Matty Johns: Sam Walker’s rugby league talent a force of nature

Sam Walker has lit up the NRL playing the game the way it should be played — free and fearless. Hopefully it stays that way, writes Matty Johns.

“Wish I didn’t know now, what I didn’t know then”.

My favourite lyric of all time. When Bob Seger wrote the song Against the Wind, he was actually going to leave it out, believing it bad grammar.

Everyone interprets things differently, but those lyrics to me reflect the freedom and fearlessness of youth. We get smarter with age but experience gives you scars and as you get older, fearlessness is elusive.

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In rugby league terms, those long passes you would throw to wingers without thought when you were 18, you start to hold back when you’re 28 because you remember back to the day Ryan Girdler picked you off with two intercepts.

There’s only one player who comes to mind who walked onto my old patch of turf and tore the local team to pieces like Sam Walker did last Saturday night, and that was Brett Mullins in 1994.

Sam Walker cut the Knights to pieces on their home turf. Picture: Ashley Feder/Getty Images

A try and five try assists, not a bad night out for young Sam, free and fearless.

His father Ben has schooled his son very well, but from my understanding, not deliberately. The best kind of way, having Sam kicking the ball around at footy training while his dad and uncle coached the Ipswich Jets, sitting on the couch watching Friday Night Football, passing the ball back and forth with the old man.

Kids who grow up with the game, love the game and have the greatest chance of success.

Kids growing up being forced to play the game, no longer do.

The grounding his father Ben has given Sam has been complimented beautifully by the education Trent Robinson has given him since arriving in Sydney.

I love the fearlessness with which Sam plays, he looks to have no knowledge of pressure, I’m guessing he doesn’t dwell on winning or losing as he’s putting his boots on to play, he’s just keen to get there and enjoy himself.

In 2021, that’s wonderfully unusual and I hope with age and experience he loses none of it.

Speaking of halfbacks playing well, on Friday night Sam Walker opposes Mitchell Moses.

Moses has always had the tools to be a really great playmaker, but it’s taken time for him to pull together all the elements of his game.

Some weeks he’d run well, but make some poor passing decisions, other weeks it’d be vice-versa, or his kicking would be a little off.

But this season there’s been far more consistency across his game.

Mitchell Moses has been more consistent in his performances this season. Picture: Gregg Porteous/NRL Photos

His kicking in particular has been a reason why Parramatta are now winning matches in conditions and circumstances they previously wouldn’t have. Their round two victory over Melbourne and round six smashing of the Raiders in Canberra are prime examples.

The Canberra victory in particular, because slippery, night conditions were once Parramatta’s nemesis. They beat themselves in these games trying to play around teams.

Mitchell’s patience, his kicking and Parramatta centralising their attack through the middle has reaped huge benefits.

But Sam Walker vs Mitch Moses is just one of the great match-ups on Friday night.

The fullbacks are gems, I reckon in one way or another I’ve written about James Tedesco every week, so I don’t need to spruik about how he’ll impact the match.

If I had to sum up Clint Gutherson in one word it’s ‘relentless’. The bloke turns up everywhere they desperately need him to be. Try saving tackles, tight little inside passes off his big men, chasing kicks, defusing bombs, organising defences.

Clint Gutherson has been in fine form for the Eels. Picture: Mark Evans/Getty Images

Gutho’s star continues to rise, a points victory over Tedesco will elevate that star further.

Nathan Brown vs Victor Radley, if they were boxers they’d be tough middleweights, Hagler vs Hearns.

Both crucial players, with no Luke Keary, Radley’s creativity is a great help to his halves.

Nathan Brown’s short passing at full speed produces some errors but it also produces plenty of opportunities.

Both Brown and Radley are the scallywags every team needs, they play with high emotion and they elevate the mood in the dressing room in those nervous last moments before you get the knock on the door, telling you it’s time for action.

Big test for Reagan Campbell-Gillard, he’s a big improver but around the 20-minute mark when the petrol tank starts to lower, Jared Waerea-Hargreaves will come off the bench and go after him immediately.

In this episode, Phil ‘Buzz’ Rothfield, Michael Carayannis and Adam Mobbs argue over who is in more trouble — Newcastle or Canberra. They also pay tribute to the late Bunny Reilly, reflect on the career of Brett Morris and discuss Xavier Coates becoming the latest Bronco to abandon ship.

The signing of the season, Isaiah Papali’i and his work rate is now a cornerstone for Parramatta, while Angus Crichton’s importance grows week by week, as week by week the Roosters just keeps losing key man.

The Roosters must stop Maika Sivo and Blake Ferguson making metres on early tackles, they get the Eels sets rolling and then Reed Mahoney gets out of dummy-half and the centre-field assault begins.

And what about Junior Paulo?

Rarely have I seen such a combination of size, footwork and finesse in pass selection.

The Roosters stocks are low, with each season-ending injury, bringing less optimism to even the most dedicated Roosters fan, but this is a playing group who are not just tough but motivated by big challenges.

If somehow they manage to grab this title, it will go down as their greatest, at least in the modern era.

Originally published as Matty Johns: Sam Walker’s rugby league talent a force of nature