Rugby league's Tom Brady-like star ready to take sport global with match in Vegas
THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. — In most cases, hurling around a football in a ballroom packed with smartly dressed attendees who have paid thousands of dollars for a good time would be a bad idea.
Unless you’ve got the laser-guided arm of Tom Brady doing the throwing, and the sure-handed skills and rapid reactions of rugby star Reece Walsh doing the receiving.
Four weeks ago, Brady was in Australia on an executive speaking tour and spiced up the Brisbane leg of "An Evening With Tom Brady" by instructing Aussie rugby league superstar Walsh to "go long" and reel in one of his tosses.
Thankfully, there was no champagne spilled, no bruised patrons — or more importantly, egos — just a viral video that served as an early notification to American fans that Walsh has both serious speed (even in dress shoes) and an enjoyable knack for being in the right place at the right time.
The 21-year-old Brisbane Broncos fullback has arguably as much to gain as any player from the Australian-based NRL competition’s decision to bring four teams and two official regular season matchups to Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas this weekend.
[National Rugby League: Everything to know ahead of Las Vegas showcase]
Having made a huge impact in the early part of his career Down Under, racking up plaudits for his electrifying play, collecting a sizable female fanbase for his looks, and generating more social media followers than anyone else in his sport, the chance for Walsh to take steps into a new, overseas market is a worthy challenge.
"It was awesome with (Brady), a good experience seeing him up close and personal," Walsh told me this week. "You see guys like that on TV and in documentaries and stuff. Just to hear him talk and the things he was saying about the way he prepared every day, for every season, was very inspiring.
"With my game, I love going out there and playing the style of footy that I do. At the Broncos, we have got a different style of footy that we play, and it is an awesome team. I am excited about showing some new eyes to the sport and what is special about what we do.
"We are big, fast, strong, we love competing, and it’ll probably be pretty hostile on the field this weekend. We can’t wait to show everyone what kind of athletes and competitors we are and how much we want to win."
Australian rugby league chiefs know that trying to gain notice in the crowded American sports landscape is no easy task, and expectations are appropriately realistic for this weekend’s battles between the Broncos and Sydney Roosters (11:30 p.m. ET, Saturday), preceded by Manly Warringah Sea Eagles against South Sydney Rabbitohs (9:30 p.m. ET).
But you don’t need to be an existing rugby league fan to enjoy the impertinent skills of Walsh. He plays with creative brilliance, lightning-quick feet, the ability to read the game with chess-like anticipation and complete fearlessness.
That has gone a long way toward making him not only one of the very best rugby league players in Australia, but also one of the faces of the sport. Part of being the face of the sport is due in part to being a member of the Broncos, a franchise with such a high profile in its homeland that it’s in the news regardless of current form, much like the Dallas Cowboys in the NFL.
Last season, Brisbane held a late lead over the Penrith Panthers in the championship game — known as the Grand Final — but Walsh and his colleagues were left heartbroken after their rivals engineered a dramatic comeback.
Broncos head coach Kevin Walters won six premierships (championships) as a player and reminds his players that he’s the closest thing rugby league has to gridiron legend Brady.
"We set ourselves up to be successful and those are the standards that we have and expect here," Walters said, at the team’s temporary American practice facility at the Los Angeles Rams’ training base.
"Someone like Reece is the kind of player that people love to come and watch. There is an excitement about everything he does, and when he gets the ball in his hands there is that anticipation that something is about to happen."
Walsh loves the pressure inherent in being on a marquee team but also relishes the prospect of playing in America, where the lines between celebrity status and sporting excellence are perhaps more blurred than internationally.
"It is awesome to see a bit of celebrity mixed in with the sport," Walsh added. "To see athletes like they have over here go out and do amazing things on the field and get everyone’s eyes on them, and then back up everything that is said about them, is really cool.
"With our team, back home it is massive. We step out of our houses and everyone is watching — the interest is always there, and it is built off the back of some amazing people and a lot of success. We are forever trying to hold up these professional standards."
Walsh found instant fame a challenge when he first burst onto the NRL scene as a teenager and spent two seasons with the New Zealand Warriors before moving to Brisbane, a short drive from where he grew up on Queensland’s Gold Coast.
His current contract pays him around $260,000 per year, but those earnings are likely to drastically increase soon. He also should have plenty of commercial opportunities due to his massive name recognition and fan appeal.
"In the early days it was a little bit tough for me, but once I found my values and what I stand for and the sort of person I want to be on and off the field, everything got better," Walsh said, pointing out that his two-year-old daughter Leila has helped keep him "grounded."
"I want to win a premiership and keep winning them over and over. We got so close last year, and it was a bit tough to deal with, but it has just fueled that fire and motivated us, and we want to get that feeling."
Walsh is fully focused on rugby league for now, but after joking that Super Bowl rings are far gaudier and with more diamonds than the NRL title jewelry, he admitted that a future opportunity to try his hand at American football is not out of the question.
"That’s the thing, it’s so early in my career," he said. "There are so many things I want to prove and do in the game. I feel like that is a conversation for a few years’ time. Anything can happen these days — and nothing is ever a ‘no.’"
Martin Rogers is a columnist for FOX Sports and the author of the FOX Sports Insider newsletter. Follow him on Twitter @MRogersFOX and subscribe to the daily newsletter.
