Stephen Moore (rugby union)

Last updated

Stephen Moore
AM
Stephen Moore (Australian rugby union footballer).jpg
Moore in 2012
Birth nameStephen Thomas Moore
Date of birth (1983-01-20) 20 January 1983 (age 40)
Place of birth Khamis Mushait, Saudi Arabia
Height186 cm (6 ft 1 in) [1]
Weight112 kg (247 lb; 17 st 9 lb)
School Brisbane Grammar School
University University of Queensland
Rugby union career
Position(s) Hooker
Senior career
YearsTeamApps(Points)
2016–2017 Queensland Country 0 0
Super Rugby
YearsTeamApps(Points)
2003–08
2009–16
2017
Reds
Brumbies
Reds
46
117
13
(10)
(80)
(25)
Correct as of 22 July 2016
International career
YearsTeamApps(Points)
2005–2017 Australia 129 (40)
Correct as of 22 November 2017

Stephen Thomas Moore AM [2] (born 20 January 1983) is an Australian former rugby union footballer, who played Super Rugby for the Brumbies and Queensland Reds and has 129 caps for Australia internationally, including 24 tests as captain.

Contents

Moore is the 14th most capped player of all time, has the second most Test appearances for Australia behind George Gregan and is the only Australian hooker to have played 100 Tests. He is also the most capped Australian Super Rugby player of all time, and is one only two players in Australian Rugby history, along with Nathan Sharpe to have achieved 100 Test and 150 Super Rugby appearances. [3]

Early years

Born in Saudi Arabia to Irish parents, his father Tommy came from Tuam, County Galway and his mother Maureen came from Killasser near Swinford, County Mayo. He and his family moved to Tuam, in the mid-eighties before they emigrated to Mount Morgan, Queensland, Australia in 1988, when he was five years old. His family later moved to Rockhampton, before finally settling in Brisbane.[ citation needed ]

Career

Moore came up through the junior ranks in Queensland, playing schools rugby with Rockhampton Pioneers and Brisbane Grammar School prior to joining the University of Queensland Rugby Club from where he represented the Australian Under 19s. He made his Super 12 debut in 2003 for the Queensland Reds against the Bulls. He then went on to play for the under-21 Australian team at the 2003 and 2004 under-21 world championships, as well as with Australia A.[ citation needed ]

He was included in the 2005 Wallabies squad for the mid-year Tests. He debuted with Rocky Elsom against Samoa. He came off the bench in matches against Samoa, Italy and France. He was then capped three times against South Africa. In November he joined the Wallabies in France when fellow hooker Adam Freier sustained an injury. He played in the loss against France on 5 November. After the whirlwind of 2005 where Moore made his debut for the Wallabies and featured in every Queensland Reds Super 12 game, 2006 was a mixed bag which saw him finish the season on the reserves bench. However, his skills and strength as a ball runner brought an extra dimension to the Reds forwards and earned him selection on the Wallabies end of year tour to Europe.[ citation needed ] In November 2006, Moore travelled to Europe for the Autumn Internationals series. He was used as a replacement in the Australia v Italy game (25–18) in the Stadio Flaminio, Rome. He then played for the Australia A squad that defeated Ireland A mid-week in Thomond Park, Limerick. He then came on as a replacement in the 54th minute of the Ireland vs Australia game, in which Ireland ran out easy winners 21–6, in appalling conditions at Lansdowne Road stadium, Dublin. He made his first full International appearance for Australia the following weekend against Scotland at Murrayfield Stadium in Edinburgh, touching down a pass from Matt Giteau to score his first International try. Australia were easy victors with a scoreline of Australia 44 – Scotland 15.[ citation needed ]

In 2010, Moore appeared in all 13 matches for the Brumbies until breaking his jaw in the final round of regular season. [4]

Since the 2011 Tri Nations Series, Moore has been named in every squad, usually as first choice hooker. He was a key player in Australia's 2011 winning Tri Nations Series, and 2011 Rugby World Cup campaign, in which Australia finished third. Since Australia's first match against France in the 2012 end-of-year rugby union tests, Moore had played every single match for the Wallabies, including starting every test in 2013 British & Irish Lions tour to Australia. When Robbie Deans resigned following the Lions series and when Ewen McKenzie took over the reins, Moore started at Hooker for the Wallabies for the remainder of the 2013 Test schedule playing very well.

In McKenzie's second year in charge, McKenzie named Stephen Moore as captain for the 2014 three-test June series against France, with Michael Hooper and Adam Ashley-Cooper as vice captains. [5] However, in his first Test as Wallabies captain, Moore picked up a season-ending ACL knee injury as he went down awkwardly when making a tackle in the second minute and he left the field in the 5th minutes of the game in the Wallabies' 50–23 win over France at Brisbane's Suncorp Stadium. [6]

On 6 July 2015, Moore was named as Wallabies' captain for the upcoming World Cup under new coach Michael Cheika. [7] Moore subsequently lead the Wallabies to the final against New Zealand, with the final score 34–17 to New Zealand, the highest overall combined score in a Rugby World Cup final.

Moore broke the record for most Super Rugby tries in a single season scored by a hooker in 2016, crossing the line seven times for the Brumbies that season, including a double in the 43–24 win against his former team the Reds. Moore also announced in late 2015 that he would return to the Reds following the 2016 season.

In 2017 Moore announced that he would retire from international rugby at the end of the year and retire from Super Rugby at the end of 2018. Moore's captaincy was immediately given to Michael Hooper. He last played for Australia on 25 November 2017, in a record 53–24 defeat to Scotland.

Moore was made a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) in the 2019 Queen's Birthday Honours in recognition of his "significant service to rugby union, and to charitable organisations". [8]

Personal life

Moore is married to Courtney, and has three children, Theodore, Darcy, and Lawrence. [9]

Super Rugby statistics

As of 22 July 2016 [10]
SeasonTeamGamesStartsSubMinsTriesConsPensDropsPointsYelRed
2003 Reds 10150000000
2004 Reds 10110000000
2005 Reds 10735200000000
2006 Reds 115648120001000
2007 Reds 10645950000000
2008 Reds 131037000000000
2009 Brumbies 121207930000000
2010 Brumbies 1313073920001000
2011 Brumbies 1212084640002000
2012 Brumbies 1616012050000000
2013 Brumbies 1817113110000010
2014 Brumbies 1313095120001000
2015 Brumbies 1816210721000500
2016 Brumbies 1515086370003500
2017 Reds 1312179850002500
Total17615422108802300011510

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References

  1. "Stephen Moore". rugby.com.au. Australian Rugby Union . Retrieved 15 January 2014.
  2. "Mr Stephen Thomas Moore". Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet . Retrieved 19 November 2022 via Australian Government.
  3. "Stephen Moore". rugby.com.au. Australian Rugby Union.
  4. Player profile Archived 3 March 2016 at the Wayback Machine Wallabies
  5. MOORE TO CAPTAIN QANTAS WALLABIES, HOOPER AND ASHLEY-COOPER NAMED AS VICE-CAPTAINS
  6. Wallabies lose new skipper Stephen Moore for remainder of season, Sam Carter out too
  7. "Rugby World Cup under new coach Michael Cheika: Stephen Moore named Wallabies captain". Australian Broadcasting Corporation 6 July 2015. Retrieved 6 July 2014.
  8. "Stephen Thomas Moore". honours.pmc.gov.au. Retrieved 10 June 2019.
  9. Purdon, Fiona. "How Wallabies captain Stephen Moore met the love of his life, Courtney". The Courier-Mail. News Corporation. Retrieved 28 November 2017.
  10. "Player Statistics". its rugby. Retrieved 26 July 2016.
Preceded by Australian national rugby union captain
2014
Succeeded by