Leeds Rhinos • Re: Sam Walters
The Biffs Back wrote:
Sam Walters is a very talented young kid without a doubt and he will only get better with age,More regular appearances and also more experience at first team level
Admittedly he is nowhere close to being a once in a generation talent.
But just how good he will eventually be is an unknown, clearly It is much harder for young forwards to establish themselves as regular starters in top SL sides whilst in their late teens and early twenties unless they are total freaks of nature like Mozza and Sam Burgess were (Stevie Ward and Morgan Gannon too whist at the Rhinos)
Jamie Peacock is probably the best example of a late developer that actually made it to the very top of our sport despite never making the representative sides as a junior.
Didn't the Bulls send him on loan to Featherstone and also to OZ to play for Wollongong before he played in their first team ?
Wasn't he 21 or 22 before he finally made his debut for the Bulls?
Would he have been released if he had been at the Rhinos as a junior?
In comparison to JP's pathway, Sam Walters was representing England Academy v the touring Australian schoolboys in 2018 as a 17 year old, so he was considered to be an elite player very early on.
If Walters' next club have offered far more than Leeds have, then clearly Sam has to take that option.
IMO i would a prefer a home grown Rhinos first team squad and with only 2 or 3 quality overseas players that will fill our key spine positions
The Marquee money spent recently on players like Trent Merrin and Zane Tetevano, and who are only at the club for the short term, would surely have been more wisely spent on retaining players like Sam Walters and Tyler Dupree would it not?
SL needs to recognise British talent and consequently the salary cap needs to be amended to encourage such a change. It seems farcical to me that all SL clubs are encouraged to invest large amounts of the salary cap on overseas players who are often past their best or, no better than homegrown players. Further, I would like to see the SL board make a bold decision and pass a rule that requires each SL side to have, at least, 7 club trained players in their match day squad, this would necessitate more investment in British talent and the production of far more players for our national team. In addition, I want juniors who make the grade to be financially rewarded, some of our youngsters are on an absolute pittance at present. The future of our game is youth and the powers that be have to step up to the mark.
Statistics: Posted by Zig — Mon May 15, 2023 11:10 pm