New Zealand Warriors star fullback and Queensland Maroons State of Origin bolter Reece Walsh has emphatically shut down rumours that he is seeking an exit from the club at the end of the season.
Walsh is on contract with the Warriors until the end of next year, however, the club have been based in Queensland up until now.
As the club approach their first game back in Auckland for over two seasons, and with a full-time move back across the ditch ready to go for 2023, Walsh has been the subject of constant speculation that he would look for an early out.
Walsh is well settled in Queensland with a young family and has been said to not want to move to Auckland. With the Dolphins set to join the competition and reportedly interested in Walsh as a potential star they could get their hands on, it made sense.
But not to Walsh, who told Fox Sports that he is going to Auckland with the Warriors in 2023.
โIโm going to New Zealand next year. My manager and I havenโt even discussed other options because weโve always known that is the case,โ said Walsh.
โWhen I first signed with the Warriors it was really before COVID hit, so I thought I was going to New Zealand straight away.
โItโs only because of COVID that we stayed in Australia for so long.โ
Walsh said he was viewing the move to New Zealand as a "growth opportunity."
โGoing to NZ is always going to be a challenge and Iโm looking at it like that,โ he said.
โItโs a growth opportunity for sure.โ
Walsh's manager has denied holding conversations with any other club that Walsh has been linked to in recent times, with the young gun - who will make his final push for a Queensland Origin jumper in the coming weeks - not set to leave the club.
The news comes at a crucial time for the Warriors, who are set to lose Euan Aitken at the end of the year, while Matt Lodge has also reportedly turned down a big contract extension offer.
The club are also juggling the situation in their halves, with both Chanel Harris-Tavita and Kodi Nikorima off-contract at season's end, offset by the arrival of Luke Metcalf.
The Warriors have outperformed expectations early in the season, holding a four and four record to sit in 11th place on the table, but equal with the sixth-placed South Sydney Rabbitohs.
