Brisbane coach Wayne Bennett returned home yesterday with his fallen Broncos and took the chance to thank the fans.

“They’ve just had the highest attendance of any finals series as a result of last night but that’s because of the two home games here in Brisbane,” Bennett said.

“I’ve been a long-term coach here at the Broncos and the Broncos have always valued their fans and the fans value the club and it’s a great relationship between both parties.

“I think we do it better than anybody in the game and I just know what the fans bring and I’m sure they appreciate what the club gives back in return.

Bennett went on to say that his young team did their best only to short one point short.

“I told the boys after the game that I was extremely proud of them, proud of their effort throughout the season and last night was no exception,” Bennett continued.

“It’s pretty painful in the end to lose the way we did but we did our best.

“We’ve done that all season for you and you’ve been a wonderful support for us and I hope you all come back next year and we’ll all start again.”