Mastercoach Wayne Bennett says getting his charges to buy into an attitude overhaul and shaking them from their comfort zone has been the key to their march to the NRL grand final.

In his first year back at Red Hill, Bennett has fired the Broncos to their seventh season decider after reversing what he saw as a lapse in culture that set in during his six-year absence.

The 65-year-old built the Broncos into a powerhouse during his tenure as their inaugural coach, guiding them to six premierships from 1992 to 2006.

Under his successors Ivan Henjak and Anthony Griffin, Brisbane failed to reach the same heights and he observed that a trend of complacency set in.

When he exited the doors of the Broncos leagues club for the first time in six years late in 2014, Bennett said he sought to address what he saw as some worrying trends.

With Bennett back at the helm this season, after stints at St George Illawarra and Newcastle, the urgency and commitment that defined the club’s golden period has been evident yet again.

Brisbane have led the competition in a number of important statistics this year including missed tackles, penalties conceded, goal-line defence and points scored in the final 20 minutes – all key indicators of attitude.

“There were a number of issues there,” Bennett said on NRL360 on Fox Sports.

“I think the players got in a comfort zone as well and underperformed on a lot of occasions.”

Bennett said with the side back in the grand final, it was evident the fire was back in their bellies.

“They lost their way a little bit with it,” Bennett said.

“It’s back there now. If it wasn’t back there they wouldn’t be in the position they’re in, they wouldn’t be playing this week’s grand final.

“We don’t have that much talent that we’re better than everyone else in the comp, that’s just not the fact.

“The fact is we’ve got there because we’ve been committed to it.”