By Christian Nicolussi
Sam Walker grew up with several Brisbane players and still has most of his mates living in the Queensland capital, yet has no interest in succeeding Adam Reynolds in the No. 7 jersey at the end of next year.
“I love the Roosters – I look forward to hopefully having a long campaign here,” Walker said.
The 21-year-old halfback played one of his best games ever for the Roosters in Thursday’s Anzac Day 60-18 annihilation of St George Illawarra.
He now heads home to Brisbane next Friday where he says he will be greeted by “a crew of about 1000 people”, and at a venue where he regularly attended NRL games growing up, and idolised so many of his idols.
With Reynolds likely to retire at the end of next year, and with Walker off contract at the same time at the Roosters, the 21-year-old appears the perfect fit at Red Hill.
Walker played junior representative football with Ezra Mam, who was his back-rower in the under-16s Metropolitan West school team, as well as Brendan Piakura, Selwyn Cobbo and Reece Walsh.
Sam Walker (left) finished the game with a personal haul of 24 points including 10 from 10 conversion attempts.Credit: Getty
The Broncos have a young pack, and with the addition of Walker would remain in the premiership window the next decade.
“But I love the Roosters, and it’s home now,” Walker said.
“I look forward to playing there [in Brisbane] every couple of months, but this is home. There will always be speculation. I’m happy here.”
Walker is the future of the Roosters, especially with Luke Keary and James Tedesco off at the end of next year, and young stars Joseph Suaalii and Joey Manu exiting for rugby at the end of this year.
Spencer Leniu clashes with Kotoni Staggs minutes after calling Ezra Mam a “monkey” in Las Vegas.Credit: Getty
The Roosters have no interest in letting him go, and know rivals cannot talk to him until November 1.
The return bout with the Broncos will be one of the big storylines of next week following the Mam and Spencer Leniu racism scandal earlier in the season.
Leniu was suspended eight matches for the Las Vegas incident, and will return the week after the Broncos game.
Walker was grateful there were so many senior Roosters who had dealt with their share of explosive storylines ahead of big games, and added he had not reached out to Mam since the round-zero drama.
“We’re not in constant contact, and he went through a little bit there [in Vegas],” Walker said. “I’m sure he’ll be up for the game.
“Me and Ezra played a lot of footy together. We’re both from Ipswich, and he was my back-rower at Met West in the under-16s – I was 15, and he was a year younger. I loved playing with ‘Ezzy’. He’s a legend.
“Brendan Piakura was my back-rower most of the time in most of the rep teams I played in. ‘Sel’ [Cobbo] was thereabouts as well. And me and Reece played heaps of footy together. It will be like Met West against South Coast again.
“I’m sure there will be some build-up next week, but we just need to clear in our heads and know what we need to do to.
“If we play like we did [against the Dragons], I’m really confident we’ll come away with the win.”
Walker missed a couple of weeks through concussion, but was dynamite at Allianz Stadium, scoring a try and setting up a further three. He was also on fire with the boot, finishing with a personal haul of 24 points.
This time last year he was playing reserve grade at Wentworth Park, but Walker said he tried not to overthink things, and “the bigger the moment, the more chaotic I get”.
Walker shines as rugby-bound Rooster makes Origin case in thrashing of Dragons
Sam Walker was brilliant in his comeback game from a concussion as Joseph Suaalii gave Michael Maguire a decent NSW Origin headache.
The Roosters were at the top of their game as they thumped St George Illawarra 60-18 at Allianz Stadium on Thursday. It was the biggest-ever Anzac Day victory in matches between these clubs.
Walker finished with a personal haul of 24 points and had a hand in everything. And to think it was on the corresponding weekend last year he was playing NSW Cup at Wentworth Park.
Walker had missed the past fortnight as he overcame a head knock but made an immediate impact under brilliant blue skies on a day where rugby league happily took a back seat.
Nat Butcher, Luke Keary and Sam Walker celebrate a try.Credit: Getty
The way Luke Keary hobbled around in the final minutes could mean Walker’s role becomes even more vital in coming weeks.
His short-kicking game was all class. He finished with a penalty try, and a kick to the face courtesy of a stray boot from Tyrell Sloan.
Walker also put through an early kick for Joey Manu’s first try and set up Nat Butcher, who moved just like Manu when finishing with his own double.
His proud father Ben was in the stands and would have lapped up every moment. Walker senior has always wanted his son to play what he sees. He did that against the Red V.
Roosters coach Trent Robinson said of Walker: “Sam does that to us every day when we train. If a fullback comes into the line, he’ll pull you apart.
“It was great to see him do that. Plus also the goal-kicking, it’s such a key part of that as well. He sees the game slightly differently. Sam is out of the box when it comes to seeing where defensive lines are, and numbers, and fullbacks ... when players are moving for you, and he can see them he can really tear them apart.”
The Roosters have more injury concerns than just Keary, who left the ground in a moonboot. Michael Jennings failed to finish the game because of a tricep injury. Daniel Tupou (knee) and Victor Radley (hamstring) were already late scratchings.
The Roosters looked so much better with Walker. The premiership debate will only start if they can get the job done against the Broncos in Brisbane next Friday.
Dominic Young fends off Kyle Flanagan at Allianz Stadium.Credit: Getty
Suaalii is in the final year of NRL before he takes up a lucrative three-year deal with Rugby Australia, but is doing everything to make sure he exits the game an Origin player.
It was fitting Suaalii scored the final try of the afternoon, his first since round 26 last season, and with Zac Lomax the last line of defence. The contest between Suaalii, 20, and 24-year-old Lomax was tense throughout. Lomax tried to rag doll Suaalii, while Suaalii refused to shy away from the physicality.
A growing debate in the countdown to the first Origin game in June will be whether new Blues coach Maguire should even consider Suaalii because of his code switch.
Maguire wants to win, and you get the impression he will pick the best 17 available at the time.
Lomax set up the Dragons’ first try, the best four-pointer of the afternoon, when he took on Keary, then snuck a pass to Sloan on his wing. It looked effortless. Then Lomax threw a pass that was never on, which led to the Roosters scoring through Angus Crichton. It was a lead they never relinquished.
Lomax came into the game the form outside back in the competition, but there were a few cracks on the big stage and in front of a cracking 40,727-strong crowd.
To be fair to the Red V, they lost Moses Suli in the first play of the game when flattened by Jared Waerea-Hargreaves. There was nothing wrong with Waerea-Hargreaves’ hit-up.
Kyle Flanagan was forced to move and defend in the centres, and the Roosters sent a mountain of traffic his way. The Dragons were out of gas well before half-time.
“I couldn’t wait until it finished to be honest; we came back to earth with a thud,” coach Shane Flanagan said after the game.
At least Flanagan knows his players have a 10-day turnaround to freshen up for the derby against Cronulla. Flanagan led the Sharks to their only premiership in 2016, and said of the showdown: “It’s been marked in the calendar for a while. It won’t be an emotional week. I won a comp there. I don’t think they’ve won one since.
“My job is to get these boys back up ... I need to get them back to where they were the past couple of weeks.”
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