Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Full name | Wayne John Pearce | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Born | Balmain, New South Wales, Australia | 29 March 1960||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Playing information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Height | 180 cm (5 ft 11 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Weight | 89 kg (14 st 0 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Position | Lock, Second-row | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Coaching information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Relatives | Mitchell Pearce (son) |
Wayne John Pearce OAM (born 29 March 1960 in Balmain, New South Wales) is an Australian former professional rugby league footballer and coach. A lock for the Balmain Tigers, he was known as Junior. Pearce represented New South Wales in the State of Origin Series as well as the Australian national rugby league team. Pearce also made an appearance the 1988 Australian television movie The First Kangaroos , which depicted the 1908–09 Kangaroo tour of Great Britain. [3]
Pearce took over as Balmain coach in 1994, and coached Balmain for six seasons before they merged with the Western Suburbs Magpies. In 2000, Pearce became the inaugural coach of the Wests Tigers but stepped down after one season. Pearce also coached New South Wales for three seasons and in 2000 led New South Wales to a clean sweep winning the series 3–0. In 2001, Pearce coached NSW in what would prove to be his last series. His last game in charge resulted in a 40–14 defeat by Queensland. [4] [5] [6]
In February 2008, Pearce was named in the list of Australia's 100 Greatest Players (1908–2007), which was commissioned by the NRL and ARL to celebrate the code's centenary year in Australia. [7] [8]
Pearce attended Leichhardt High School, now Sydney Secondary College Leichhardt Campus. [9]
His son Mitchell Pearce is a former rugby league player.
The Balmain Tigers are a rugby league club based in the inner-western Sydney suburb of Balmain. They were a founding member of the New South Wales Rugby League and one of the most successful in the history of the premiership, with eleven titles. In 1999 they formed a joint venture club with the Western Suburbs Magpies club to form the Wests Tigers for competition in the National Rugby League (NRL). They no longer field any senior teams in the lower divisions. At the time of the joint venture only South Sydney Rabbitohs and the St George Dragons had won more titles than the Tigers.
Stephen David Roach, nicknamed Blocker or Blocker Roach, is an Australian former professional rugby league who played as a prop forward in the 1980s and early 1990s.
John O'Neill was an Australian representative rugby league prop whose club career was spent with South Sydney and Manly-Warringah during the 1960s and early 1970s. He made 2 Test appearances for the Australian national representative side; represented in 7 World Cup matches in two World Cups and in one World Championship match; and played in 5 Kangaroo tour matches in 1973.
Leichhardt Oval is a rugby league and soccer stadium in Lilyfield, New South Wales, Australia. It is currently one of three home grounds for the Wests Tigers National Rugby League (NRL) team, along with Campbelltown Stadium and Western Sydney Stadium. Prior to its merger with the Western Suburbs Magpies, it was the longtime home of the Balmain Tigers, who used the ground from 1934–1994 and 1997–1999. It was named after Ludwig Leichhardt.
William Keith Barnes AM, also known by the nickname of "Golden Boots", was a Welsh-born Australian rugby league footballer who played in the 1950s and 1960s, and coached in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. He was a fullback for the Australian national team and for the Balmain Tigers. He played in 14 tests between 1959 and 1966, as national captain on 12 occasions. He was known as "Golden Boots" due to his exceptional goal-kicking ability. After his playing days he became a referee and later co-commentated on the Amco Cup on Network Ten with Ray Warren in the 1970s. He is considered one of the nation's finest footballers of the 20th century.
Clive Bernard Churchill AM was an Australian professional rugby league footballer and coach in the mid-20th century. An Australian international and New South Wales and Queensland interstate representative fullback, he played the majority of his club football with and later coached the South Sydney Rabbitohs. He won five premierships with the club as a player and three more as coach. Retiring as the most capped Australian Kangaroos player ever, Churchill is thus considered one of the game's greatest ever players and the prestigious Clive Churchill Medal for man-of-the-match in the NRL grand final bears his name. Churchill's attacking flair as a player is credited with having changed the role of the fullback.
Raymond Alan Price is an Australian former dual-code international rugby union and rugby league footballer. He was nicknamed “Mr Perpetual Motion” for his hard, intimidating style of play in league at lock forward. Price played rugby league for Sydney's Parramatta Eels club, with whom he won four NSWRL premierships, a Dally M Medal and a Rothmans Medal. He also played in State of Origin for New South Wales.
Thomas Walter Raudonikis was an Australian rugby league footballer and coach. He played 40 International games and World Cup games as Australia representative halfback and captained his country in two matches of the 1973 Kangaroo tour.
Wally Prigg (1908–1980) was an Australian rugby league footballer. He was a lock for the Australian national rugby league team. He played nineteen Tests for the Kangaroos between 1929 and 1938, seven as captain and was the first Australian player to make three tours to Great Britain with the Australian national rugby league team. He has been named amongst the nation's finest footballers of the 20th century.
Frank Burge was one of the greatest forwards in the history of rugby league in Australia. Later Burge became one of the game's finest coaches. His club career was with Glebe and the St. George Dragons. He represented New South Wales on twenty-six occasions and played thirteen test matches for the Kangaroos and played for Australia in a further twenty-three tour matches.
Arthur 'Pony' Halloway (1885–1961), was a pioneering Australian rugby league footballer and coach. Born in Sydney, New South Wales he played for the Glebe Dirty Reds (1908), Balmain Tigers and Eastern Suburbs (1912–1914), in the New South Wales Rugby Football League premiership. He played for New South Wales in the first rugby match run by the newly created 'New South Wales Rugby Football League' which had just split away from the established New South Wales Rugby Football Union.
Sidney Charles Pearce, better known as Sandy, was a pioneer Australian rugby league footballer and boxer. He is considered one of the nation's finest footballers of the 20th century. In 1907 he played for New South Wales in the first rugby match run by the newly created 'New South Wales Rugby Football League' which had just split away from the established New South Wales Rugby Football Union. He made his first national representative appearance in 1908.
Ian John Walsh was an Australian professional rugby league footballer and coach. He was a hooker with the St. George Dragons from 1962 to 1967 and played in the last five of the Dragons' historic 11 consecutive premiership winning teams. He captained St. George in the last of its 11 successive Grand Final wins in 1966 and led The Saints again when their premiership winning streak ended in 1967. He was a representative for Australia and captained them in 10 Test matches from 1963 to 1966.
Sid 'Joe' Pearce was an Australian rugby league footballer who played in the 1930s and 1940s. An Australian international and New South Wales representative second-row forward, he played his club football for Eastern Suburbs with whom he won the New South Wales Rugby League premiership in 1935, 1936, 1937 and 1940. Son of fellow Australian Rugby League Hall of Famer, Sandy Pearce, he is considered one of the nation's finest footballers of the 20th century.
Ernest James Norman was an Australian rugby league player – a state and national representative centre or five-eighth. His club career was with the Eastern Suburbs club in the New South Wales Rugby Football League competition. Norman played with Easts for nine seasons between 1931 and 1939. He played over 100 matches for that club and was a member of the Easts sides that won consecutive premierships in seasons 1935, 1936 and 1937.
Charles "Chook" Fraser (1893–1981) was an Australian rugby league footballer and later coach. He was a versatile three-quarter for the Australian national team. He played in 11 Tests between 1911 and 1920 as captain on 3 occasions. He is considered one of the nation's finest footballers of the 20th century
Jim Craig (1895–1959) was an Australian rugby league footballer and coach. He was a versatile back for the Australian national team. He played in seven tests between 1921 and 1928 as captain on three occasions and has since been named amongst the nation's finest footballers of the 20th century. Craig was a player of unparalleled versatility. It is known that he represented in Tests at fullback, centre, halfback and hooker with some of his club and tour football played at winger, five-eighth and lock forward. Whiticker's reference reports that the great Dally Messenger regarded Craig as the greatest player Messenger ever saw.
Frank McMillan was an Australian rugby league footballer and coach. He was a full-back for the Australian national team and played in nine Tests between 1929 and 1934, two as captain. McMillan has since been named amongst the nation's finest players of the 20th century.
Phil Sigsworth, is an Australian former professional rugby league footballer. He played primarily in the fullback position. Sigsworth attended Newtown Boys' Junior High School where he played Rugby Union for the school. His junior Rugby League playing days were with the Erskineville Juniors club and then the infamous Newtown Hawks from where he was graded into the district club, Newtown District Rugby League Football Club.
Hermann Olaf Frances "Herb" Narvo was an Australian rugby league footballer and boxer of the 1930s and 1940s. He was a national representative rugby league player and national heavyweight boxing champion. He has been named among the nation's finest footballers and sportsman of the 20th century.