Robbo fires up over Walker character attacks amid shock split
Roosters coach Trent Robinson has launched a passionate defence of Sam Walker following confirmation he would leave the club by the end of 2027.
On commentary duties for Seven’s coverage of the Rugby League World Cup, Robinson said he was disappointed the club hadn’t held on to its star half, but insisted neither party had done anything wrong and there was no bad blood between the two of them.
Trent Robinson and Sam Walker embrace after the grand final. NRL Imagery
“On Monday you have the negotiations, you think it’s going to go one way, and it doesn’t,” he said.
"We wanted to sign Sam, we couldn’t get it done and that’s the business side of it.
"Then from Tuesday onwards it’s been a bit frustrating around the commentary around Sam and the way his character is and what he should have done.
"No one’s on a lifelong contract. He’s signed until the end of next year. He’s a great guy. He’s really personable, everyone loves him, and he just didn’t want to sign for 2028. So it’s pretty simple, and we’ve moved on.
"That’s the business part, but I didn’t really like the character assessment of everybody during the week."
After the deal collapsed, Walker personally phoned Roosters chairman Nick Politis on Wednesday night to explain his position. Fans were furious Walker himself hadn’t been the one to tell the club he was backing out of the deal on Monday.
Robinson pointed out that was the exact purpose of managers, and they had never directly talked about contracts themselves.
"There was constant communication there, we couldn’t get it done, so that’s pretty normal," he said.
"Sam and I don’t talk about contracts. We never have. It’s never been a part of our discussion. We talk about footy.
“There’s going to be a time when we’re going to chat. We’ve been close for a long time – I’ve had him since he was a kid, so be it.
“But that’s the thing, the commentary around all of that was just a bit too much for me. No one’s done anything wrong, no one’s a bad person in this, he didn’t want to sign, we wanted to sign him, and we couldn’t get it done.”
Robinson has denied reports the grand final was Walker’s last match for the Roosters. Getty Images
When Walker’s camp on Monday night asked for an extra $100,000 a year, they also offered a fresh deadline of midday Tuesday, before Politis scrapped the deal altogether.
Robinson was then asked if the Roosters had given Walker enough time to consider the deal.
"I think Sam did want more time, but don’t forget we started negotiations in the middle of the year, and they pushed it back to after the season. We’re after the season, and November 1 is coming, and Sam was our biggest contract.
"A lot of dominoes have to fall after that, and other players need to know as well. It was pretty clear in the timeline that we gave him and the club.
“I’ve said before, these deals aren’t difficult. We’re not talking about is this the right club, am I going to develop in this club as a young player. It’s, ‘Do I want to be here and is the money right?’ And we couldn’t get it done.”
There has also been suggestions Walker’s position at the club is untenable, and the grand final triumph was his final game in the Tricolours.
But Robinson said that was not the case.
"He’s contracted next year. He’s at the Roosters, he is just not there from '28 onwards," he said.
“I would’ve thought his manager has had lots of calls in the last few days … but Sammy’s a Rooster until the end of 2027 and then he’s off from ’28, and that’s his decision.”
He also said there was no chance a deal could be done that would extend his Roosters career beyond next season.
"No. Nick has made that pretty clear," he said.
"We were pretty clear in those negotiations. We knew what we wanted, and no, it's done.
“The negotiations are done, Sam’s moved on, and we’ve moved on, so there’s no way to get a deal done after this.”
