{"id":680764,"date":"2026-05-19T12:24:11","date_gmt":"2026-05-19T12:24:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/680764\/"},"modified":"2026-05-19T12:24:11","modified_gmt":"2026-05-19T12:24:11","slug":"they-want-to-see-sam-deliver-qld-halfback-under-the-microscope-as-roosters-face-big-1m-call","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/680764\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018They want to see Sam deliver\u2019: QLD halfback under the microscope as Roosters face big $1m call"},"content":{"rendered":"

Sam Walker hasn\u2019t even played a single minute for the Queensland Maroons, but his Origin debut next Wednesday has already been described as a \u201ccareer-defining\u201d moment.<\/p>\n

Watch every game of every round of the NRL Premiership LIVE with no ad-breaks during play on FOX LEAGUE, available on Kayo Sports | New to Kayo? Join now and get your first month for just $1<\/a>.<\/p>\n

As the halfback steps into the biggest spotlight of his career it comes at a crucial juncture which could have a significant effect on his long-term future at the Sydney Roosters.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

This is due to him hitting the open market in less than six months time, with rival clubs closely monitoring whether he will remain at the Bondi or will be on the lookout for a new team.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn many ways this could be career-defining for Sam Walker,\u201d Code Sports\u2019 David Riccio said on NRL 360.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have been so obsessed about every Penrith player off-contract, well Sam Walker sits in the exact same category as the (likes of) Isaah Yeo, Liam Martin, Nathan Cleary. <\/p>\n

\u201cFrom this November 1 he will be a free agent.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sam Walker will make his Origin debut in Game One.Source: Getty Images<\/p>\n

Able to speak with rivals from November 1, it is understood that Walker\u2019s current side (Roosters) have yet to open contract extension talks with him.<\/p>\n

This is despite the half being earmarked as a player that is capable of steering them towards a premiership push in the coming years and seeing them reach the NRL Grand Final once again..<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Roosters haven\u2019t moved yet. I feel as though they want to see Sam deliver in the big games and they went out the back door of the semi-finals last year,\u201d Riccio added.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s done a remarkable job to come back from injury and be in this position but as we go towards November 1 if it\u2019s on the back of a winning Origin series it\u2019s going to put the Roosters in a position. <\/p>\n

\u201cAre they going to lock down this guy long-term, who’s currently on about $1 million, and reinvest into Sam Walker, or are they going to walk away?\u201d<\/p>\n

What does a huge Origin do for Walker? | 03:19<\/p>\n

A stellar showing for the Maroons could see the Roosters stick with Walker and earn him a multi-million dollar payday.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, a disappointing performance could see the Tricolours opts to go in a different direction – the direction of Hugo Savala and Toby Rodwell.<\/p>\n

\u201cI firmly believe he needs to deliver on the biggest stage for the Roosters to have the up most belief in him as a player as their long-term halfback and someone who\u2019s going to deliver them a premiership,\u201d Riccio continued.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf the Roosters don\u2019t take him up. I\u2019m sure there\u2019ll be clubs out there.\u201d<\/p>\n

Origin 1 2026 and the Queensland squad come together for media at Suncorp Stadium. Sam Walker and Max Plath Pictures: Adam HeadSource: News Corp Australia<\/p>\n

Despite the comments from Riccio, ex-Roosters icon Braith Anasta disagreed and stated that even if Walker did perform badly, he can come back bigger and better.<\/p>\n

Anasta said, \u201cIt\u2019s the start. It won\u2019t be defining. Sometimes you get dropped from Origin and you come back, and you\u2019re better.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t think Cooper Cronk got into the Queensland starting team until 28\/29 years of age. Sam\u2019s got his opportunity because Tom Dearden is injured but I don\u2019t think he has to star,\u201d foxsports.com.au\u2019s Paul Crawley added.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Sam Walker hasn\u2019t even played a single minute for the Queensland Maroons, but his Origin debut next Wednesday…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":680765,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[568],"tags":[64,63,761,762,158,85],"class_list":["post-680764","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\/680764","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=680764"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/680764\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/680765"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=680764"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=680764"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=680764"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}