Carlin Walker has always been drawn to the moment. It is something his father Ross drilled into him from the earliest days at Southern United: do not dwell on the last play, do not get lost in what is coming next, just focus on what you can do right now. That mantra has carried him from a six year old scoring goals for fun alongside his brother Davin, to a 24 year old striker for Hockey Club Melbourne, carving out a place in the ONE Active Hockey One League with flair, hunger and a smile his grandfather Ken insists he never forgets.
On a cool Friday night in Melbourne, the lights of the State Netball and Hockey Centre glared down on the turf, the stands humming with anticipation. The ball ricocheted loose in the circle and for a split second Walker thought he might just get a touch. He slid in, half expecting the goalkeeper to smother it. Instead, the rebound fell perfectly at his feet. One quick tuck and the ball was in the net. The crowd roared, teammates swarmed, and Walker barely had time to process it. By the end of the night, he had a hat trick. But what stuck with him was not the personal tally. “I was more impressed with the ball Daan Smits threw in front of me,” he said. “His honouring of my lead was important in the play, and I hope we as a team can continue to showcase our flair with situations like these.”
That word, flair, comes up often when Walker talks about his game. He describes his style as speed, skill and hunger, a forward who thrives on instinct in the circle but also takes pride in pressing and chasing back. He loves a tomahawk, he admits with a grin, and hopes one comes his way this campaign. While HC Melbourne boasts Kookaburras and headline makers, Walker is a player who times his leads well, finishes cleanly, and presses with real energy. He is one of the players who helps keep the machine humming, the kind of presence that makes the stars around him shine brighter. In some ways, he is a little like Steve Kerr on the 1990s Chicago Bulls — surrounded by Jordan, Pippen and Rodman, but always ready to step in and make a contribution when it mattered.
For Walker, the journey to Hockey One has been anything but straightforward. He represented Victoria at every junior age group, often alongside the same teammates who now share the HCM jersey. He wore the green and gold as part of the Australian Under 16 Schoolboys in South Africa, travelling with Ky Willott and Craig Marais, and discovering how far hockey could take him. At Southern United, he grew up surrounded by immense talent — Kookaburras Nathan Ephraums and Craig Marais, Hockeyroo Amy Lawton — and under the guidance of Jesse Workman, who has coached him from juniors through to HCM. Together they lifted four Premier League titles, the first in 2018, the most recent just a month ago when Walker scored twice in a 4–3 win over MCC. In 2024, he had scored Southern’s only goal in a grand final that went to shootouts. “The first one was the sweetest,” he says. “The club had battled for years to get the chance at lifting a premier league trophy, and the outcome was built on all the people that came before.”
His Hockey One debut in 2023 was as dramatic as it was unlikely. After a strong club campaign and impressive trials, he was named in the HCM squad but sidelined with a hip injury. By Round 5, against Brisbane Blaze, he still had not been cleared to play. Then, an hour before the game, coach Andrew Smith called: a player had fallen ill. Could he go? “I do not think Smitty knew I was still injured, but I told him I would play, of course,” Walker recalls. “I took pain killers, applied some deep heat, anything that would nullify the pain, and played my first game of Hockey One. We lost, but I was just so happy to be out there and get through unscathed.” He did not play again that season, but the taste was enough.
In 2024, he made a different choice. He moved overseas for six months on a semester exchange at the University of Liverpool. It meant missing Hockey One, but he embraced the opportunity. “I have a curious and open mind which led me to this decision to travel and experience a new country and culture,” he says. “I am a huge Liverpool fan too, which helps. My love for Liverpool FC was born in 2013 when my father, brother, and I would wake up in the middle of the night to watch them play.” He played for the University of Liverpool in a lower division, kept his touch and fitness, and immersed himself in the city’s football culture. He remembers walking through the narrow streets around Anfield on match day, scarves draped from balconies, the sound of chants echoing from pubs long before kick off. “Attending a game at Anfield was a dream come true. The football culture was immense, especially around Anfield. I like to think I have good composure, and the player that oozes that is Virgil Van Dijk. He is a defender and I am an attacker, but I think there are some similarities.”
When he returned to Melbourne, he was ready to attack the rest of the club season, which ended in another Southern premiership. At the start of 2025, he set out to earn reselection in the HCM squad. He worked on his fitness, finishing, diet, hydration, and mental preparation. The effort paid off. He is back in the squad, scoring goals, and part of a team chasing back to back titles. “This Hockey Club Melbourne team is filled with stars, and I am so grateful to be playing alongside them,” he says. “I am under no illusion that selection for the rest of the season will be easy. But what makes the pressure easier is the fact that we are such a tight knit group that have played together for years. Our coach Jesse Workman encourages players to show their skills and take the game on — and that really resonates with us.”
Walker admits he has not always handled pressure well. “When I was younger, sometimes I would be happy to hit the bench because it meant that pressure was alleviated for a couple minutes,” he says. That has changed. “Nowadays, I prepare myself well for games both physically and mentally and go out there and enjoy every moment. That mindset change has helped my hockey immensely. Simply enjoying myself rather than worrying about making mistakes.” Podcasts from elite athletes have helped shape his approach. “Tom Brady is someone I look up to — his idea of training the way you play, and the hunger he has for success resonates with me.”
Through it all, family has been his anchor. His father Ross rarely misses a game. His mother Cheryle, though based in Metung, watches every match. His brother Davin has returned to social hockey, and Carlin hopes they might play together again one day. His grandparents Ken and Heather are still fixtures in the stands. “I love nothing more than seeing them watching me play. I know how proud they are of me, as I am of them. I make sure I find them in the stands before I play and give them a wave.”
By Adam Clifford