Reece Walsh set Wembley Stadium alight on Sunday (AEDT) as the Kangaroos started their Ashes series against England with a bang, running out 26-6 winners.
But the fullback’s impact stretched far beyond the match, with the NRL superstar seen as the potential key to saving the Super League.
The Kangaroos and England facing off in a rugby league Ashes series was largely put together not just to reignite the fierce rivalry, but rather to help try to save the Super League.
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For the last decade, rugby league in England has been struggling financially, with clubs concerned about the soon-to-expire television deal with Sky Sports, fearing the league could completely collapse.
Crowd and TV viewership numbers are fairly low, as is the overall interest in the 13-man code, which has to rival sports such as football (soccer), rugby union and cricket.
It has led to talk about the NRL even buying a stake in the struggling competition.
But Monday’s game showed the key to making the Super League great again is star power. And in a team that featured the likes of Nathan Cleary and Cameron Munster, it was Walsh who put tens of thousands of bums on seats. A whopping 60,812 people turned up to watch the first Ashes match, an incredible turnout.
To put that into perspective, the average attendance across the 2025 Super League season was 10,044, with teams such as the Salford Red Devils and Huddersfield Giants averaging crowd numbers of less than 5,000 spectators a game.
And a quick look at social media and listening to chatter about the first Ashes match – even ahead of Walsh’s starring performance – showed the young Broncos star was the talk of the town.
His exciting brand of football reignited interest in the sport, which had English fans unable to look away.
“Reece Walsh was worth the entrance fee alone; I’ve never seen a player move like him before. He’ll go down as the greatest of all time, I reckon,” Warrington Wolves fan Johnny Gordon wrote on X.
“The Rugby League. Reece Walsh is very, very good,” Leigh Leopards fan Alex Alderdice said.
“Long day, but good day. Pity the game not closer, but always good to see the Aussies in the flesh. Reece Walsh worth the trip!!” Irishman Tadhg Rohan wrote.
“Result was as expected but still a fab day out with the fam – and watching Reece Walsh live is deffo even better than watching him on TV! What a talent,” English woman Rachel Anne added.
In just 80 minutes Walsh showed the UK how exciting rugby league can be and had tongues wagging.
It also vindicated calls for him to be the first man on the plane, if not for his undeniable raw talent, his star power and excitement factor alone.
Ahead of the Kangaroos’ tour of England, Matty Johns said Walsh should be the first player picked.
“Kevvie. Reece Walsh has to be the first man on the plane,” Johns previously said on SEN.
“Forget about football matters, the game over there is struggling. They (England) desperately need this tour. And I will tell you what else they desperately need is high-profile players like Reece Walsh being there.
“When they went to Newcastle, there were thousands at every training session to watch him and going over to England, it would be enormous for the game.
“You think about a guy like Reece, if you want to sell the game, he’s the selling point. If you took Teddy and Edwards, you still take Walsh.
“Because the most important thing with this Ashes series isn’t Australia winning, the most important thing is when the players come back, the English game is in better shape.”
It may only be one game into a series that looks almost certain to be a clean sweep to the green and gold, but more importantly, Walsh has already done his part to help bolster the game in England.
Originally published as England loses its mind over Reece Walsh as NRL hopes superstar will save the Super League