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Cody Walker (rugby league)

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Not to be confused with Cody Walker (rugby union).

Cody Walker
Personal information
Born (1990-01-10) 10 January 1990 (age 34)
Nowra, New South Wales, Australia
Height179 cm (5 ft 10 in)
Weight90 kg (14 st 2 lb)
Playing information
PositionFive-eighth, Fullback, Halfback
Club
Years Team Pld T G FG P
2016– South Sydney 212 99 12 0 416
Representative
Years Team Pld T G FG P
2013 Queensland Residents 1 0 0 0 0
2017 Country NSW 1 0 0 0 0
2019–23 New South Wales 5 1 0 0 4
2019–21 Indigenous All Stars 2 1 0 0 4
2019–23 Prime Minister's XIII 2 1 0 0 4
Source: [1]
As of 6 September 2024

Cody Walker (born 10 January 1990) is an Australian professional rugby league footballer who plays as a five-eighth and halfback for the South Sydney Rabbitohs in the NRL.

At representative level he has played for the Prime Minister's XIII, Country NSW and New South Wales in the State of Origin series.

Background

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Walker was born in Nowra, New South Wales, Australia. He moved to Casino, New South Wales at a young age[2] and is of Indigenous Australian descent - from Yuin and Bundjalung people.[3] He attended Palm Beach Currumbin High School[4] Cody Walker attended Kinross Wolaroi School and graduated in 2006 after playing 1ST XV.[5]

Walker is the younger brother of former Penrith Panthers player Ryan Walker[2] and cousin of Gold Coast Titans player Shannon Walker.[6]

He played his junior rugby league for the Casino Cougars, before being signed by the Gold Coast Titans on a 4-year contract.[2]

Playing career

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Early career

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In 2009 and 2010, Walker played for the Gold Coast Titans' NYC team playing 36 games and scoring 25 tries for 100 points.[7]

In 2011, he followed his brother Ryan to the Penrith Panthers and played for their New South Wales Cup team, the Windsor Wolves.[2] In 2012, he joined the Eastern Suburbs Tigers in the Queensland Cup.[8]

After impressing in the 2012 season, he was invited to train with the Melbourne Storm in the 2013 NRL pre-season,[9] before returning to the Tigers for the 2013 Queensland Cup season.

On 17 July 2013, he played for the Queensland Residents against the New South Wales Residents.[10] At the conclusion of the 2013 season, he won the Queensland Cup's Best and Fairest award as well as topping the competition for points scored.[6]

In September 2013, he signed a one-year contract with the Melbourne Storm starting in 2014.[11]

Walker playing for the North Sydney Bears in 2015

On 17 June 2014, he signed a two-year contract with the South Sydney Rabbitohs starting in 2015.[12]

In 2015, Walker played for the North Sydney Bears in the NSW Cup. With Walker in the side, Norths made the finals series at seasons end. Another grand final win for Walker. He collected two awards for his contributions winning Best & Fairest and Players player at Norths' end of the year presentation.[13]

2016

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In Round 1 of the 2016 NRL season, Walker made his NRL debut for the South Sydney club against the Sydney Roosters, at five-eighth.[14][15] He was one of the most influential players in his side's 42-10 win at Allianz Stadium. Whilst in that match, he was filling in for the suspended Luke Keary, an injury to halfback, Adam Reynolds saw Walker maintain his position. In round 5, Walker scored his first career try against the Manly Warringah Sea Eagles in the Rabbitohs' 16-12 win at Brookvale Oval. Despite multiple strong performances for Souths, Reynolds' return in Round 7 would push Walker out of the line-up. In Round 11, Walker was brought back into the side at the surprise position of fullback. Despite having never played the position since his teen years, he managed to set-up and score a try in his team's 34-24 win over the St. George Illawarra Dragons.[16] Afterwards, on 1 June, he re-signed with the South Sydney side on a two-year contract.[17] However, it was later revealed that he never put pen to paper before South Sydney made the announcement, leaving the contract up in the air.[18] In July, he officially signed a three-year contract with the Rabbitohs until the end of 2019.[19] He finished the 2016 season playing 20 games, scoring eight tries[20] and making 12 try-assists.

Walker in 2017

2017

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Walker was named in the South Sydney squad for the 2017 NRL Auckland Nines.[21] On 1 May 2017, Walker was named in The NSW Country representative side to take on The NSW City representative side in the last ever City vs Country game. Walker alternated between Five-eighth and Fullback throughout the year as South Sydney struggled to cope with a season ending injury to Captain Greg Inglis in the opening round of the season. Walker finished the year playing all 24 games and not missing a single minute. He scored six tries while topping the Try Assists (18), Line Breaks (16) and Line Break Assists (20) charts for all Five-eighths.[citation needed]

2018

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Walker played every game for Souths in 2018 scoring 12 tries as the club finished third on the table and qualified for the finals. Souths went on to reach the preliminary final against arch rivals the Sydney Roosters but lost the match 12-4 at the Sydney Football Stadium in front of a ground record crowd of 44,380.[22][23]

2019

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In Round 5 against the New Zealand Warriors, Walker scored 4 tries as Souths won the match 28-24 at the Sunshine Coast Stadium.[24] On 27 May, Walker's good form at club level earned him selection for New South Wales against Queensland in the 2019 State of Origin series. Following New South Wales defeat in Game 1, Walker was one of the players dropped from the team for Game 2 by coach Brad Fittler. Walker was also one of the New South Wales players who refused to sing the Australian National Anthem before the start of Game 1.[25][26][27]

Walker made a total of 25 appearances for Souths in the 2019 NRL season as the club finished third on the table and qualified for the finals. Walker scored a try in the club's elimination finals victory over Manly-Warringah at ANZ Stadium. Walker played in the club's preliminary final defeat against the Canberra Raiders at Canberra Stadium. During the first half of the game, Walker failed to ground the ball over the line, knocked out of his grasp by a try saving tackle from Canberra player Josh Hodgson.[28][29][30]

On 30 September, Walker was named at 5/8 for the Australia PM XIII side. On 7 October, Walker was named in the Australian side for the 2019 Rugby League World Cup 9s. On 18 December, Walker signed a contract extension to remain at South Sydney until the end of the 2022 season.[31]

2020

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In round 12 of the 2020 NRL season, Walker scored two tries for Souths as they defeated St. George 32-24 at Kogarah Oval.[32]

In round 20, Walker scored two tries and was man-of-the-match in South Sydney's 60-8 victory over arch-rivals the Sydney Roosters at ANZ Stadium.[33] Peter Sterling described Walker's contribution to the unexpected victory as "the best individual performance I have seen this year" and "as near perfect as I have seen."[34]

Walker made a total of 21 appearances throughout the season and scored ten tries. He played in South Sydney's preliminary final defeat against Penrith as the club fell short of a grand final appearance for a third year in a row.[35]

Walker was selected by New South Wales for the 2020 State of Origin series. He played in all three games as Queensland upset New South Wales winning the series 2-1.[36]

2021

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In round 3 of the 2021 NRL season, Walker scored two tries in a 26-16 victory over arch rivals the Sydney Roosters.[37] The following week, he scored two tries in a 38-0 victory over Canterbury-Bankstown in the traditional Good Friday game.[38]

In round 10, Walker scored two tries for South Sydney in their 32-22 victory over Cronulla-Sutherland.[39]

In the 2021 Finals Series, Walker scored two tries for South Sydney in a 36-16 victory over Manly in the preliminary final.[40] On 27 September, Walker was named Dally M Five Eighth of the year.[41]

Walker played a total of 25 games for South Sydney in the 2021 NRL season and scored 16 tries including one try in South Sydney's 2021 NRL Grand Final loss against Penrith. In the second half, Walker threw a long pass which was intercepted by Penrith player Stephen Crichton who raced away to score a try when both teams were locked at 8-8. Walker later redeemed himself by setting up a try late in the second half but South Sydney fell short losing 14-12.[42] On 1 November, Walker signed a one-year contract extension with South Sydney which would keep him at the club until the end of the 2023 season.[43]

2022

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In round 12 of the 2022 NRL season, Walker scored two tries for South Sydney in a 44-18 victory over Wests Tigers.[44] Walker played 27 games for South Sydney in the 2022 NRL season including all three of the clubs finals matches as they reached the preliminary final for a fifth straight season. Souths would lose in the preliminary final to eventual premiers Penrith 32-12.[45]

In December, Walker signed a two-year contract extension, keeping him at South Sydney until the end of the 2025 season.[46]

2023

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In round 4 of the 2023 NRL season, Walker scored two tries for South Sydney as they defeated Manly 13-12 in golden point extra-time.[47] On 3 July, Walker was selected by New South Wales for game 3 of the 2023 State of Origin series.[48] Walker won man of the match in the Blues 24-10 win to avoid a series whitewash.[49] Walker played a total of 22 games for Souths in the 2023 NRL season as the club finished 9th on the table and missed the finals.[50]

2024

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In round 10, Walker played his 200th first grade game against St. George Illawarra. Walker became only the ninth player in South Sydney's history to play 200 games for the club. In round 14 of the 2024 NRL season, Walker scored two tries for South Sydney in their 46-12 victory over the Gold Coast.[51] Walker played 21 games for South Sydney throughout the 2024 season as the club endured a tough campaign winning only eight matches all year and finishing 16th on the table.[52]

Statistics

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*[53]

Year Team Games Tries Goals Pts
2016 South Sydney Rabbitohs 20 8 10 52
2017 24 6 24
2018 27 12 48
2019 25 16 64
2020 21 10 40
2021 25 16 64
2022 27 14 56
2023 22 9 36
2024 21 8 2 36
Totals 212 99 12 416

Controversy

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On 22 May 2020, Walker was given a two-match ban by the NRL and also a $15,000 suspended fine after a video emerged of him kung-fu kicking a man who was involved in a fight with another person in Casino, New South Wales. The video was recorded in December 2019, but it only became public knowledge after one of the men threatened to release it by blackmailing Walker for $20,000.

South Sydney were also fined $20,000 for not informing the NRL of the incident.[54]

References

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  1. ^ "Cody Walker - Career Stats & Summary". Rugby League Project. 10 January 1990. Retrieved 10 April 2016.
  2. ^ a b c d Michael Carayannis (22 February 2016). "South Sydney Rabbitohs young gun Cody Walker set to make NRL debut". Smh.com.au. Retrieved 6 March 2016.
  3. ^ "Nocookies". The Australian. Retrieved 6 March 2016.
  4. ^ "Arrive alive Cup Grand Final 2008 - Matraville SHS Vs Palm Beach Currumbin - Action Photo Gallery". Ourfootyteam.com. 26 September 2008. Retrieved 28 April 2016.
  5. ^ "Alumni". Kinross Wolaroi School.
  6. ^ a b "Casino's Cody Walker takes out QRL Best and Fairest award". Northern Star. 12 September 2013. Retrieved 6 March 2016.
  7. ^ "W". Nyc Database. 27 December 2012. Retrieved 6 March 2016.
  8. ^ "Walker, Kauffman big winners at Tigers' awards night". Couriermail.com.au. 5 October 2012. Retrieved 6 March 2016.
  9. ^ "Easts duo Thompson and Walker training with Melbourne Storm NRL's top squad during the off-season". Couriermail.com.au. 13 December 2012. Retrieved 6 March 2016.
  10. ^ NRL (11 July 2013). "XXXX Queensland Residents team". QRL. Retrieved 6 March 2016.
  11. ^ Zero Tackle (11 September 2013). "Walker signs with the Storm". Zero Tackle. Retrieved 6 March 2016.
  12. ^ Rabbitohs.com.au (17 June 2014). "Cody Walker signs with Rabbitohs". Zero Tackle. Archived from the original on 6 March 2016. Retrieved 6 March 2016.
  13. ^ "Get to Know Cody Walker | Nrlportal". Archived from the original on 11 August 2017. Retrieved 20 July 2017.
  14. ^ "Updated: Round 1 NRL team lists". NRL.com. Retrieved 6 March 2016.
  15. ^ NRL. "Late Mail: Round 1, 2016". Rabbitohs. Archived from the original on 6 March 2016. Retrieved 6 March 2016.
  16. ^ "NRL Match Centre 2016". matchcentre.nrl.com. Retrieved 10 August 2016.
  17. ^ "Rabbitohs re-sign Cody Walker". Zero Tackle. June 2016. Retrieved 1 June 2016.
  18. ^ "Contract bungle points Bunny to Broncos". Zero Tackle. 8 July 2016. Archived from the original on 11 July 2016. Retrieved 12 July 2016.
  19. ^ South Sydney Rabbitohs 🐰 [@SSFCRABBITOHS] (12 July 2016). "Cody Walker dropped by Rabbitohs HQ today to put pen to paper on those next three years! #GoRabbitohs" (Tweet). Retrieved 28 February 2018 – via Twitter.
  20. ^ "Cody Walker - Career Stats & Summary". Rugby League Project. 10 January 1990. Retrieved 3 September 2016.
  21. ^ "2017 Auckland Nines squads: Every player named for the tournament". The Roar. 28 February 2017. Retrieved 5 April 2017.
  22. ^ "NRL finals 2018". www.sportingnews.com. 14 August 2021.
  23. ^ Blair, Alex (22 September 2018). "Souths v Sydney Roosters". News.com.au.
  24. ^ "Four-try Walker in a 'league of his own' as Souths run down Warriors". www.smh.com.au. 13 April 2019.
  25. ^ "Indigenous submission expected by NRL on national anthem boycott". Australian Associated Press. The Guardian. 11 December 2019. Retrieved 15 December 2019.
  26. ^ "The cheeky toddler sledge that helped reunited Blues break bread". Fox Sports. 28 May 2019.
  27. ^ "Latrell Mitchell dumped as NSW make seven changes for State of Origin Game 2". The Guardian. 16 June 2019.
  28. ^ "South Sydney Rabbitohs beat Manly Sea Eagles 34-26 in NRL semi-final". ABC News. 20 September 2019.
  29. ^ "Rabbitohs dig deep to eliminate Sea Eagles in finals thriller". NRL. 20 September 2019.
  30. ^ "Canberra Raiders end 25-year wait to reach NRL grand final with victory over Rabbitohs". The Guardian. 27 September 2019.
  31. ^ "Walker signs new Rabbitohs deal until end of 2022". NRL.com. 18 December 2019.
  32. ^ "Hat-trick hero Alex Johnston's telling interview amid South Sydney contract breakdown". wwos.nine.com.au.
  33. ^ "Johnston and Walker combine to demolish Roosters". www.nrl.com. 25 September 2020.
  34. ^ Vlotis, George. "Cody Walker "knocking down the door" for State of Origin call-up ahead of Luke Keary". Wide World of Sports. Nine Digital. Retrieved 27 September 2020.
  35. ^ "Penrith Panthers beat South Sydney Rabbitohs 20-16 to set up NRL grand final against Melbourne Storm". ABC News. 17 October 2020.
  36. ^ Howcroft, Jonathan (18 November 2020). "State of Origin 2020 game 3: Qld Maroons beat NSW Blues – as it happened". The Guardian.
  37. ^ "South Sydney Rabbitohs defeat Sydney Roosters 26-16, St George Illawarra Dragons beat Manly Sea Eagles 38-12". ABC News. 26 March 2021.
  38. ^ "Rabbitohs shine, Dogs scoreless in third straight game". www.espn.com. 2 April 2021.
  39. ^ "Sydney Roosters beat Nth Queensland 30-16, South Sydney defeat Cronulla 32-22 and Canberra beats the Bulldogs 20-18". ABC News. 15 May 2021.
  40. ^ "GLORY, GLORY: Souths march into the GF as Wayne masterminds Manly mauling". www.foxsports.com.au. 24 September 2021.
  41. ^ McMurtry, Andrew (27 September 2021). "2021 NRL Dally M Awards Live: Tom Trbojevic crowned NRL's best". News.com.au.
  42. ^ "One of finest NRL grand finals of all time provides cure to difficult season". www.theguardian.com. 3 October 2021.
  43. ^ "'It really is home': Walker inks one-year extension with Bunnies — NRL Transfer Centre". www.foxsports.com.au. November 2021.
  44. ^ "Why Johnston could surpass Irvine as greatest tryscorer". www.nrl.com. 28 May 2022.
  45. ^ "Penrith Panthers defeat South Sydney Rabbitohs 32-12 to qualify for third straight NRL grand final". ABC News. 24 September 2022.
  46. ^ "Mitchell and Walker Extend". South Sydney Rabbitohs. 20 December 2022. Retrieved 14 February 2023.
  47. ^ "'Give me the ball': Souths rookie's clutch golden-point play as Manly robbed of certain try - 3 Big Hits". www.foxsports.com.au. 25 March 2023.
  48. ^ "'That is rude': Brandy fumes at 'disrespectful' call amid fiery Blues Origin III selection grilling". www.foxsports.co.au.
  49. ^ "How shock Freddy switch solved big Blues problem; ugly brain fade robs Maroons: Talking Pts". www.foxsports.com.au.
  50. ^ "'Absolute madness': Potential Latrell switch slammed as a 'band aid' for broken Bunnies". www.foxsports.com.au.
  51. ^ "Latrell's huge Blues statement; Stars engage in entertaining running battle — What we learned". www.foxsports.com.au.
  52. ^ "The Mole's end of season review: What went wrong at the South Sydney Rabbitohs?". www.nine.com.au.
  53. ^ "Cody Walker Judged Season's best by Teammates in the Name of Jack Rayner".
  54. ^ "Walker cops two march suspension for fight video". www.foxsports.com.au. 22 May 2020.
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