Michael Maguire talks about Ezra Mam off-field incident, Bribsain Broncos future, press conference

Michael Maguire has spoken publicly for the first time since the off-field incident with Ezra Mam, denying suggestions the Broncos will sack the embattled five-eighths.

The 22-year-old was involved in a road traffic accident last week and tested positive for drugs, with police also alleging he was driving without a licence.

Mam has since checked himself into rehab to deal with off-field issues while trying to salvage his NRL career.

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Speaking to media in Brisbane, the new head coach was asked if the club would terminate Mam’s contract and revealed the pair had spoken since the incident.

“I’m not even going to touch on that now,” Maguire said.

“I need to go through everything and see where and how he got to this point. Obviously it’s never nice when you have to go through things like that.”

“I will keep the conversations I had with Ezra (private) – I need to learn more about what the situation entails. I talked to him and it’s more about safety.”

“He has to go through a process – with the police, with the game and with the organization itself. At the end of the day, wherever it leads, we will move forward.”

“It can take quite a long time to get to where we want to be. I agree with that, but I like to talk to people first because I actually make those decisions. We are talking about people here… I want to have full understanding before I make any further comments about the situation.

“I’ve been in the game for a long time and I’ve seen a lot of players go through different situations and you learn a lot of lessons. “I’m not downplaying the situation, it’s a situation we need to look at… but people will make mistakes, but they also need to own up to them.”

“If he owns where he is, what he does going forward is very important and I know he’s getting some help at the moment. When he gets over it, I’ll spend some time with him.”

Maguire returned to Brisbane to deal with the situation on Wednesday morning and will hold talks with club officials over the coming days regarding the star playmaker, and admitted he was “very sympathetic” to the victims of the disaster.

The premiership winner also addressed the widespread cultural issues in Red Hill and said he would take the necessary steps to help the Broncos return to the promised land.

“Every club has different situations,” Maguire said.

“I will evaluate it as we go along, but what is happening is very well documented and I will deal with the problems as I see them.

“Until I actually go in there and start talking to the players… I’ll start making my own decisions about what we need to do moving forward.

“Obviously there are things that need to be adjusted.”