There were plenty of reason to remember last year’s finals encounter between the Roosters and Souths – seven of them stand out for their brutality, with a record number of sin bins dished out by referee Ashley Klein.
That day was certainly one befitting the NRL’s biggest rivalry, with a forward battle like few others in recent memory.
Yet in the heart of the maelstrom, there was another story, with the two littlest blokes on the field trying to hold things together while chaos reigned around them.
If Sam Walker and Lachlan Ilias met – beyond shaking hands at the end of derby fixtures, they never have – they might look each other in the eye, like Superman and Lex Luthor, and utter the immortal phrase: “We’re not that different, you and I…”
The pair are perhaps the most promising young halfbacks in the comp, tasked with ordering some of the NRL’s biggest names around while, as happened last year, all hell breaks loose around them.
“I’ll be grabbing the nicest looking bloke on the field and go with them!” joked Ilias on the prospect of a rematch. Chances are, he’d be grabbing Walker.
“It’s about keeping that same energy. Everyone loves seeing those sin bins, it brought the passion to the game and showed how much the game meant to everyone.
“Obviously you don’t want to see those penalties but you love to see the passion and the right aggression from the players. You have to tell the big boys to keep going at it and take each other’s heads off.”
Walker agreed that the middles could take the lead, and that his role would come under a different kind of pressure, with the game on the line.
(Photo by Mark Kolbe/Getty Images)
“I look forward to those moments in the games,” said the 20-year-old. “The big moments with a packed house here when they’re all on top of you. I’m really looking forward to it.
“We’ve learned a lot from that game and come a long way this preseason, but it’s only Round 3 and it’s a long season. It’s another step this week.”
Walker and Ilias agreed that a game such as this, however daunting they might seem ahead of time, were why they got into the game in the first place.
“This is what we wanted to do since we were kids,” said the Roosters gun. “To be able to put on the Roosters jersey and play each week at 20 is a dream come true. You can look it as pressure or as the best job ever, and I’m loving every minute of it.”
Ilias added that his job wasn’t to shine, given the talent around him, though he did see his own personal battle as vital.
“It’s keeping it simple, doing my job for the team,” he said. “I don’t need to do the magic that the other boys do, I do my role and make them look good. If I make them look good, they’ll make me look good – it works hand in hand.
“It’s always good to get one over the other halfback. Sam plays on the other side so Keary goes up against me on our edge and it’s always a challenge go get one over them. There’s no better than going up against Walker and Keary.”
Walker threw down the gauntlet. “It’s always exciting to go up against another good half, but I’ve got to focus on my role,” he said.
“I was good this week (against the Warriors) but I was very disappointed in myself from a personal perspective in my performance against the Dolphins. It’s a good bounce back, but I have to be better again to knock off Souths. That’s the big focus.
“We’re building this year, same as last year where we started pretty slow, so we’re mindful of that and there’s been a big focus on us starting strong. It’s another game back at home and I’m looking forward to running out again in a big occasion against the Bunnies.
“We’ve learned a lot from that game and come a long way this preseason, but it’s only Round 3 and it’s a long season. It’s another step this week.”
All the team list information for Round 9.
Agree with Andrew Johns?
Manly have been slammed by the judiciary with both Daly Cherry-Evans and Haumole Olakau'atu charged for two weeks for their part in a dangerous…
Channel 9 have contacted Fox League for comment after vision emerged of the NRL journalist's fight with a member of the public.
Outrageous from the Broncos skipper on 'a wooden leg!'
The Wests Tigers have lost ten-straight games at Campbelltown Stadium, with their latest coming at the hands of the Broncos in a 34-10 defeat.…
