Six.
That's the number of errors Reece Walsh has made in two games to start the 2026 NRL season for the Brisbane Broncos.
The result?
The defending premiers have copped 66 points across their first two games, didn't register a shot against the Penrith Panthers in the opener, and fell short against the Parramatta Eels in a shootout last weekend.
That all seems, probably, a little bit over the top, and it's difficult to pin all of the blame on the feet of Reece Walsh for the Broncos' horror start to their premiership defence, but it's also wrong to suggest he is blame-free.
Not to say the star number one, who played for both Queensland and Australia last year, is about to be dropped, but if the Broncos are going to get their season going, he is the key man.
That, ultimately, is the territory he consumes, given not only his wage but his performances over the final eight weeks of the 2025 season.
There may well have never been a better eight-week stretch from a player. Ever.
Despite Brisbane losing both starting halves, Adam Reynolds and Ezra Mam, to injury, Walsh was the main man as the Red Hill-based outfit went from likely missing the finals to the top four.
He then had that single-handed unbelievable performance against the Raiders in the qualifying final, was excellent against the Panthers in the preliminary final, and pretty much did everything at both ends of the park in the decider against the Storm as the Broncos threw a nearly two-decade-long drought out the back window.
But the question was always going to be whether he could back it up at the start of a new campaign.
So far, the answer, overwhelmingly, is negative.
I made the point on The Loose Carry Podcast at the end of last year that Walsh's biggest issue was his consistency.
If he can find it - and yes, he is still very young, but again, the territory of a big contract and key position - he will become the greatest player this game has ever seen.
Think James Tedesco, who has been the best fullback of the current generation, but better. Because at his ceiling, Walsh is as good as any fullback who has ever played the game. He could well be on par with his Origin coach, Billy Slater. He proved it over those incredible eight weeks at the end of 2025.
Tedesco, actually, isn't. His brilliance comes from his consistency and the way he shows up every single week to drag the Roosters onto the front foot.
But if Walsh can't find that consistency, he may well go down as one of the great 'what if's' this game has ever seen.
What if he could have found that consistency?
At his floor, the Broncos are, and have looked over the opening two rounds, a rabble, to be perfectly honest. Again, comes with the territory of playing fullback, which is potentially the most crucial position on the field in the modern game at both ends of the park.
The big issue during the first half of the 2025 campaign was just that.
Walsh's lack of consistency. The rocks and diamonds nature of his style, and more importantly, his errors.
At the end of the year, Walsh had made the fourth most errors in the competition with 41, only behind Zac Lomax (49), Ronaldo Mulitalo (47), and Mark Nawaqanitawase (41).
But here is the important qualifier. Walsh made just two errors in his three finals series matches, and with the exception of the fairly wild Round 26 game against the Cowboys, made only one error per game in Brisbane's other wins leading into the finals series.
In Brisbane's seven straight wins to the premiership, even with that Cowboys game included, he only made ten errors. Five in the other six games.
That means less pressure on his teammates, more moments of brilliance from Walsh, and ultimately, a winning formula for the Red Hill-based outfit.
Take out those seven games, and it was 31 errors for the rest of the season across 14 games of footy - more than two per game.
What is intriguing is that the entirety of the run where Walsh played his best footy was without Adam Reynolds steering the side around.
Even in that grand final, Reynolds' heading off the field was the catalyst for Walsh to take over.
That does beg the question whether the duo have a problem in combination when they are on the same side, although it's hard to imagine. Reynolds is a consistent performer, and Walsh is a rockstar. There shouldn't be an issue.
Reynolds, who now has a rib problem, will miss the game against Melbourne.
If Reece Walsh suddenly cuts his errors and plays a blinder, well, you see where this equation is heading.
Michael Maguire, the premiership-winning coach who has somehow seemingly entered 2026 under pressure, has already made one other big change, with Gehamat Shibasaki axed to the pine, and Grant Anderson to start against his old club.
It feels a bit of a deck chair shuffle for Maguire. Maybe to take some of the heat off his star fullback, who now has it all to play for on Friday evening in the grand final rematch.
It could well be a moving game for Brisbane in more ways than one.
Whichever way you look at it, three errors per game is way too many, even if early-season rust is a factor, and Walsh's performance will be the key storyline, no matter the result.
Bula had 4 in one game and they won! 6 errors is too many but its hardly the reason they’ve lost. Its the defence especially on the edges. Walsh at his best still makes errors! He can do things no one else can and while some errors have seemed costly the team should be able to defend them. If Walsh plays conservative they lose many more games.