Kevin Walters reckons he hasn't noticed the buzz before Friday's Battle for Brisbane clash against the Dolphins, even though the NRL newcomers are stacked with former Broncos players and led by Wayne Bennett.
It was Bennett who recruited Walters as a teenager and then coached him to multiple NRL titles with the Broncos.
Both teams enter undefeated and the game has mirrored a State of Origin build-up, complete with a pre-game luncheon on Wednesday in Caxton Street.
"To be honest not really. My role at the club is to coach the boys. I go from my house to training, then back to my house," he offered when asked for his observations of the build-up to the Suncorp Stadium sell-out.
"(People are talking) not just this week but every week when you're the Broncos. There's a good buzz around the city from a Broncos point of view."
The Redcliffe-based Dolphins and their growing support base have lapped up the Battle For Brisbane marketing campaign for what will be their home game, relegating the Broncos to the away sheds.
Walters didn't fully commit to a criticism of that motto on Wednesday, but made his thoughts known.
"I'd expect it to be a Broncos crowd ... it's our stadium," he said.
"You've got to sell tickets and newspapers and keep media channels firing but it's the Brisbane Broncos isn't it.
"Every game's a battle, this one's in Brisbane so we'll take whatever you guys throw at us."
Walters did the heavy lifting of media duties prior to Wednesday's function, with Dolphins assistant Kristian Woolf standing in after Bennett was a notable absentee citing a prior engagement.
But the Broncos coach did reserve some praise for the man who's coached almost 1000 games and maintained a winning percentage in the 60s.
"He's walked in the shoes he's walking in now at the Broncos (when they were formed in 1988) so it's no surprise," Walters said of the Dolphins' hot start.
"We're still good friends, been through a lot together and known each other for nearly 40 years - I was doing the maths the other night.
"I remember when he approached me I was 16 turning 17.
"It's amazing the career he's had."
