Fletcher's junior club was the Paddington Colts in the Eastern Suburbs District Junior Rugby League. He started his top-level career at the Sydney Roosters in the second row in the 1997 ARL season. Despite only 24 National Rugby League appearances, Fletcher was selected for the Australian team to compete in the end of season 1999 Rugby League Tri-Nations tournament. In the final against New Zealand he played at second-row forward in the Kangaroos' 22-20 victory. Over the years Fletcher would gain 13 caps for the Australian national side and also play 14 games for New South Wales in the State of Origin matches.
One of the highlights of Fletcher's Sydney Roosters career was his appearance at second-row forward in the 2000 NRL Grand Final, their first in 20 years. He also helped Australia inflict a humiliating defeat on the New Zealand national team 52–0 as well as a 3–0 whitewash of Queensland in the State of Origin series. Fletcher is perhaps best known in Origin circles for his hand grenade try celebration which he performed in 2000 series where NSW thumped QLD 56-16. It is believed that the try celebration forced Queensland to change their whole strategy towards Origin and it created a pathway for Queensland to win fourteen of eighteen series since 2006 (including a record eight straight between 2006 and 2013). Former Queensland player Wendell Sailor said “As a Queenslander, you never forget that". Queensland Origin great Gorden Tallis had previously spoken about how that try celebration eventually led to a shift in the State of Origin balance of power which saw Queensland win back the Shield in 2001. Former player Matthew Johns claims that the try celebration started a Queensland dynasty. Former Queensland coach Chris Close spoke about Fletcher's try celebration in 2016 "I thought it was disgraceful act and a disgraceful show of disrespect, You would certainly never, ever see that from any Queensland team, It still burns. F---ing oath it does".[3][4]
Fletcher achieved even more success in the 2002 season. He played for the Roosters from the interchange bench in their 30-8 win over the New Zealand Warriors in the 2002 NRL Grand Final in front of 80,130 fans at the Telstra Stadium. He scored the final try in the 74th minute in what was his 135th and final appearance for the red, white and blue, before moving to rivals the South Sydney Rabbitohs.[5]
South Sydney Rabbitohs
Fletcher left the Roosters and moved to perennial strugglers the South Sydney Rabbitohs in 2003. Fletcher was soon installed as the club's captain after signing due to his playing pedigree. In 2003 he won the George Piggins Medal as the club's best and fairest player of the season.[6]
The Rabbitohs' captaincy was stripped from him after an altercation on the pitch with Parramatta Eels player Dean Widders in which Fletcher made a racist comment towards Widders.[7] It turned out to be the turning point in the Rabbitohs' season, with Ashley Harrison taking the captaincy from him and the Rabbitohs winning most of their matches under him in a late season surge which saw them avoid a third consecutive wooden spoon.[8]
He later apologised for the event, saying: "I apologise unreservedly for comments that I made to Dean Widders in yesterday's game. The comments were totally unacceptable and for that I am sorry. "My actions have set a very poor example for kids who follow Rugby League and these types of comments cannot be tolerated in our game."[9]
Fletcher playing for Wigan on 4 September 2007
Wigan Warriors
Before the scandal that led to Fletcher being stripped of his captaincy, banned for 1 game and fined A$10,000 he had agreed to a move to England to play for Super League club; Wigan Warriors after three years at Souths. Fletcher joined the Wigan club in 2006 in time for the pre season training but was sidelined for the opening four rounds of Super League after needing emergency Bowel Surgery in early January.
Fletcher's début came against Warrington Wolves on 10 March 2006 at the JJB Stadium in Wigan, and made an instant impact as a substitute scoring his first try three minutes into his first appearance. He was one of the stalwarts that helped Wigan through one of the most tumultuous times in the club's history on and off the field in 2006 with the dismissal of coach Ian Millward, the low morale within the team and seeing the once feared Wigan club sitting at the bottom of the table. Thanks to Fletcher's impact in the Second-row and the Prop positions Wigan managed the seemingly impossible and survived relegation from the Super League, finishing 7th and just missing a playoff place to local rivals Warrington.
Playing statistics
At the end of the 2007 Super League season, Bryan Fletcher retired from competitive rugby league. He had played in 125 games for the Sydney Roosters, 45 for Souths, and a further 55 for Wigan. He also played 2 games for City Origin, 14 State of Origin games for NSW and 13 Test and World Cup matches for Australia.
Personal life
He got married in 2003, to Britt Fletcher. Together they had 3 daughters, Scarlett, Maya, and Lucca. When he retired from playing in 2007, Fletcher and his business partner Craig Markham began a cleaning company called Cleanfit. The company cleans a number of pubs, clubs and office blocks in Sydney. It also allows Fletcher, who is a qualified plumber, to utilise his trade in order to help with the business.[10]
In 2013, Bryan Fletcher was a regular presenter on Channel 9's weekly football season program "The Footy Show". Fletcher presented the "Kick for Cash" segment.
In 2014, Bryan Fletcher joined Fox Sports "Monday Night with Matty Johns' forming a duo with fellow former NRL player Nathan Hindmarsh. Fletcher and Hindmarsh participate in many challenges set by the producers. 'Fletch and Hindy' created their own spoof NRL bid team known as the 'Nepal Donkeys.[11]
In July 2018, Fletcher made the headlines after he was allegedly set up by an Uber driver buying cocaine. The Uber driver reportedly filmed Fletcher in a snapchat video saying "Look who I'm selling bags to …". Fletcher responded with "Don't say that, I don't know who this driver is, we're just hanging out it's Saturday night, I'm just in an Uber". Fletcher's manager Steve Gillis told the media "The driver asked him for a quick Snapchat video he's been set up. "Fletcher told me that he's never met the bloke, he just jumped in the back of his cab and driver pulled this stunt he's clearly been set up".[12]
In 2019, Bryan was chosen to be part of the core host ensemble for the Unibet Australia weekly television format program "At Odds".
Craig Wing, also known by the nickname of "Wingy", is an Australian-born former professional rugby league and rugby union footballer. He began his career in rugby league, playing for the South Sydney Rabbitohs and the Sydney Roosters in the NRL, representing Australia internationally and New South Wales in State of Origin. He switched to rugby union, playing in Japan for the NTT Communications Shining Arcs and the Kobelco Steelers, earning selection for the Japanese national team after completing three years residency.
Dean Richard Widders is an Anaiwan Indigenous Australian former professional rugby league footballer who played in the 2000s and 2010s. He works with the National Rugby League as an Indigenous Pathways manager. He is coach of the Parramatta Eels Women team in the 2022 NRLW season.
Matthew Jeremy Bowen is an Australian former professional rugby league footballer who played in the 2000s and 2010s. An Australia international and Queensland State of Origin representative fullback, he played in the National Rugby League (NRL) for Australian club, the North Queensland Cowboys, with whom he set the club's record for most matches, and in the Super League for English club, the Wigan Warriors. Bowen was the NRL's top try-scorer in the 2005 and 2007 seasons. Former Queensland and Australian captain Darren Lockyer has called Bowen a "little freak", citing his skills and dynamism. Two-time premiership winning coach Phil Gould remarked in 2005 that he was a "modern-day icon of the game", saying that "Bowen has unique football instincts. He performs the difficult with ease and some of his feats have redefined what we once believed to be impossible."
Braith Anastasakis, better known as Braith Anasta, is an Australian former professional rugby league footballer who played as a five-eighth and lock in the 2000s and 2010s. An Australian and Greek international, Anasta played in the NRL for the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs, with whom he won the 2004 NRL Premiership, the Sydney Roosters and the Wests Tigers. He also represented New South Wales in the State of Origin series. He is the current host of NRL 360 on Fox Sports Australia.
Ashley Harrison is an Australian former professional rugby league footballer who played as a lock in the 2000s and 2010s.
Shannon Hegarty is an Australian former professional rugby league footballer who played in the 2000s. An Australia international and Queensland State of Origin representative three-quarter back, he played club football in the National Rugby League for the Sydney Roosters, South Sydney Rabbitohs and North Queensland Cowboys.
Gregory Paul Inglis, also known by the nickname of "G.I.", is a retired Indigenous Australian professional rugby league footballer, who regularly played as a centre, fullback, five-eighth and wing.
The Indigenous Australian rugby league team is a rugby league football team that represents Aboriginal Australians and Torres Strait Islanders. The team was first formed in 1973 and currently plays in an annual All Stars Match against a National Rugby League NRL All Stars team.
Aidan Guerra is a former professional rugby league footballer who played for the Sydney Roosters, with whom he won the 2013 NRL Grand Final, and the Newcastle Knights in the NRL. He represented both Italy and Australia at international level and Queensland in the State of Origin series. His positions were second-row and lock.
Luke Keary is a professional rugby league footballer who plays as a five-eighth or halfback for the Sydney Roosters in the National Rugby League (NRL) and Australia and Ireland at international level.
Ethan Lowe is an Australian former professional rugby league footballer who played as a goal kicking second-row for the North Queensland Cowboys and South Sydney Rabbitohs in the NRL.
Dylan Napa is a Cook Islands international rugby league footballer who plays as a prop for the Sydney Roosters. Napa has previously played for the Canterbury Bankstown Bulldogs and had a previous stint with the Sydney Roosters in the National Rugby League (NRL), where he won the 2018 NRL Premiership. He also played for the Catalans Dragons in the Super League. Through ancestry, he made three appearances for the Cook Islands in 2013. He has also played at representative level for the Prime Minister's XIII and for Queensland in the State of Origin series.
Hymel Hunt is a Samoa international rugby league footballer who plays as a winger or centre.
Alex Johnston is a professional rugby league footballer who primarily plays on the wing for the South Sydney Rabbitohs in the NRL. He has played for both Australia and Papua New Guinea at international level.
The 2015 NRL season was the 108th season of professional rugby league in Australia and the 18th season of the National Rugby League in Australia and New Zealand. The season started in New Zealand with the annual Auckland Nines, which was followed by the Rugby League All Stars Match, returning after a one-year hiatus, and the World Club Series. North Queensland Cowboys won their first premiership in only the second Grand Final to be decided in extra time and their second ever grand final.
Latrell Mitchell is an Australian professional rugby league footballer who plays as a fullback for the South Sydney Rabbitohs in the National Rugby League (NRL), and has represented both New South Wales in the State of Origin series and Australia at international level as a centre.
Joshua Addo-Carr is an Australian professional rugby league footballer who plays as a winger for the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs in the National Rugby League (NRL) and Australia at international level. Addo-Carr is a dual premiership winner 2017 and 2020 with the Melbourne Storm and 2021 World Cup winner.
Cameron Murray is an Australian professional rugby league footballer who plays as a lock forward and captains the South Sydney Rabbitohs in the NRL.
Matt Ikuvalu is an Australian professional rugby league footballer who plays as a winger or centre for the Catalans Dragons in the Super League.
Corey Allan is an Australian professional rugby league footballer who plays as a wing, fullback and centre for the St. George Illawarra Dragons in the National Rugby League (NRL).
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
