All eyes were on Kangaroos fullback Reece Walsh in his Aussie debut in first Ashes Test and his two try-saving efforts were reminiscent of his efforts against Melbourne in the NRL grand final. The Kangaroos proved too strong and athletic for their English rivals having won the first Ashes game in 22 years at Wembley 26-6.
An impressive crowd turned out to see the historic event and there was no doubt who the crowd most wanted to see with murmurs going around the ground every time Walsh got the ball at the back. And while the electric fullback opened the scoring having dived over the line in emphatic fashion, it was his defence that once again caught the attention of the rugby league world.
Reece Walsh (pictured right) repeated some of his NRL grand final heroics with two try-saving efforts against England with the fullback winning player-of-the-match award on Kangaroos debut. (Images: Channel Nine/Getty Images)
Both defensive saves came in the first-half with the game still on the line. England broke the line down Australia’s left defence and Walsh had a split second to decide whether he would make the tackle on Herbie Farnworth or go for the ball.
And the Broncos and Kangaroos fullback chose correctly having dived to his left to smother the pass from Farnworth. Walsh saved a try, which would have been the opener for England in the series. Walsh then repeated a similar move after the break when Jake Wardle made a break again down Australia’s right edge.
This time Wardle had time to draw in Walsh in for the tackle. But the 23-year-old fullback showed once again why he was the difference in the NRL grand final having faked and dived to his left to again batter down the ball and save a try. While the Aussies ran away with a 26-6 win, Walsh’s two try-saving acts ultimately kept England to zero points for the majority of the game in the first Ashes Test.
When asked about whether it was his two tries or his two try-saving efforts he was most proud of he added: “Yeah, probably the two I stopped – it went a long way to us winning.” Broncos coach Michael Maguire had been singing about Walsh’s defensive efforts all year, despite the fullback coming under scrutiny for that part of his game.
Reece Walsh (pictured) made a second try-saving effort to deny England. (Image: Channel Nine)
Although the second-half of the year has seen the fullback make the right decisions. This was highlighted during the NRL grand final when he made a stunning one-on-one tackle against Ryan Papenhuyzen.
And Walsh repeated those efforts against England on the biggest stage at Wembley. Walsh was also incredible in attack having scored two tries to take home the player-of-the-match award. And fans were glowing of Walsh’s efforts with English fans in awe of the fullback’s feats.
Kevin Walters remains grounded over Reece Walsh
Speaking after the game, Walsh was ecstatic having won the Clive Churchill Medal and now the player-of-the-match honours in his Kangaroos debut. “It’s been a pretty surreal couple of weeks,” he admitted after the game.
But coach Walters wanted to keep his fullback’s feet on the ground after the win. When asked about his superstar fullback, Walters said. “Oh, he was okay, you know, without being great,” he said with a smile.
“It’s just good to see him finally in the green and gold, and just being Reece Walsh, just playing footy. It’s great to see.”
Reece Walsh (pictured) scored a double for the Kangaroos against England.
Shaun Wane faces selection dilemma for second Test
England coach Shaun Wane has a lot to go through ahead of the second Test with Australia absolutely dominant. The coach claimed poor execution was part of his team underperforming and it felt like “torture”, but said they would bounce back. But Nathan Cleary and Cameron Munster kicked fullback Jack Welsby out of the game.
The fullback only ran for 65 metres and was well below his best as the Aussies dominated field territory. But the Aussies also claimed they will improve with two-try sensation Angus Crichton admitted the Kangaroos will only improve. “Not at all. We were really sloppy in the first half and can do a lot better,” he said.