Eamonn Tiernan is the NRL Editor at foxsports.com.au and he writes Extra Time fortnightly.
There are several Queensland clubs considering making a move for out-of-favour Roosters halfback Sam Walker.
Foxsports.com.au can reveal the clubs are closely watching Walker’s situation at Bondi Junction and it’s not lost on them that their chances of landing him would be infinitely improved by also offering his dad and uncle – The Walker Brothers – roles on the coaching staff.
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The 20-year-old looks destined for a long stint in reserve grade as the Roosters have chalked up two straight wins without him, having lost their previous three with him.
Walker’s axing a fortnight ago comes less than two years after he was named the 2021 NRL Rookie of the Year following a stellar campaign that produced 19 try assists in 21 appearances for the Roosters.
The key factor about that season for Walker is he didn’t play a single game alongside Luke Keary, as the veteran playmaker did his ACL in Round 3.
The pair played together for the first time last season and Roosters coach Trent Robinson called for patience following their patchy start as a duo.
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The combination improved as the year progressed and they helped the club to an eight-game winning run to end the regular season. But the Roosters still finished sixth and were bundled out in the first week of finals by their arch rivals South Sydney.
Which of the pair has worn the No. 7 jersey has changed over the past 18 months. Walker started in it this season but in Keary’s presence he again struggled to be the dominant halfback he was in 2021.
Less than 12 months after calling for patience, Robinson lost his and dropped Walker after the Queenslander produced two try assists and three linebreak assists in six games.
The Sydney Morning Herald then reported a rift between Walker’s family and Roosters staff over the side’s playing style which the family claimed was contrary to Walker’s strengths, according to the report.
Walker’s dad Ben and uncle Shane – who played 284 NRL games between them – coached the Ipswich Jets to the club’s only Queensland Cup title in 2015 playing a freestyle brand of free-flowing attack.
Foxsports.com.au contacted Ben this week and he rejected he SMH report, but didn’t want to speak on the record to give it any more airtime.
The Walker Brothers have spoken with several NRL clubs over the years, both formally and informally, about giving them a crack coaching in first grade and foxsports.com.au understands their unique ability to sign Sam has been raised in some of those meetings.
Foxsports.com.au asked Ben if there was any truth to him and Shane being part of a potential packaged deal if Sam were to become available.
Ben emphasised his family have no issues with the Roosters and that his son is contracted until the end of 2025.
Cronk responds to reported Walker rift | 01:59
Ben was asked on the Fox League Podcast last year if his dream was to one day coach his son in the NRL if the stars were to align.
“I’m not going to hide the fact that we’d love to coach Sam again, we’ve coached him all his life so would love another opportunity but Robbo is pretty happy with him at the Roosters and Sam is signed at the Roosters,” Ben said last July.
Robinson is adamant Walker remains part of their long-term plans, but the Roosters do have a history of moving along playmakers they’ve lost faith in – Mitchell Pearce and Kyle Flanagan are the most recent examples.
Which brings us back to the Queensland clubs – the Broncos, Cowboys, Titans and Dolphins are all in the market for a long-term half beyond next year.
Brisbane’s Adam Reynolds, North Queensland’s Chad Townsend and Gold Coast’s Kieran Foran are all on the wrong side of 32, while the Dolphins are still chasing their marquee man.
Walker is one of the most creative talents in the game, but he also needs to learn how to run an NRL team and grind out wins. He’ll be given that chance at a club over the next decade, the only question is where.
SOLUTION TO SOLVE HIP-DROP CONUNDRUM
The hip-drop tackle has become one of the most dangerous in the game and the NRL has rightly cracked down on it – even if they’re denying it’s a crackdown.
We saw two more players charged over the weekend, taking the season tally of the offence to 16 which is on track to triple last year (22).
Cowboys young gun Jeremiah accepted a four-game ban for his ugly tackle on Braden Hamlin-Uele which injured the Sharks prop.
The Cronulla big man, uncharacteristically, threw the ball furiously at Nanai’s head following the incident and after the game called the tackle “dirty”.
Hamlin-Uele will miss the next four weeks as he recovers from the knee injury he suffered in the tackle.
Nobody knows better than Alex McKinnon the devastating consequences an illegal tackle can have on the rest of a player’s life.
But the former Knights player said simply banning players won’t eradicate the tackle and that the NRL must go further.
“Some hip drops are lazy and the tackle has got away from them but on other occasions there’s things outside their control,” McKinnon told foxsports.com.au.
“Sometimes they can’t do anything else due to things like play-the-ball speed and where they are positioned and where the tackle went with three players in it.
“There are more things the game should consider before trying to outlaw the tackle through suspensions.
Soni Luke in hot water over hip drop | 03:00
“What’s the contributing factor to these hip-drop tackles? Maybe you only allow three people in the tackle inside your 20-metre line.
“They definitely need to consider the 10-metre rule. Do you make it eight metres and only two men in the tackle?
“That would promote the offload but that isn’t a bad thing as the viewer doesn’t lose anything. It’s an entertainment sport and if you’re a neutral you want to see tries.
“But you can’t make the changes all at once and you can’t just fix something on the run. Over summer it’s something they should look at.”
Cooper Cronk has warned hip-drops will remain for the coming weeks as teams slowly grapple with changing their tackling technique.
Clubs better get moving – with more injuries inevitable – but what will help them is consistency from the NRL.
Panthers hooker Soni Luke was also charged with a hip-drop tackle on Alex Twal but he escaped with a fine because the Wests Tigers forward wasn’t injured.
The NRL have acknowledged injury is a factor when determining a penalty, but if they’re serious about stamping out the tackle then every charge should result in a suspension this season before looking at McKinnon’s rule changes over the summer.
But the first step for now is simply consistency during games, especially when the Bunker reviews a tackle.
Broncos duo Ezra Mam and Payne Haas both missed their side’s clash against Souths on the weekend due to hip-drop bans, but when they happened in the game – a minute apart – only the former was penalised.
Foxsports.com.au put it to Graham Annesley that referees were humans prone to mistakes due to pressures of what’s happening in a match, but the NRL head of football flatly rejected that possibility.
Brooksy magic puts Tigers in to score | 00:46
BROOKS COULD GET OUT OF THE SPOTLIGHT… IN CANBERRA
The greatest player to ever pull on a Canberra Raiders jersey – Mal Meninga – believes the club should take a punt on Luke Brooks.
Ricky Stuart is in the market for a half following Jack Wighton’s announcement that he’ll be leaving the club at the end of the season to join South Sydney.
Wests Tigers halfback Brooks is in the final year of arguably the most scrutinised contract in NRL history and he isn’t expected to extend at Concord – although that could change after his starring performance against the Panthers on Saturday night.
Wherever Brooks lands next year, it will be on significantly less than his current salary of $1.1 million per season.
Stuart is chasing a half to partner Jamal Fogarty next season and Raiders legend Meninga believes that man could be Brooks.
“If Ricky can get the best out of Luke Brooks it would be a cheap buy and it still leaves plenty in the cap to look at other options,” Meninga told foxsports.com.au.
“So it could be an astute buy, you don’t know, only the Raiders can find out if they feel like he can help fill the void there.
“Brooks is a runner, he’s quick and strong in the tackle so it could work with Fogarty.”
