Alex Walmsley shunned Australia for St Helens – and could not be happier
ALEX Walmsley could have had the sandy beaches, the glistening seas and the beautiful weather had he chosen to move to Australia and the NRL.
Instead he has the M62, freezing cold winters and the much maligned town of St Helens – and he could not be happier.
The England prop could have chosen one of several NRL sides that tried to sign him in 2017, St George-Illawarra made a huge play for him.
But he decided to stay put and despite suffering a broken neck, the plusses of being at home far outweigh anything life Down Under could have brought.
“It was very close,” Walmsley admitted. “I had many offers from many different clubs.
“But you can’t put a price on happiness. Is a few extra quid worth jeopardising your happiness?
“I was happy at the club, happy with Justin Holbrook as coach and I was wanting to win more things for St Helens.
“My wife and I had a little boy. I was happy where I was and you can’t put a value on that.
“I could’ve gone to live in Australia, on the other side of the world but if you’re happy where you are, why change it?
“There’s never been any regrets. You only get so many opportunities in life to do things like that but now I’ve got two little boys, Atticus and Cassius, who spend time with their family every day.
“And I spoke to Justin when I had a lot of interest. I told him two things. I want to win the Challenge Cup and I want to be a starting player at the Grand Final.”
Walmsley may now be an on-field leader for Saints and one of the world’s best props but at his first Grand Final in 2014, which was overshadowed by Ben Flower’s infamous sending off, he could not have been more different.
And the way the side was made up that day makes him more wary of Salford’s ‘misfits’ because they were back then.
He added: “It was 18 months after being an amateur player and I don’t think I’d earned my stripes back then. I was very raw.
“But I promise you now, this year means so much more and winning could mean so much more.
“It’s been a story of misfits but we were back then. We lost our only half-back in Lance Hohaia, so we had Mark Flanagan and Jordan Turner as our halves and Paul Wellens at loose forward.
“Louie McCarthy-Scarsbrook was in the centres. It was a remarkable game, we’d been written off for a long time before it. Salford have been disrespected, undeservedly, up until now. They won’t be disrespected any more.”
Walmsley may have played at Wembley, in a World Cup final and now at Old Trafford for a second time but he has not lost touch with his roots.
And he promised his old amateur club Dewsbury Celtic the ‘mucky fat sarnies’ – bread and dripping – and lager he promised if they won promotion are on their way.
The 29-year-old said: “I didn’t know their result until their celebrations were well underway.
“But I promise you know, I will get them some mucky fat sarnies and a few crates of beer.”
