In a gripping NRL round clash that gave Manly Sea Eagles fans a tantalizing look at the club’s long-term future, 19-year-old rookie halfback Joey Walsh turned in an extraordinary debut performance against league leaders Penrith Panthers, falling just short of pulling off a legendary upset that would have shaken up the competition ladder.
Stepping into the starting lineup in place of injured playmaker Jamal Fogarty, Walsh held his own against Panthers champion Nathan Cleary, pushing the premiers all the way before Penrith snatched an 18-16 victory in the final minutes. The result marked interim Manly head coach Kieran Foran’s first defeat in charge, but any disappointment was overshadowed by the breakout showing from the exciting young prospect.
Walsh, who will turn 20 later this month, has already built a reputation for keeping his feet on the ground off the field: the former schoolboys rugby prodigy moonlights as a barber, giving haircuts to his Sea Eagles teammates to stay grounded amid growing hype from supporters demanding he be promoted to a full-time starting spot. Despite the calls from fans to oust incumbent halves Luke Brooks and Fogarty, Walsh says he is in no hurry to climb the ranks and is content to hone his craft in the NSW Cup reserve grade competition.
Fogarty is on track to return from his groin injury for Manly’s upcoming blockbuster against the Brisbane Broncos this Saturday, leaving Walsh’s place in the top squad uncertain. Foran confirmed Tuesday that the club has not ruled out keeping Walsh in the matchday 17 as part of the six-man extended bench, though a spot on the bench does not guarantee the young playmaker any game time.
“At the moment our starting halves are Jamal and Brooksy, and those two boys have been playing great,” Foran told reporters. “With a guy like Joey, if we can see value in having him on the bench moving forward, the six-man bench gives us the option to bring him on for cover and spark when we need it throughout the game. We’ve got a few options to toy with as the season progresses, and he knows he’s still early in his NRL journey, with plenty of areas he still wants to grow and get stronger in. If he keeps turning in performances like this all year, he’s going to be a pivotal part of where this club is going. It’s just a matter of getting the balance right and fitting everyone into the squad.”
Foran heaped praise on Walsh’s debut, highlighting his composure against the top side in the competition and his relentless defensive effort. “I thought he was great. For a young guy coming into this kind of arena against the first-placed team, he was so calm all week. He didn’t shy away from the moment, he stepped right into it. Defensively he was outstanding – we all know he’s a tough kid, but he put his body on the line time after time. He pulled off some beautiful plays during the game, and he’s only going to get better. He’s definitely a future star for this club.”
Despite his standout performance, Walsh did not have a perfect night: he missed one tackle on Blaize Talagi that led to a Penrith try, but he never backed down from the challenge, finishing the match with 30 tackles to his name. That effort drew comparisons to Nathan Cleary’s own legendary debut a decade prior, where Cleary made 36 tackles in a losing effort against Melbourne Storm. Penrith head coach Ivan Cleary, Nathan’s father, also sang Walsh’s praises after the match, saying he has the mental resilience to handle the inevitable ups and downs of top-flight rugby league.
“Joey will go through that process where everyone says how good he is, and then in a couple of years’ time, everyone will be telling him how bad he is,” Ivan Cleary said. “He’s got a coaching staff that knows exactly how that story goes, so I’m sure they’ll help him navigate it.”
Long touted as Manly’s long-term halves solution, Walsh has continued to keep hype at arm’s length, rejecting the idea that he needs to push for a starting spot immediately. When no injuries open up a spot in the top 17, Walsh accepts he will return to reserve grade, and he says that extra game time in the NSW Cup is exactly what he needs to develop. “It’s been sweet,” Walsh said. “I don’t pay too much attention to the noise outside the club, and the club has really good resources to look after me, so everything is good. I’m in no rush to force my way into the starting side. Getting consistent reps in the Cup helped me prepare for today, so there’s no hurry at all. This year for me, the goal is just to get as much game time as I can. I’m still getting used to the full-time professional code, so whatever is best for the team is what I’m happy to do.”
Walsh kept his kicking workload light on debut, after starting on the non-preferred side of the field, but that did not stop him from producing the highlight play of the match. He fooled Penrith’s defensive line with a well-timed head fake before slipping a perfect short pass to forward Haumole Olakau’atu, who broke into open space to score a critical second-half try. Walsh nearly became the match-winning hero moments later, when he had a chance to kick a match-winning two-point field goal on full-time, but his attempt landed just short of the posts.
“When you have someone as big and dynamic as Haumole outside you, you might as well give him the ball early,” Walsh explained of the match-defining play. “We spent all week building our combination, that made a huge difference. It was just good to pull it off on the field on game day. It was a bit of luck that it came off, honestly. We practise those go-to moves all week, he ran the perfect line, so all I had to do was get the ball to him and let him do his work.”
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