He played in junior Queensland school teams, at times representing his state against New South Wales before a State or Test match at the Sydney Cricket Ground. Lewis attended Brisbane State High School during the 1970s. In 1977 while still in high school, Lewis also played representative rugby union as a Centre, touring Europe and Japan with the Australian schoolboys team alongside the likes of Tony Melrose, Michael O'Connor, and all three Ella brothers Mark, Glen and Gary, all of whom went on to represent The Wallabies, while O'Connor would become a dual international when he played alongside Lewis for the Kangaroos. The 1977 Australian Schoolboys Rugby Union tour of Great Britain would see the first of three times Lewis would make undefeated tours of Britain with Australian national teams. According to Lincoln Lewis, Wally and his brother are butchers by trade. Following his return to Australia from the 1977 Schoolboys tour, Lewis faced discrimination in the Queensland Rugby Union fraternity due to his rugby league background. After being told he would no longer be selected for any representative teams if he continues to play league, he immediately decided his future lay with rugby league, playing in the Brisbane Rugby League premiership with Valley's Diehards from 1978. His father Jim Lewis was the coach of Valley's in 1978. Also in 1978, Lewis (and another young Brisbane based lock from Wests named Paul Vautin) turned down an offer to play in the famed Sydney premiership with the North Sydney Bears. While Lewis would remain in Brisbane in 1979, Vautin would go on to sign with 1978 Sydney premiers the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles. In 1979 Lewis made his senior début for Queensland from the bench in games played under the old State of Residence rules, and also played for a Brisbane representative side against the touring Great Britain Lions. With former Australian halfback Ross Strudwick now captain-coach of the Diehards, Lewis helped Valleys to premiership victory over the Wayne Bennett-coached Souths Magpies side in the BRL Grand Final at Lang Park. Playing in the centres for the Magpies that day was a 19-year-old cadet Policeman who would become a long serving Queensland and Australian teammate of Lewis in the coming decade, Mal Meninga. Lewis made the run-on side for Queensland in the inaugural State of Origin match in 1980 at lock forward alongside his hero Arthur Beetson who at the age of 35 was playing in his first ever game for his home state. There were some in the press who questioned his selection, claiming he should have started from the bench with well performed Brisbane Wests lock Norm Carr in the starting side.