Although it wasn't his worst day, Walsh said he had to be able to perform well regardless of who he is up against.
"I should be able to get up and throw far whenever I want. I believe it does help somewhat to have other guys throwing close to you or further to you and a really pumped up crowd and stuff like that definitely helps. But at the same time, I should be able to get there by myself as well because there's going to be more pressure on the big stage when there's 80,000 people watching," said Walsh.
And McCartney wasn't the only one who enjoyed being back in front of a home crowd.
"It was great to come back, even though Jacko wasn't there, to win another New Zealand title, at the end of the day, it's another title which is what we want. To throw further than what I did last year at the champs is good as well," Walsh said.
"I only compete a few times in New Zealand every year, so it was great to see Eliza competing at the same time as me, they were there to watch her and me and also Joseph Millar running as well."
"Hopefully the crowd enjoyed themselves and we put on some type of show for them," said Walsh.
McCartney will compete in the Australian Champs next week before having a break to prepare for the World Champs later in the year.
Walsh will have a break from competing until May when he will travel to Oregon for the Diamond League.