Sydney Roosters young gun Sam Walker has revealed he wants to remain at the club beyond the end of his current deal, which is due to expire at the end of the 2023 season.
After being poached from the Brisbane Broncos originally in 2019, the Leeds-born now Rooster signed another two-year deal with the club ahead of 2022 after debuting for the club in Round 4 last year.
Walker, who is now 20, was being chased by the Roosters on a long-term extension before he signed his last deal, but ultimately ended up only committing for two years.
The 20-year-old, who has played for Queensland junior sides and the Australian Schoolboys in 2019 where he starred in a 36 points to 20 win over the Junior Kiwis, has now played 35 NRL games and could command an enormous figure should he hit the open market.
It's tipped the Roosters wouldn't be able to compete with money thrown from other clubs given their stretched salary cap predicament, made worse by the signing of Brandon Smith.
The club are also still trying to hang onto Angus Crichton, who is reportedly being circled by the Parramatta Eels.
However, it's Walker they are most interested in locking up on a long-term deal despite some form struggles this year, given he can negotiate with other clubs from November 1.
His manager and former Canberra Raiders star Clinton Schifcofske has told The Daily Telegraph that Walker has no intentions of abandoning Bondi though.
โWe have had a couple of initial chats and it will start to move now,โ Schifcofske said.
โThe Roosters are keen to keep him and all the indications Sam has given me is that he would like to stay.โ
Walker, who plays five-eighth at the Roosters, has struggled to gel into a combination with the returning Luke Keary this season, with the veteran returning from an ACL injury.
The halves combination has been a key struggle for the Roosters, who have been well short of pre-season expectations to this point of the season.
Despite that, Walker is seen as the future of the club and the tri-colours are hopeful of locking him down sooner rather than later.
