Walker declares there’s ‘no chance’ he quits Roosters over demotion

Sam Walker has stuck his flag in the sand over his Sydney Roosters dumping, declaring he’s “not giving up” on his tricolours career as he fights to return to first grade in the 2023 NRL season.

The 20-year-old was dropped back to NSW Cup two weeks ago after Trent Robinson took the axe to his halves combo in a bid to shake things up.

In round 8, the Roosters ran out with Luke Keary wearing the number seven jumper and all-star roleplayer Joseph Manu slotting into five-eighth. Since the swap Sydney have beaten the Dragons 27-26 in an Anzac Day blockbuster and held the Warriors to zero a week later in a 14-0 victory.

Manu and Keary have been named to play together again in the NRL’s Magic Round this weekend, with Walker again playing in the reserve grade while Brisbane welcomes one of rugby league’s biggest spectacles over three days.

Despite the setbacks, Walker is refusing to turn away from the Roosters.

“I will be back,” he stated regarding his Sydney future.

The Leeds-born young gun added his only focus is on re-earning his halfback jersey in the top squad. “I’m not giving up. I definitely want to stay at the Roosters. The club has done a lot for me and I have been here for a few years.”

“The Roosters is where I want to be and the talk about me leaving… there’s no chance,” he continued.

“The Roosters gave me a great opportunity coming here and I am extremely grateful for that. I’ve played 50-odd NRL games now and it’s all thanks to the Roosters and the time and effort they have put into developing me as a player.”

There has been conversations in the last 14 days that Walker has been quietly shopping himself around by asking his agent to sound out options, but the dropped playermaker quickly moves to quash those claims.

“I love it at this club. I’m contracted here, and my first goal is to be playing NRL for the Roosters again. I’ve never thought about leaving.”

Walker is signed with the Roosters until the end of the 2025 NRL season.

He debuted for the Sydney glamour club in 2021 and has made 51 first grade appearances in the three seasons since. In his first campaign in rugby league’s biggest competition Walker was named Rookie of the Year and made his representative debut in the Prime Minister’s XIII in 2022.

After a strong season with the Roosters last year—the club finished sixth but Walker continued his strong growth—Robinson and the Sydney powerbrokers extended his contract by a further two years until late 2025.

If Walker does choose to talk to rival clubs, he won’t be allowed to undertake any official conversations until at November 1, 2024. Download Our Free NRL App

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