Christian Welch answers questions on Twitter

[Budgie]

Considered and informative. Well I liked it anyway!

https://twitter.com/x/status/1411483202603028481

 

[Chip and Chase]

I like Christian Welch. Clearly one of the more intelligent footballers getting around. Have heard him speak on a few podcasts and on the radio and he has a good grasp of the game and is well spoken. Doesn't take himself too seriously and is good to listen too.

 

[Stuey Davis’s Socks]

Studying economics I believe

 

[cc eagle]

Studying economics I believe

Any money in that ?

 

[Stuey Davis’s Socks]

Any money in that ?

if he passes, maybe!

 

[Stuey Davis’s Socks]

Forward thinker: Christian Welch tackles NSW and game’s biggest issues​

By Phil Lutton​

June 26, 2021 — 1.55pm

You hear all sorts of things during a State of Origin campaign. Most of it consists of the same cliches reheated every year, or half-baked sledges tossed across the border to fill in time between games. Just occasionally, something arrives from the very left of field.

“Trickle-down economics doesn’t work. It’s all a lie,” insists Christian Welch, the Queensland prop. “Pay your taxes, good services for ever

To those who know Welch well, it’s not a surprising topic of conversation. The 26-year-old Storm premiership winner has a commerce degree, is now studying an MBA and takes a keen interest in the business of sport. It also goes to show how quickly Welch is trampling stereotypes in the NRL and why he is becoming such an engaging and increasingly important figure in the wider game.

All of that is external to what he brings on the field, which is important to the Melbourne Storm and increasingly vital to Queensland. Welch is no fan of the speed and rules of the modern game but ironically, the changes have only served to embellish the skills he brings to the contest.

He played just over 10 minutes in game one of Origin before leaving the field with a concussion. It would have been unlikely to change the result but without his kick pressure on Nathan Cleary, Queensland elected to go sideways instead of forwards, then quickly found themselves in reverse.

Welch is a self-made man when it comes to rugby league. He was a talented junior but never made any of the high-profile representative teams. He attended Villanova College in Brisbane and was first noticed playing for a Catholics schools representative side at a rugby union tournament.

“I finished school, went to university, just lived a normal life like all the other 18-year-olds. Went out on the town, went and played down at Easts [Tigers]. The NRL was a dream but it was never a reality. It took a while to get there ... you just need a sliding-door moment,” Welch said.

“I was at a rugby union trial when I was spotted, playing for the AIC [Associated Independent Colleges] II side ... I couldn’t make AIC I.”

Welch has a keen self-awareness of his strengths and weakness as a footballer. He’s tireless in and around the ruck and brings an offload that Storm teammate Cameron Munster loves to use for his ad-lib attack. He may not make the Maroons win but he will make them better.

Yet that’s only scratching the surface of Welch. He reads voraciously about the game and knows and greets by name most of the reporters with which he regularly interacts. It’s not uncommon for him to message journalists about stories outside of the NRL to try and understand what’s going on behind the scenes of a key issue.

More importantly, he’s embraced Twitter as a medium of measured debate with fans and the media, giving supporters a direct line to his musings on the NRL. Here’s one them: State of Origin is like a second layer of salary cap and is good for the balance of the competition.

“I love Twitter, I love the exchanges and the depth of conversation you can have on that forum. A little thing is State of Origin ... people like to bag State of Origin [for what it does to teams] but I think it’s a very good competitive balance mechanism,” Welch said.

“It can even up the ladder, we can see new talent, I don’t think it’s all negative. It keeps fans in the hunt for finals, it keeps people engaged. It’s actually bizarre when you compare it to any other sport in the world. It’s a fascinating thing, there’s no real comparison anywhere.”

Welch is an unabashed Labor man and now has a seat on the board of the Rugby League Players Association (RLPA). He doesn’t believe every player needs to become an activist but he does encourage all of them to try to get a grasp of the issues in and around the sport.