Matt King (rugby league)

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Matt King (rugby league) bigraphy, stories - Australian rugby league player

Matt King (rugby league) : biography

22 August 1980 –

Matt King (born 22 August 1980) is an Australian professional rugby league footballer for National Rugby League (NRL) team, the South Sydney Rabbitohs. A New South Wales State of Origin and Australian international representative three-quarter back, he previously played in Super League for English club Warrington Wolves. Before that King also played with the Melbourne Storm, with whom he won the 2007 NRL Grand Final. During his time in England he won the 2009 and 2010 Challenge Cups with Warrington and was also named in the 2010 Super League Dream Team.

Biography

King began playing rugby league at the age of seven for his local club side the Casino RSM Cougars in northern New South Wales. When Matt was eleven he moved to Wauchope where he played Junior League for the Wauchope Blues in the under-11 and under-12 teams before moving back to Casino. When back in Casino, King joined the Lismore Marist Brothers Rams who went on to win the Group 1 A-Grade Premiership. In 2000, he was signed by the North Sydney Bears where he worked his way through the grades at the club playing in both Jersey Flegg and reserve grade. King suffered a serious shoulder injury in 2002 while playing off the bench for the Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks’ reserve grade side and then quit rugby league because of a claimed disinterest.

After hanging up his boots at the age of 22, King took up several odd jobs such as working as a bar man and even a garbage collector. Ray Warren began to refer to him as "Ropehead", after his return to the NRL with dreadlocked hair. before deciding to give rugby league another go in 2003, signing with the Melbourne Storm’s feeder club, Brisbane Norths on the insistence of former North Sydney teammate Matt Orford who was now at the Storm.

Professional playing career

Melbourne

After moving to the Storm’s feeder club in Brisbane, King played for nearly a year before being selected to make his debut in the National Rugby League at the age of 23 against the St George Illawarra Dragons at WIN Stadium in round 24 of the 2003 season, impressing on his debut without scoring. King went on to make another two appearances for the club in the regular season that year, scoring his first try in round 26 against the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles.

The 2004 NRL season saw King develop further as a player at the Storm, he cemented his place in the squad and was vital in the Melbourne side’s attack, becoming a potent offensive weapon with his agility, pace, strength and ability to find the try line. At the conclusion of the 2004 club season, King finished with a total of fifteen tries and had developed into one of the up and coming centres in rugby league. This was recognised with his selection in the annual City vs Country match for the Country side. He was also named as the Storm’s rookie of the year.

2005 became the season where King would stamp his mark on rugby league, beginning the season by scoring seven tries in the first seven games of the season including a set of doubles against Brisbane and Canberra and yet again impressing City vs Country selectors enough to be again selected in the annual clash. After further impressive performances King was called up for his first major representative honour, being selected for the New South Wales State of Origin side for all three games in 2005. In the decider he became the 9th player (and 4th New south Welshman) to score a hat-trick in state of Origin.

King finished the 2005 season at Melbourne with fourteen tries, and coupled with his three for New South Wales, earned a spot in the Australian international side for the 2005 tour of Great Britain. He played in every game on tour and was again selected out of position on the wing, yet played well enough to earn praise from the Great Britain and Ireland international winger Brian Carney who stated King was "the best winger in the world".

The following year in 2006 started off slowly for King, but as the year progressed he worked his way into form again. He was once again selected in the New South Wales side again for the annual State of Origin series, which NSW lost 2–1 to Queensland. After his side’s 15–8 loss to the Brisbane Broncos in the 2006 NRL grand final, in which he starred by scoring a try, he cost his club $5,000 after publicly criticising match referee Paul Simpkins.