If you were constructing a rugby league player in a laboratory solely from skills from other football codes, you'd probably end up with somebody like Brooke Walker.
A former Australian touch football representative and rugby sevens international player, Walker spent the past four seasons playing for Carlton in AFLW before linking with the Eels. She'll pull on the blue and gold for the first time in Saturday's season opener against the Titans.
Switching from Aussie Rules to rugby league hasn't been easy for Walker but after a torrid pre-season, the 27-year-old is ready to bring all the skills acquired from her sporting career to her new code.
"When I first started, I knew I had to develop really rapidly, so that's been a huge challenge," Walker said.
"I knew as soon as I joined the Eels how elite the rest of the team was and the skill set of the other girls.
"It's been tough, but I finally feel like I've got to a point where I can compete with the rest of the team. That's really exciting.
"On paper, it sounds like I've got everything I need but when you get out there you have to deal with pressure and nerves and anxiety and all those other things.
"So long as I'm confident in my teammates and they're confident in me, those good attributes should be able to come through.
"When I've played rugby I've always been able to put people into holes, that might be a point of difference for me, but I am more of a running halfback.
"And I'm hoping to bring my kicking ability over from AFLW, I think kicking is underrated in NRLW and it's not utilised enough."
After a heavy focus on defence and physicality in the lead-up to her debut in a third top-line football code, Walker is expected to slot straight into the halves for Dean Widders's side as a replacement for former New South Wales and Australian halfback Maddie Studdon.
With the Eels also losing rising star Emily Curtain to the Titans, there's a dearth of experience in the halves but Walker's well-rounded skill set could make her an instant success as the club chases their first finals berth.
"It's been challenging, but I'm finally in a place where I'm feeling confident," Walker said.
"I'm looking forward to a free-flowing game where I'm not going to have to worry about bouncing the ball.
"I do thrive in environments where I can just run, or beat opposition players to put teammates into space.
"The biggest challenge going to AFLW was how the game was 360. You need to be aware you can get tackled from any direction and the ball can come from any direction.
"In rugby league, the contact is the most difficult part – you’re coming up against girls who are a lot bigger and stronger, so you have to make sure your tackle technique is up to it or you’ll just get rolled.
"That’s been the hardest to get used to."
Walker is contracted for one more season with Carlton and will return to the Blues once her NRLW duties have concluded.
Her long-term future is still up in the air, but Walker has settled in quickly at the Eels and is keen to help the club become an NRLW powerhouse.
"I'm not just doing this for the headline of an AFLW player going to NRLW," Walker said.
"This was baby Brooke's dream job, so ideally I'd like to stay in the game for as long as I can or as long as my body allows me.
"Long-term, I think Parramatta has the potential to be really successful and I want to be at Parramatta until we're consistently successful. That, ideally, would be my plan.
"After this season I have to go back and play the second AFLW season with Carlton, once that finishes I'll sit down and have a review of what's next for me long-term.
"I'll see how I feel, have some chats with the Carlton staff and the Parra staff, it'll be a tough decision no matter what I decide to do."
