COMING into the AFL system, Sam Walsh didn’t want his age to define him — if anything, it was going to be his performance.

Thirteen games in and with a first interstate win under his belt, the rising star is doing just that.

Belying his young age, Walsh collected 30 disposals, a team-high eight tackles and collected two coaches' votes in another outstanding performance for a first-year player.

It was the perfect present for Walsh, who celebrates his 19th birthday today.

“When you go from school to AFL football, it definitely feels like you grow up very quickly, moving out of home and everything,” Walsh said on SEN’s Time On.

“It’s something I haven’t thought about too much — I didn’t want age to be a limit for me coming in.

“I got told that by a fair few people, that’s my mindset around that. It definitely is different being in an environment where you’ve got the majority of blokes around you older than you.”

Walsh has shown no signs of slowing down in a season where he’s the favourite for the NAB Rising Star award, with his performance on the weekend marking the second time in three games he’s collected 30 or more disposals.

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He was once again ranked inside the top two on the ground for distance covered.

Walsh said he had used the bye weekend as a chance to reset, with eight games now to attack for the remainder of the 2019 season.

“It definitely is very demanding, AFL footy, but my body and mindset is feeling great and I’m ready to launch into the second half of the year,” he said.

“Over the bye period last week, it gave me a chance to reset and look back on the year so far and get yourself set for the second half of the year.

“I’ve got a great circle of influence around me at the Club.”

When one piece of audio just isn't enough! #BoundByBlue — Carlton FC (@CarltonFC) July 2, 2019

Sunday marked Walsh’s first interstate win, and the first time his side had been on the right side of the ledger in a game decided by under a goal.

Walsh said the victory was something which could spur the Blues on for the remainder of the year.

“It definitely does give us confidence, especially in those tighter games which haven’t been great for us,” he said.

“We know what we need to do and how we want to play in those situations.”