Walker finishes season with host of awards
True Blue Cody Walker has capped off a career-best season for the South Sydney Rabbitohs after claiming his second consecutive George Piggins Medal for Best and Fairest, along with several other awards during the club’s end of season presentation on the Gold Coast.
Walker, 31, joins elite company of former club captains Sam Burgess, John Sutton and Greg Inglis, and fellow True Blue Damien Cook, as the fifth player to be awarded the medal multiple times.
The 2021 season has undoubtedly been Walker’s most outstanding in the NRL, earning him Dally M Five-Eighth of the Year honours along with many best-on-ground displays to help the Rabbitohs reach their second NRL Grand Final in eight years.
Walker solidified his reputation as one of the game’s most creative players, scoring 16 tries and setting up 33, as well as producing a record-breaking 46 linebreak assists.
His best individual moment arguably came in Sunday’s decider against the Panthers, taking on the line at 30 metres out from 6-0 behind and evading four would-be tacklers on the way to scoring a memorable Grand Final try.
Walker’s other 2021 accolades included the Jack Rayner Players’ Player, The Burrow Appreciation Award, and the South Cares Award for his work in the Indigenous community.
Teammate Cameron Murray was another NSW representative to be rewarded for his strong season, receiving 40% of overall votes to earn the Roy Asotasi Members’ Choice Award for the second time.