Tallon Smith
The Dapto Canaries have landed one of the biggest signings of the Illawarra Rugby League off-season after securing the services of reigning Group 7 Michael Cronin Medallist Braxton Wallace for the 2026 season.
Originally a Group 20 product from Leeton, the talented halfback joins the Canaries following a largely successful stint at Shellharbour Sharks, where he led the club to three straight Grand Final appearances in the past three years.
Speaking on his decision to move to Dapto, Wallace said it was a combination of challenge of taking on the Illawarra competition and a pitch from a big name that lured him north of the lake.
“[After] being at the Sharks for three years now, Dapto approached me to see what I was up to for the year,” he said.
“[I] had a good chat to them, and it was a very exciting chat with Mary [Paul] McGregor there, he’s a big figure in rugby league.
“It was exciting, a bit of a new challenge and a bit of a change for me, so I decided to go for it.”
It’s that challenge of taking on the talent in one of the state’s top two bush footy competitions that McGregor and Wallace spoke about, one that the latter said excites him.
“It’s an exciting challenge, and that’s one we talked about,” he said.
“I actually played at Dapto back a couple of years ago when I was 18, so it’s exciting to come back and test myself in that division again.
“There’s always a bit of rivalry between the two divisions [Illawarra and Group 7], but it’s very exciting to jump up and hopefully put together a good year there with Dapto.”
In terms of what he envisages joining the Canaries, Wallace said that the club is on an upward trajectory, and he believes while every week will be a challenge, success is there for the taking should things click in 2026.
“When I spoke with ‘Mary’, he said they just missed out this year, and it was a massive year for them in terms of getting back where they want to be in that finals series,” he said.
“I think with the squad they’re putting together and the calibre of players, that’s always going to be a goal of mine, to win, and I think if we can get the right combinations and work, we’ll go very close.
“I know the league itself is strong all across the park, there’s no really easy week, you’ve always got competition every time you step on the field.
“It’s a bit of a smaller comp but it’s very strong.
“It’s one of those things if you can rack the wins up early on and just stay consistent, towards the end of the year it’s whoever’s ready on the day, and the spot that Dapto are at at the moment, we’ll be pushing for it [a title] for sure.”
Throughout his three year stint with Shellharbour, Wallace was consistently among the best players in the league, with this form ultimately leading to him taking out the Michael Cronin Medal this year.
However, despite his dominance of Group 7 for three years, a premiership eluded the halfback and his Sharks teammates as they lost three consecutive Grand Finals, two to Gerringong and another to Kiama.
While he said he will remember his time at Shellharbour fondly, Wallace admitted that falling short of a premiership does take the shine off an otherwise incredible stint at the club.
“It’s a big thing that I think about, I would have loved to at least win one there with the Sharks, and I’m spewing that we couldn’t get it done, especially this year,” he said.
“But it’s just one of those things, they’re very hard to win, and to make three [Grand Finals] out of the three years I was there, it was great to be a part of.
“I am kicking myself that we couldn’t win just one, but everything happens for a reason, and hopefully I’ll eventually get one.
“That’s obviously a big goal of mine moving forward is to win a premiership, so wherever that may be, we’ll see.”
As for the Cronin Medal, Wallace said winning the award was among the biggest honours of his career so far.
“It was massive, it’s not really a goal that you set at the start of the year, but as the rounds go one, you know you’re in the mix, and to receive that award as being crowned the best player in the group, it’s something I’m very proud of,” he said.
“It was a massive achievement for the whole group and Shellharbour itself to be able to put me in the position to play my good footy, and like I said a few times, as long as you’re enjoying where you’re at, you’re usually playing well.
“So I was very happy to get that award, it topped off a stellar year, but unfortunately we couldn’t get the championship.
“If we got that I would have been a very happy man, but I’m still stoked to [have won] that award.”
Meanwhile, whenever Wallace’s name is mentioned in the Riverina, talk of a return to Leeton is quick to surface among the town’s many rugby league supporters.
While he won’t rule it out later in his career, the new Dapto halfback said he is happy with life on the South Coast, declaring a fairytale homecoming won’t be happening anytime soon.
“I obviously always have a chat, I get home over Christmas and it’s always talked about,” he said.
“I won’t write it off, I’d love to go back there and play one day, but at the moment I’m loving life here on the coast and it’s not in my plans anytime soon.
“Obviously my brother’s moved out and he’s playing for Temora now, so he’s that little bit closer.
“Towards the back end of the career, it’s something we would all love to do, but it’s definitely not going to happen I don’t think anytime soon.”
