Arthur Beetson ran out left a lasting impression.
“I was only 13 years old. I just remember the passion he had for Queensland. They all thought he was too old … He just destroyed New South Wales just with that Queensland passion that no-one had seen before.
“I remember from that moment forward, going home in the back seat of that yellow (Holden) Kingswood, just a happy family and wanting to do that one day myself.”
Watch the full Kevin Walters’ Face to Face episode on Fox League and Kayo now.
With his four brothers – and sometimes Alfie Langer in tow – he grew up playing plenty of rugby league in the backyard.
“We were competitive in the backyard! Mum actually invented the sin bin. If it got a bit heated, she used to get the hose out and hose us just to cool us down. She’d say ‘Right, time out here. You’re not playing until you’re playing normal and don’t be fighting each other.’”
And with his father a carpenter, Walters says he wanted to follow in his footsteps – only he wasn’t very good.
“I wanted to be a very good footballer. My carpentry skills weren’t that great. They used to call me ‘lightning’ around the job site … My hammer was like lightning: it never strikes in the same place twice,” he laughed.
Luckily he did commit to rugby league, going on to win six premierships as a player before moving into coaching.
But his playing days weren’t always easy. His first wife Kim died in 1998 after a two-year battle with breast cancer.
Walters revealed: “It was a terrible time in our lives. I guess there’s lots of people, since I’ve been through that myself and my family (that can relate).
“I was very thankful and grateful for my family support from my brothers, particularly mum and dad, they moved into the house when Kim got really crook. They were just a tower of strength for me and my kids.
“I guess I just wanted to be the best person I could for Kim and my kids. I just wanted to get on with life and block out what was actually happening and do my best for Kim and make her last period in this world as comfortable as this could be.
“Christmas Day we dragged her up to hospital and she never came home after that.”
The pair had three children together, and Walters still honours her memory on Christmas Day.
“I always want to have nice Christmases now, where it’s exciting, fun, and it’s not about the other side that we’ve also had to deal with,” he continued.
And when it came to the miraculous play that completed the Game I State of Origin victory a few months later, Walters consistently claimed he had “help from above.”
