Dead Eye Dick couldn’t find the black dot from the touchline like Sammy Walker in Origin 2.
If he hadn’t been perfect from the kicking tee, and by perfect I mean if his old man didn’t have a remote control behind the posts to enable Sam to dissect the posts perfectly, then my name’s Gunger Din… He would still have been considered one of the most influential players in a great Maroons performance in Origin 2.
His kicking game, while not as powerful as Mitchell Moses’—as Joey Johns noted, “Mitch Moses kicks 60 metres and Sam Walker barely 40”—was consistently effective and constantly tested the Blues’ defence. Walker’s “inside 10” grubbers were really classy, finding narrow gaps with great weighting.
After blowing his very first kick on the hard bouncing surface, dead in goal, Walker’s onboard computer recalibrated and his deft touch secured repeat sets to enable the grinding and relentless Maroons pressure.
His looped wrap-around pass for Kalyn Ponga to put Selwyn Cobbo away for his second try, was a disruptor that created defensive pandemonium for the Blues.
His grubber for Robert Toia, to score the Maroons opening try in Origin 1, was a beauty.
Genetics for Footy
His father, Ben Walker, played 72 games for the Broncos during an 11-year NRL career that spanned six clubs. In 2001, he set the record for the most points scored by a five-eighth in a single NRL season, tallying 279 points in 26 games. That same year, he shared the Dally M Top Point Scorer Award with the eighth Immortal, Andrew Johns.
Ben still holds the record for the most points in that single season for the Northern Eagles.
His uncle, Chris Walker, played 67 games for the Broncos, in a 12-year playing career across seven different clubs and represented the Maroons in the 2001 and 2002 State of Origin serieses. In 2001 he scored tries in all three Origin games and got so deeply inside the head of Blues coach, Nathan Brown, that he shouted “Walker’s on! Walker’s on!” seemingly in a panic about the impact he could make.
Ipswich Grammar
Of course, Sam’s footy career started with GPS Rugby Union at Ipswich Grammar School, where Broncos and Maroons legend and former coach, Kevvie Walters went to school. Kurt Capewell, another current Origin legend from the same school, has contributed massively to the Maroons since his Origin debut in 2020.
In 2019, at the age of 16, Sam signed with the Roosters for two years, whilst still in his final year of school. On the school’s Facebook page he said, “I am focussing on finishing the school year and achieving the best grades I can.”
In 2020 the school picked their team of the decade, including Sam, where they said:
Samuel Walker (Class of 2019) had incredible vision and was electric in attack. A great exponent of the counterattack, he managed to bamboozle opposition defence whenever he handled the ball. He was an Australian Rugby League Representative and is now signed with the Sydney Roosters NRL Team.
By 2021 he was well-established in the NRL and had been crowned the Dally M Rookie of the year.
Now closing in on his 100th game for the Roosters, what a State of Origin future he has, with ball in hand, kicking from the tee and grubbering through narrow holes.
Surely he lines up on July 8 at Suncorp to do Ipswich Grammar and Queensland proud, once again.
Published 18-June-2026
