![\"Chris](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/ee71cb37d4c9fcd432bc0a75a0130cfa154694ad.png\")
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Remove items from your saved list<\/a> to add more.<\/p>\n AAA<\/p>\n Angus Crichton has backed Sydney Roosters teammate Sam Walker to handle the defensive rigours of State of Origin if the halfback is handed a first Queensland jersey by Maroons coach Billy Slater.<\/p>\n The 23-year-old is in contention for a senior interstate debut at Accor Stadium with Tom Dearden sidelined by an ankle injury.<\/p>\n Slater will finalise his squad after Magic Round in Brisbane on Sunday night and the vacant No.7 jumper appears to be a three-way contest between Walker, veteran Roosters teammate and former Queensland captain Daly Cherry-Evans and New Zealand Warriors revelation Tanah Boyd.<\/p>\n Walker has impressed as the Roosters have risen to third on the premiership ladder heading into their game against North Queensland at Suncorp Stadium on Saturday. Crichton dismissed any suggestion the playmaker\u2019s defence is not up to the level required in Origin.<\/p>\n \u201cI think at the start of his career that would probably be a fair assessment, but I think at the minute he\u2019s stepping in and he\u2019s doing a really good job,\u201d said Crichton, speaking alongside Walker at the launch of this weekend\u2019s Beer, Footy, Food Festival at North Sydney Oval.<\/p>\n \u201cAs a half, you get so much traffic sent at you, so there\u2019s going to be times when you\u2019re going to make mistakes, but that\u2019s when your teammates are there to help you and support you.<\/p>\n \u201cDefending alongside him, I can vouch for him. He\u2019s a solid defender and he works really hard for his teammates.\u201d<\/p>\n The rugby-bound back-rower will be running at his club colleague if, as expected, he is included in Laurie Daley\u2019s NSW side and Walker gets the nod from Slater.<\/p>\n Former Queensland forward Corey Parker raised questions about Walker\u2019s defence after he misread a play near his own line last Friday that resulted in a try for the Gold Coast Titans.<\/p>\n According to NRL statistics Walker has missed 25 tackles in nine games this season, but there are 39 players with a higher count, among them Boyd, with 32, and fellow Queensland selection candidate Ezra Mam, who tops the list with 48.<\/p>\n \u201cI think my game is definitely progressing in a really positive way and I\u2019m feeling really, really confident in my footy at the moment,\u201d Walker said.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s out of my control, but I know if the call came I\u2019d be ready.\u201d<\/p>\n Walker previously spent time in Slater\u2019s extended squad before the deciding match of the 2022 series to gain experience.<\/p>\n Walker\u2019s uncle Chris made six appearances on the wing for Queensland in the early 2000s. He scored four tries in the 2001 series, which is best known for Allan Langer\u2019s return from England to lead the Maroons to victory in game three.<\/p>\n Chris Walker\u2019s Origin career was also remembered for NSW trainer Nathan Brown\u2019s \u201cWalker\u2019s on!\u201d warning to the Blues when he came off the bench for game one of the 2002 series in Sydney.<\/p>\n Walker was born exactly a month after that clash so his Origin heroes arrived later.<\/p>\n \u201cJonathan Thurston was always special \u2026 I definitely looked up to him a fair bit,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cThen I think \u2018GI\u2019 [Greg Inglis] and those sorts of players. As a Queenslander, they had such an impact on your childhood as a whole there. I definitely looked up to them.\u201d<\/p>\n Save<\/p>\n You have reached your maximum number of saved items.<\/p>\n Remove items from your saved list<\/a> to add more.<\/p>\n![\"Sam](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/f82ea8555bd846c98a53990fcd5ba3ddd1e90453.jpeg\")
Sam Walker and Angus Crichton launch the Beer, Footy, Food Festival at North Sydney Oval.James Brickwood<\/p>\n![\"Chris](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/1769322851_66_ee71cb37d4c9fcd432bc0a75a0130cfa154694ad.png\")
Chris Barrett<\/a> is a senior sports reporter for The Sydney Morning Herald. He is a former South-East Asia correspondent for the Herald and The Age.Connect via X<\/a> or email<\/a>.From our partners<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Save You have reached your maximum number of saved items. Remove items from your saved list to add…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":667244,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[568],"tags":[64,63,761,762,158,85],"class_list":["post-667243","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-nrl","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-national-rugby-league","tag-nationalrugbyleague","tag-nrl","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/667243","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=667243"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/667243\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/667244"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=667243"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=667243"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=667243"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}