12 months after Eamon Wallace burst onto the scene, younger brother Joey followed in his lightning fast footsteps at Croke Park last Sunday.

18-year-old Joey wasn't part of the Royal panel for the facile 28-point victory over Carlow at Dr Cullen Park as he was in the middle of sitting his Leaving Cert exam.

But Mick O'Dowd had no hesitation in throwing him in for his championship debut against the Lilywhites as a replacement for concussed Ratoath club-mate Bryan McMahon and he passed that particular test with flying colours.

A nephew of former Ryder Cup golfer Philip Walton, the teenager made an instant impression when rattling the Kildare crossbar with a rasper of a shot before finding the target with a valuable point for the team in green and gold in the second half.

With Eamon ruled out for the year due to a cruciate ligament injury, Joey - who doesn't turn 19 until October - has injected additional pace into the Meath attack and Royal fans will be hoping for more of the same if, as expected, he sees action against the Dubs on July 20th. Tweet

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