Sydney Roosters half-back dropped to reserve grade
Photo: DAN HIMBRECHTS/AAP/PA Images.
Sydney Roosters boss Trent Robinson has axed young half-back Sam Walker following back-to-back defeats in the NRL.
The 15-time Premiership winners have won just three in eight so far in 2023 and sit outside of the play-offs in ninth position, and face St George Illawarra Dragons next.
The side have recently fallen to defeats to Melbourne Storm and Cronulla Sharks respectively, and have the second worst attack in the competition with just 106 points scored, with Wests Tigers having recorded just 90.
It has seen Walker, 20, dropped from the NRL squad, expected to feature in the New South Wales Cup this weekend.
The Leeds-born playmaker is regarded one of the top emerging talents Down Under, having made his debut in 2021 in Round Four against the New Zealand Warriors.
He was named the Dally M Rookie of the Year that season, and signed a new two-year contract extension in 2022, securing his future until the end of the 2025 season.
Walker has made a total of 52 NRL appearances to date, scoring 16 tries, and is also the side’s first-choice goal-kicker.
Head coach Robinson has instead opted to named New Zealand international Joseph Manu in the halves alongside Ireland’s Luke Keary for their clash against the Dragons.
Sam Walker dropped, Crichton returns
Angus Crichton returns to the NRL line-up having sat out the start of the new season after he was granted indefinite personal leave.
The Australia international played his first game since the World Cup final at the weekend as he turned out for Sydney Roosters’ NSW Cup side, having been diagnosed with Bipolar Disorder.
Crichton, 27, has been named at starting back-row alongside Egan Butcher.
Meanwhile, Dylan Napa has once again been named to feature for the club’s NSW Cup side.
The former Catalans forward was released from his final year of his contract with the Dragons and returned to Australia.
He was handed a lifeline by the Roosters earlier this year, and this was his first hit out for their NSW Cup side, the NRL’s reserve grade. As he is outside the top 30 players in the Roosters squad, Napa is ineligible to play in the NRL until at least Round 11.
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