Kevin Walters Didn’t Know Kevvie’s Surprise: Tedesco Retiring

Walters said respect drove the late change. "I thought with the scoreline where it was, without being disrespectful, he needed to get on the field and for him to experience that," he said.

"I didn't know it was his last game for Australia, not in my eyes, but I'm so glad that happened now because he's been a champion in the in the jersey and for the sport."

He pointed to Tedesco's year with the Roosters, New South Wales and the Kangaroos. "We could only have one fullback, and Reece was the fullback tonight," Walters said.

Walsh's jab and Walters' reply

Walsh used his post-game interview to hit out at critics. He claimed the Kangaroos had been "disrespected" and "wrote off".

Walters didn't engage much. He cheekily replied that Walsh says a lot of "silly" things, then praised the group's passion.

He said he saw that drive when he first took the job last year, meeting players at Penrith. What the outside noise said and what the players felt, he said, were "two different stories".

"For the jersey, for each other, for the country. It was amazing stuff," Walters said.

What next for Walters

This may be Walters' last game as Kangaroos coach, at least for now. He is preparing to move to England to coach St Helens in the Super League.

Some have suggested he could do both jobs. Walters declined to weigh in straight after the game.

"I’ll keep coaching. We've got to go to St Helens, which I'm really excited about, and we'll see what happens with the Kangaroos stuff after the next few days," he said.