Last year Joey Walsh would get dropped off at St Augustine’s College in the morning, across the road from Brookvale Oval, hoping to get a glimpse of Daly Cherry-Evans.
Today the rising halfback is teammates with his favourite Manly player and even shares a locker alongside the Sea Eagles skipper.
Next year the 18-year old could replace the Sea Eagles veteran in the No.7 jumper.
“Driving to school every day and seeing the Manly boys coming or leaving training, and I just think, ‘Wow, like, that’s awesome’,” Walsh said.
“Then towards the end of last year – my last year at St Augustine’s – I got told that we’re talking to Manly and that (NRL coach) Anthony Seibold was interested.”
For Walsh, it’s a dream come true.
“I’m a Curly (Curl Curl) boy, which is just two beaches away from Manly,” he said.
“It’s unbelievable. Like, I’m pinching myself still at training, running around with the Trbojevic brothers, Cherry-Evans, who was my favourite player.
“So, yeah, I love it, coming into training every day.
“I would do this in my spare time because I love it so much.”
Eight months ago, Seibold convinced Walsh, who was already in the Waratahs system and the under 18s Australian rugby captain, to sign a three-year NRL deal with Manly.
Walsh had also spent time in the Sydney Roosters Harold Matthews (under 17s) program and was part of the junior Blues squad in 2022, alongside the likes of Jesse McLean, Blaize Talagi and Samuela Fainu.
Plenty of other NRL clubs were also circling the Waratahs fly half.
“I played league and union all my juniors to about under 16,” Walsh said.
“I played a lot of rugby league in local competitions around the northern beach, and spent some time at the Roosters.
“But in my last two years of school, I was in the rugby union set-up.
“But definitely meeting Seibs convinced me to come to Manly. He and Peter Gentle took me through the building. He spoke about how he deals with his players, and the culture.
“I’d get to learn of Chez and Luke Brooks, which is unbelievable.
“I was just sitting there thinking, ‘This was the place I wanted to be at’.”
Seibold had pulled off a huge coup, and delivered an even bigger blow to Rugby Australia, with close to no fanfare at the time.
Not that you’d hear any complaints from Seibold, who wants to keep a lid on any hype surrounding the gun 18-year old halfback.
That might be harder than he hoped.
Originally slated to play at SG Ball (under 19s) level this year, Walsh has been catapulted into the club’s Jersey Flegg (under 21s) outfit.
Wearing the No.7 on his back, Walsh scored three tries in his first ever game in Sea Eagles colours in last weekend’s Flegg victory over the Warriors.
It was reminiscent of Manly superstar Tom Trbojevic’s spectacular individual performance in the Holden Cup a decade ago.
Also only 18 at the time, Trbojevic scored four tries and ran for 466 metres – against the Warriors. But unlike Walsh, Trbojevic had already made his NRL debut.
But that is a feat that is edging closer for the prodigious code-hopper.
Cherry-Evans, the man Walsh was signed to replace into the future, is unsigned beyond 2025.
The premiership winner is also 36-years old and the clock is ticking on his NRL career, despite the longevity of the Kangaroos and Queensland star.
But as durable as Cherry-Evans has been, the sight of him collapsing to the ground last weekend with a back spasm almost served as a reminder that time eventually catches up even to the best, and most fit, of them.
Cherry-Evans is yet to make a call about his future – whether he plays on, hangs up the boots or does the unthinkable and move to a rival club.
But when he does finally vacate the jumper he has owned for 15 seasons and over 360 games, Walsh will be waiting in the wings.
The enormity of following in the footsteps of Cherry-Evans is not lost on Walsh.
“He can play for as long as he wants, as long as he wants to keep playing,” Walsh said.
“But that’s definitely a question for him. He’s definitely playing the best foot in his career at the moment. He’s so experienced, and as long as his body is holding up, who knows.
“I think Chez is definitely the club’s greatest number seven.
“But at the moment, we’ve also got Brooksie, so he will definitely be able to help if Chez doesn’t play on.
“So, you know, whenever I get put into play, there will be a whole team looking to help me out. I feel very comfortable we’ve done the hard training that it takes.”
Cherry-Evans has had his fingerprints all over the hard work being put into his understudy Walsh. It’s given Walsh arguably the best halfback apprenticeship in the game.
“Chez teaches me so much. He’s obviously very mature, very hands on,” Walsh said.
“He teaches me a lot on the field after training, he’ll walk around and do more reps and sets with me, just to teach me a couple things.
“He’s always willing to do the extras with me, nothing is too much to ask of him.
“But also off the field, he teaches me about having a balanced lifestyle, making sure you’re doing your recovery to have a longer career.
“Just the tips that he’s used to have a really good and long career. He’s just so helpful for me, wanting the best out of me.”
Off the field, Walsh finds that balance in the surf at Curl Curl or when he is giving free haircuts to his Manly teammates and three brothers – Jack, Ben and Jed.
“I’ve been cutting hair for around eight years. I even did a few of the boys before our team photos, made them look good,” Walsh said.
One day he hopes to make his teammates look good on the field too.
“Who knows what the future will hold. But yeah, definitely right now, I’m really focusing on hopefully making an impact at Manly. I can’t wait,” Walsh said.
As for closing the door on a promising career in rugby union?
“At the moment, I’m just fully focused on rugby league, I just want to get my foot in the door and hopefully play some good years here,” he said.
“I just want to be here and keep playing.”
