Sam Walker News

[Horry]

Hearing Queensland under-18s halfback sensation Sam Walker has signed with the Roosters. Will quit the Broncos to head to Sydney next year as the Roosters plan for life after Cooper Cronk
Peter badel on Twitter

[Johnny73]

With Flanagan there, it'll be cover if Keary has to retire because of concussion issues. Which is not beyond the realms of impossibility.

[Rooster_6]

He's 17?

Lets get real, he's not playing first grade next year even if he has signed.

Great news though. Kid looks extremely talented, always hard to tell with halves though how they will adapt to First Grade. Playing halves at junior level and senior level are almost two completely different positions.

[Vasco]

He's 17?

Lets get real, he's not playing first grade next year even if he has signed.

Great news though. Kid looks extremely talented, always hard to tell with halves though how they will adapt to First Grade. Playing halves at junior level and senior level are almost two completely different positions.

He'll go close.

[Kelby]

He's 17?

Lets get real, he's not playing first grade next year even if he has signed.

Great news though. Kid looks extremely talented, always hard to tell with halves though how they will adapt to First Grade. Playing halves at junior level and senior level are almost two completely different positions.

Tom Dearden is only 18 this year. He's doing pretty good.

[Lydon]

Great signing by our Club,good times ahead!

[Bahrain Rooster]

It’s a good signing, hopefully he continues his development

[bondi.boy]

"If you can't tackle, don't bother ringing up" - Jack Gibson

"If you can't tackle 195cm tall 120kg Kikau when he's running at pace,...and the Raiders monsters [no 4 is as big as a prop] - don't bother ringing up" - bondi boy.

[Rooster_6]

Tom Dearden is only 18 this year. He's doing pretty good.

It can be so damaging to their long term development, it shouldn't be about short term results. I look at Pearce & Cleary, two halves who debuted at 18 and their development, both showed great promise early on but both struggled to develop their games in first grade and stagnated through their earlier years. Pearce ended up a good halfback and I'm sure Cleary will too but you can see just how out of sorts Cleary is as a player right now.

It's just not the environment to be developing a player in a position that is as much about what's between the ears as it it is skills and physical attributes.

["gaz"]

https://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sp...3d09e4362ee78d Queensland under-18s sensation Sam Walker will quit the Broncos at season’s end after the Roosters won the battle for the most sought-after young playmaker in Australian sport.
The Courier-Mail can reveal Walker has shunned interest from Rugby Australia and 11 NRL clubs to ink a deal with the Roosters in a blow to the Broncos’ future playmaking stocks.

Walker contacted the Roosters today to inform them of his decision. The 16-year-old has agreed to a two-year deal as the Roosters prepare for life after champion playmaker Cooper Cronk.

All three Queensland NRL clubs, the Broncos, Cowboys and Titans, were keen on Walker but the halfback young gun will move to Sydney next year to chase his NRL dreams with the Bondi glamour club.

Walker was classy in the Queensland under-18s’ impressive disposal of NSW in the curtain raiser to Origin I last week.

Walker, who turns 17 later this month, had fielded offers of up to $200,000 a season as even Rugby Australia targeted the Ipswich Jets wonder boy.

Walker celebrated one of the highlights of his embryonic rugby league career last week when he trained against the Queensland Origin senior team in an opposed session at Davies Park.

The son of former Brisbane playmaker Ben Walker, Sam was off-contract with the Broncos at season’s end and decided to look elsewhere following the blooding of 18-year-old Tom Dearden at Red Hill.

Walker’s uncle Shane, who played 150 first-grades with Brisbane and Souths, said the wiry halfback has a huge future in the code.

“People have compared him to Kalyn Ponga but he plays differently to Ponga, Sam is pretty unique in his style,” Walker said.

“He reads play really well, he has a high football IQ for a kid so young and it comes back to his environment, he’s been around football since his earliest years.

“Sam can identify weaknesses in the opposition very quickly, even his kicking style and the way he moves is different to any young halfback I’ve seen.

“There’s no reason that Sam can’t have a long career in the NRL, but he needs to put the hard work in and keep on improving.”

Queensland Under-18s coach Kurt Richards said Walker is a gifted footballer.

“Sam is a fair talent and plays on both sides of the park and plays what he sees,” Richards said.

“He’s only young but we expect a lot from him in the future.”

["gaz"]

https://www.nrl.com/news/2019/06/11/...lf-sam-walker/

Dan Walsh NRL.com Reporter Timestamp Tue 11 Jun 2019, 02:05 PM

The Roosters have beaten the ARU and NRL rivals to lure one of the game's hottest playmaking talents to Bondi, with Ipswich rookie Sam Walker set to join the premiers on a two-year deal from next season.

Walker is the son of former Broncos half Ben and despite not turning 17 until the end of the week, has fielded serious interest from both codes over the past few months.

The teenage prodigy has been touted as the Roosters' longterm successor to Cooper Cronk's No.7 jumper and NRL.com understands Walker will join the club until the end of 2022 on his new deal.

Walker's current contract with Brisbane lapses at the end of 2019, though neither the Broncos or Roosters have made any official announcement on the youngster's future.

Still just 16 years old, Walker played well beyond his age in steering Queensland's under 18s to a comfortable 34-12 defeat of NSW at Suncorp Stadium last week.

His playmaking promise landed him on the radar of Canterbury, North Queensland and the Gold Coast among other NRL outfits, while Rugby Australia also registered their interest in luring Walker to the 15-man game.

But Walker will now link with the Roosters, with a tour of their facilities earlier this year, followed by breakfast with coach Trent Robinson and star half Luke Keary making a serious impression on the rising teen.

"It was really good to sit down and learn. Trent Robinson is the first head (NRL) coach to speak to me about the way I play and I picked up little tips," Walker told the QRL's website earlier this month.

"Trent is the best coach in the NRL at the moment and it is good to hear from the best. I’ve only ever had my dad and uncle (Shane) correct my game and encourage me how to play, so it was really good to hear his thoughts on how I can become a better player, because I am always learning at the moment.

"I am turning 17 very soon and I know I need to get better and improve.

"I spoke to Luke Keary about how he works with players and gets the best out of them. They have got a really strong team and culture at the Roosters and I picked up on that."

[The Axe]

great news. Just can't work out why he turned down the Titans....

[Cockadoodledoo]

Jacks Fur Coat will be devastated that Brock Lamb and Drew Hutchinson might be squeezed out as a result.

[fletch]

Some confusion over the length of the deal NRL.com suggesting its 3yrs and the Telucrap 2yrs.

[Cockadoodledoo]

Just goes to show how far ahead we are as a club and Trent is as a coach in the way we dealt with Sam.