Michael Maguire has lifted the lid on the reasons why he chose not to tear up Ezra Mam’s $4million contract, after the Broncos five-eighth was involved in a horror traffic collision last year and subsequently pleaded guilty to multiple charges, including drug driving.
As Brisbane prepares to face off against Melbourne in Sunday’s NRL Grand Final, Maguire reflected on the 2025 season and explained that both his relationship with Mam, 22, and the young star’s family, were compelling reasons why he opted not to sack the five-eighth.
Mam hit headlines in October 2024, after his Ford Ranger ute collided with an Uber, which was carrying a mother and her young daughter. The passengers in the taxi, including the driver, mother and her young daughter, sustained injuries.
The 22-year-old Broncos five-eighth was found to have cocaine in his system and was driving without a licence.
He pleaded guilty to two charges of dangerous driving, one count of driving while a relevant drug is present in blood and a further offence of driving without a licence. A Brisbane court subsequently handed him a six-month driving ban and an $850 fine.
The footy star was also handed a nine-match ban and a $120,000 fine by the Broncos and the NRL following the incident.
Michael Maguire (pictured) has lifted the lid on the reasons why he chose not to tear up Ezra Mam’s $4million contract
The Broncos five-eighth (pictured) was involved in a horror traffic collision earlier this year and subsequently pleaded guilty to multiple charges, including drug driving
But things could have been very different for Mam, who had put pen to paper on a five-year mega-money deal with the footy club, just eight months prior.
‘I stood by Ezra because I was lucky enough to know him before I came here,’ Maguire said ahead of Sunday’s NRL decider, speaking on the decision to keep the five-eighth at the club.
Maguire had taken over as Wests Tigers head coach in 2019, just as Mam was coming through the ranks at Ambrose Treacy College in Brisbane, notably playing union for the school’s first team.
‘I spoke to him as a younger player,’ Maguire said.
‘I actually tried to sign him to the Wests Tigers (when Maguire was coaching there in 2022) and I knew he was a good person.’
Mam would instead join up with the Broncos’ development system when he was 13.
Maguire acknowledged Mam’s upbringing and family as another reason why he felt the footy player could ‘come out of the other side’ and return to playing NRL footy.
‘His mum is a beautiful woman,’ Maguire said.
Mam (pictured) has admitted his remorse over the horror drug driving crash, having also checked himself into a rehabilitation facility
Maguire (pictured) revealed that Mam’s family and upbringing and the footy star’s work on himself were all factors as to why he felt he couldn’t rip up Mam’s $4m contract
Mam was handed a nine-match ban and a $120,000 fine by the Broncos and the NRL over the crash. He was handed a six-month driving ban and a $850 fine by a Brisbane Court
‘I knew Ezra had a lot of good in him because of the family members around him.
‘It’s been highly reported about what he has been through and what he went through, but when you get to know someone, you look at things in a different light.
‘The reason you go to rehab – you go in there to bring change to your life and understand yourself and know how grateful we are for the things we have.
‘Sometimes people lose their way, but you can find your way again.
‘It was one of the first things I had to deal with when I got here.
‘Ezra had made a big mistake and he had to go through a fair journey to get himself back on track and he did that.
‘He was working on a building site, he was doing community work.
‘He paid a big price, but when you get to know someone and what Ezra stands for, that’s the reason I believed he could come out the other side.’
The 22-year-old explained that he ‘needed to hold himself to a higher standard’ when speaking of his remorse over his actions
The young footy player is set to feature in his second NRL Grand Final this weekend but will likely start from the bench for the Broncos as they take on Melbourne
Mam, meanwhile, has spoken of his remorse and also revealed in June that he had checked into a rehabilitation facility, following the incident, before making his return to the NRL during Brisbane’s Round 11 defeat by the Dragons earlier this year.
He came on to score a try in that match. He is now set to start from the bench during Sunday’s Grand Final as Maguire eases him back into the fold after recovering from a hamstring injury.
It’ll be his second-ever Grand Final with the Broncos, with Mam having scored three tries during his side’s two-point defeat by Penrith in the 2023 showpiece event.
Mam, though, has admitted that he has ‘extreme regrets’ over the incident.
‘The biggest lesson learned is that my actions can have repercussions, not just to myself, but more importantly on others,’ he told NewsCorp.
‘It’s something I think of every day. I genuinely do feel for what I did and I’m trying to handle it in a good way.
‘I need to hold myself to a higher standard. I genuinely do feel for what I did and now I’ve just got to let my actions do the speaking.’
On occasions this season, Mam has been booed by fans, but the footy star admits he hasn’t let the jeers get to him.
‘I have been fine with it,’ he explained.
‘I use it as a bit of a motivation. The boos don’t worry me too much. I knew it was going to happen.
‘I can’t control what other people think. I am just worried about myself and doing my role in the team and making everyone here in Brisbane proud.’
