Dylan Walker, one of the most experienced players in the New Zealand Warriors squad following the retirements of Shaun Johnson and Tohu Harris has addressed his future as he enters the last season of his current deal.
A veteran of the NRL, Walker has achieved everything the NRL has to offer throughout his 12 seasons (soon to be 13) in the competition and still remains a regular and valuable member of the first-grade team.
A premiership-winner with the South Sydney Rabbitohs in 2014, he may not have reached the heights of representing Australia (2014) and the NSW Blues (2016) during his time at the Warriors, but, his versatility and leadership have been a key component behind the club's success and got them one win away from making the 2023 NRL Grand Final.
One of six players at the Warriors off-contract at the end of the 2025 NRL season, Walker spoke to Zero Tackle about his contract situation and revealed that he would be keen to remain at the club and be granted a contract extension.
However, he didn't rule out a potential move back home to Australia in the future, where he played 62 games for the South Sydney Rabbitohs and 124 games for the Manly Sea Eagles before moving across to New Zealand in 2023.
"It's on my list. I'd be keen to stay around there for another year or two," Walker told Zero Tackle.
"I'm only 30 so there's a few years left but I don't want to put pressure on (the club).
"I've got a family back here in Sydney so it'd always be nice (to return) but I'm enjoying it over in NZ, I really am."
Entering a new era without Shaun Johnson and Tohu Harris at the club, the New Zealand Warriors will face the Canberra Raiders in Las Vegas on the weekend to open up the 2025 NRL season.
Recruit James Fisher-Harris and newly-crowned Kangaroos and Origin representative Mitchell Barnett will lead the team as co-captains while they will be without Dallin Watene-Zelezniak who remains on the sidelines due to injury.
Losing 714 games of first-grade experience, they will rely heavily on the more experienced members of the squad including Walker who made his debut back in 2013
"I've played a lot of footy games and been in some pretty cool moments so my preparation will always be the same. Go out there, enjoy it and have fun, but compete and win; that's the main thing," Walker added.
"I think the bigger the occasion and the more the noise, I like to think I get better and there is no better place to showcase what you can and can't do over there.
"If you've got to fall on your sword with it, then that's over there, but we're going down swinging."
While their opponents will have the backing of their Canberra fans, the Warriors have the backing of the entire nation, which will be boosted by the spirit of the New Zealand fans travelling overseas to the United States of America.
"The fans at the Warriors are one of a kind," he continued.
"They go travelling, they get amongst it, they enjoy it. I know heaps of them are going over so it'll be cool to see all of them over there."
