{"id":953220,"date":"2026-11-05T06:54:19","date_gmt":"2026-11-05T06:54:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/953220\/"},"modified":"2026-11-05T06:54:19","modified_gmt":"2026-11-05T06:54:19","slug":"reece-walsh-admits-no-1-role-not-locked-in-at-rugby-league-world-cup-i-could-get-hooked","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/953220\/","title":{"rendered":"Reece Walsh admits No.1 role not locked in at Rugby League World Cup: \u2018I could get hooked\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

Reece Walsh is locked in as fullback for Australia\u2019s World Cup<\/a> semi-final, but refuses to accept he has truly beaten out two-time Dally M Medal winner James Tedesco for the Kangaroos\u2019 No.1 jersey.\u00a0<\/p>\n

After coach Kevin Walters split the games between the two superstars in group play, Walsh has been given the nod to start Sunday\u2019s semi-final against Samoa.\u00a0 <\/p>\n

However, the 24-year-old rejects the notion that he\u2019s nailed down the position, with Tedesco still waiting in the wings fresh off an NRL premiership with the Sydney Roosters.\u00a0 <\/p>\n

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\u201cI wouldn\u2019t say anyone\u2019s cemented on a spot,\u201d Walsh said.\u00a0 <\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s (six) on the bench now, so I could get hooked and replaced.\u201d <\/p>\n

Tedesco sported the No.1 jersey when the Kangaroos won the 2022 World Cup, beating Samoa 30-10 in the final, and the veteran is offering plenty of advice to the new first-choice fullback.\u00a0 <\/p>\n

\"ReeceReece Walsh will play fullback for the World Cup semi-final, but says he hasn\u2019t cemented the spot. Credit: AAP<\/p>\n

\u201cBuilding the game early through the middle, and a lot of that push-support stuff,\u201d Walsh told media when asked about Tedesco\u2019s biggest tips for him.\u00a0 <\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re two completely different players, but to be able to pick his brain about his strengths and what he brings to the team, I\u2019m really grateful to have these opportunities to be around quality players like him.\u201d <\/p>\n

That camaraderie characterises the Kangaroos\u2019 camp, with players willing to sacrifice their own playing minutes for the good of the team.\u00a0 <\/p>\n

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\u201cI wouldn\u2019t say it\u2019s too much competing against each other, I feel like it\u2019s trying to get the best out of the whole team,\u201d the Broncos superstar said. <\/p>\n

\u201cYou worry about your own job, and focus on doing your role really well for the team.\u201d <\/p>\n

Latrell Mitchell is one player taking on a new role, the South Sydney star lining up on the bench for the must-win semi-final.\u00a0 <\/p>\n

The centre admits he may be the \u201cworst spectator ever\u2019\u2018 waiting impatiently on the sideline, but says there are no bruised egos for any of the Kangaroos not starting.\u00a0 <\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t think you have an ego in any team,\u201d Mitchell said.\u00a0 <\/p>\n

\u201cWe all play a part and a role, and we all have a set goal. We\u2019re a collective really chasing something, and that\u2019s the World Cup.\u2019\u2018 <\/p>\n

The 29-year-old, who has played 10 Tests for Australia, is happy to offer any advice he can to Kotoni Staggs and Bradman Best, who will start in the centres.\u00a0 <\/p>\n

\u201cI love Kotoni, I love Bradman Best, and I just love seeing them play,\u201d Mitchell said.\u00a0 <\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019re unbelievable athletes, and if I can add value or have a presence with them, I take a lot of pride in that, my role is to be a good teammate.\u201d<\/p>\n

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<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Reece Walsh is locked in as fullback for Australia\u2019s World Cup semi-final, but refuses to accept he has…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":953221,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[567],"tags":[64,63,4428,1625,158,760,139707,588,85,438546],"class_list":["post-953220","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-rugby","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-brisbane-broncos","tag-lifestyle","tag-nrl","tag-rugby","tag-rugby-league-world-cup","tag-sport","tag-sports","tag-your-feed"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/953220","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=953220"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/953220\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/953221"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=953220"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=953220"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=953220"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}