Tristan Sailor

Tristan Sailor

Personal information
Born	(1998-06-23) 23 June 1998 (age 26) Brisbane, Queensland Australia
Height	179 cm (5 ft 10 in)
Weight	85 kg (13 st 5 lb)
Playing information
Position	Fullback, Five-eighth, Wing
Club Years Team Pld T G FG P 2019–20 St. George Illawarra 5 1 0 0 4 2023–24 Brisbane Broncos 16 1 0 0 4 2025– St Helens 0 0 0 0 0 Total 21 2 0 0 8
Source: [1] As of 5 September 2024
Father	Wendell Sailor
Relatives	Dane Gagai (cousin) Jacob Gagai (cousin) Josh Hoffman (cousin) Travis Waddell (cousin)

Tristan Sailor (born 23 June 1998) is an Australian professional rugby league footballer who plays as a fullback and five-eighth for St Helens R.F.C. in the Super League.

He previously played for the St. George Illawarra Dragons in the NRL.

Background

Sailor was born in Brisbane into a family of Torres Strait Islanders & Solomon Island descendants. ^[2] His father, a Solomon island descendant Wendell, was a dual international who played more than 300 combined professional games across the two codes of rugby. ^[3] At the age of seven, Sailor moved to Sydney with his family before settling in Wollongong two years later and began playing junior rugby league for the Western Suburbs Red Devils in the Illawarra Rugby League. ^[4] Despite spending the majority of his upbringing in New South Wales, Sailor's State of Origin eligibility for Queensland was confirmed in 2014 when the NRL introduced a father-son rule. ^[5] Sailor confirmed later in 2014 that he had always wanted to represent Queensland. ^[6]

Career

St George Illawarra Dragons

Sailor made his first grade debut in round 23 of the 2019 NRL season for St George against the Sydney Roosters scoring a try in a 34-12 loss at Kogarah Oval. ^{[7] [8]}

On 29 September 2019, Sailor was named in the 2019 Canterbury Cup NSW team of the season. ^[9]

He was released by St. George Illawarra at the end of the 2020 NRL season. ^[10]

After being released by the club, Sailor's father Wendell Sailor spoke to the media and voiced his anger at his son being released, saying he was told by the club that if he had a big off-season, he would be in the mix this year but he never got any game time.” ^[11]

Souths Logan Magpies

In April 2022, Souths Logan Magpies in the Queensland Cup competition announced they had signed Sailor for the rest of the season. ^[12]

Brisbane Broncos

On 16 December 2022, it was announced that Sailor had joined Brisbane on a train and trial contract ahead of the 2023 NRL season. ^[13]

In round 13 of the 2023 NRL season, Sailor made his debut for the Brisbane Broncos against the New Zealand Warriors, playing at fullback. He had an impressive debut with the Brisbane outfit winning 26 - 22 without their State of Origin representative players. Sailor made a try saving tackle in the first half and set up the decisive try from a clever grubber kick in the second half. He played his second game for Brisbane against the Dolphins in round 18 which the Brisbane club won 24 - 16 at The Gabba. Sailor played a total of four matches with Brisbane in the 2023 NRL season but did not feature in their finals campaign nor grand final loss against Penrith. ^[14] In round 4 of the 2024 NRL season, Sailor made his first start of the year in the clubs 38-12 victory over arch-rivals North Queensland. On 4 April 2024, Sailor's father Wendell launched another attack on Sailor's former club St. George Illawarra saying “The way Tristan got treated at the Dragons was disgusting, Other Dragons kids have been let go … the culture of the club hasn’t been good since Wayne (Bennett) left, “Tristan loved the Dragons more than me, they picked Corey Norman and that’s fine, I understood that, but Tristan went from starting, to the bench, to 18th man, to No. 21 and 22 and out of the squad with no reason at all as to why. Then before a game against the Storm – their last game of the (2020) season – a Dragons official walks up to Tristan and says, ‘Thanks for your service, we no longer need you at this club, we’re going in a different direction’ Seriously, what a joke". ^[15]

St Helens

On 8 August 2024, Sailor signed a two-year deal with English side St Helens starting in 2025. ^[16]

Controversy

On 10 October 2020, Sailor was arrested and charged with aggravated sexual assault against a woman in a house in Sydney. ^[17] On 31 March 2022, Sailor was found not guilty on all charges. ^[18]

References

1. "Tristan Sailor - Career Stats & Summary". Rugby League Project.
2. "Indigenous Round v South Sydney". dragons.com.au. 30 July 2020.
3. "Son also rises: Sailor jnr signs three-year Dragons deal". smh.com.au. 21 September 2021.
4. "The Rock's mum gives a shout out to Illawarra rugby league". sportingnews.com.au. 2 September 2016.
5. "The eligibility rule delivering Queensland more NSW-bred players". smh.com.au. 13 June 2016.
6. "Sailor may have been picked for the NSW Blues but his heart lies with Queensland". couriermail.com.au. 5 February 2014.
7. "Round 23 NRL team announcements". NRL.com. 24 August 2019. Archived from the original on 24 August 2019.
8. Walter, Brad (25 August 2019). "Sailor offers hope for the future after heavy loss to Roosters". NRL.com. Archived from the original on 27 August 2019.
9. "2019 Canterbury Cup NSW Team of the Year". NSW Rugby League. 29 September 2019. Archived from the original on 17 April 2020.
10. Chisholm, Ed (24 September 2020). "St. George Illawarra Dragons prodigy Tristan Sailor told to look elsewhere for 2021". Sporting News. Archived from the original on 22 October 2020.
11. Williamson, Nathan (25 September 2020). "Unwanted Dragon Tristan Sailor reportedly sounded out for shock rugby union move". Sporting News. Archived from the original on 22 October 2020.
12. |work=Sporting News |url=https://www.sportingnews.com/au/rugby-league/news/tristan-sailor-return-queensland-cup-after-being-found-not-guilty-sexual-assault/tbmlantdmrepiciqdlvgu8bs
13. "From schoolboy sensations to journeymen eyeing last chance: Every NRL train-and-trial player". www.foxsports.com.au.
14. "NRL grand final 2023: Penrith Panthers defeat Brisbane Broncos – as it happened". www.theguardian.com.
15. "'Threw him out': Legend blasts Dragons for 'disgusting' treatment of son... and it 'wasn't just him'". www.foxsports.com.au.
16. "Tristan Sailor: St Helens sign cross-code great Wendell Sailor's son from Brisbane Broncos for 2025". www.skysports.com.
17. "Jennings fails drugs test; Sailor arrested". BBC Sport. British Broadcasting Corporation. 10 October 2020. Archived from the original on 22 October 2020. Retrieved 10 October 2020.
18. "Former NRL player Tristan Sailor found not guilty of sexually assaulting woman". www.foxsports.com.au.

External links

• Dragons profile