South Sydney's Adam Reynolds admits halves partner Luke Keary's position in the side can no longer be guaranteed following the emergence of Cody Walker.
Walker will get first crack at the Rabbitohs No.6 jumper in their NRL round one clash against bitter arch-rivals the Sydney Roosters at Allianz Staidum on Sunday with Keary sidelined due to suspension.
Brought in to add depth to the club's ranks a year ago, 26-year-old Walker has rocketed into the frame with some sterling pre-season form to be nipping at Keary's heels.
Keary is off-contract at the end of the season and rumoured to be restless at Redfern following a blow up with club owner Russell Crowe during a pre-season bonding trip.
Walker has a golden opportunity to prove himself capable of stepping up to the mark to be the side's first-pick No.6 should they offload Keary at the end of 2016.
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The former Queensland Cup player last year spurred South's feeder team the North Sydney Bears to a surprise finals appearances and provided plenty of spark in the Rabbitohs' Charity Shield win over St George Illawarra last month.
Souths No.7 Reynolds said Walker was now putting pressure on Keary to hold his place and could provide Maguire with a big headache should he fire against the Roosters.
Asked if it was guaranteed that he would partner Keary in round two, Reynolds said: "That's for the coach to decide, that's not in my hands.
"Luke's a great player and he's been there for some time now and he's really owned that No.6 jersey.
"It'll be interesting to see how Cody goes but if he performs well it'll be in the coach's hands."
