William Kennedy (rugby league, born 1997)

Last updated

William Kennedy
William Kennedy Jr.jpg
Personal information
Full nameWilliam Kennedy Jr
Born (1997-04-18) 18 April 1997 (age 28)
Bathurst, New South Wales, Australia
Height183 cm (6 ft 0 in)
Weight88 kg (13 st 12 lb)
Playing information
Position Fullback
Club
YearsTeamPldTGFGP
2019– Cronulla Sharks 1315100204
Representative
YearsTeamPldTGFGP
2022 Indigenous All Stars 10000
Source: [1]
As of 6 September 2025
Father William Kennedy
Relatives Kandy Kennedy (sister)

William Kennedy (born 18 April 1997) is an Australian professional rugby league footballer who plays as a fullback for the Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks in the National Rugby League (NRL).

Contents

Background

Kennedy was born in Bathurst, in the Central Tablelands region of New South Wales, Australia. Kennedy Jr is the son of former Balmain Tigers player William 'Bubba' Kennedy.[ citation needed ]

He played his junior rugby league for Bathurst St Patrick's.[ citation needed ]

Playing career

2019

In round 6 of the 2019 NRL season, Kennedy made his NRL debut for Cronulla against the Penrith Panthers. [2] Later in 2019, Kennedy played for Cronulla's feeder club Newtown where he was part of the squads which won the 2019 Canterbury Cup NSW premiership and 2019 NRL State Championship final. [3]

2021

In round 1 of the 2021 NRL season, he scored two tries for Cronulla-Sutherland in a 32-18 victory over rivals St. George at Kogarah Oval. [4] In round 4 of the 2021 NRL season, he scored two tries for Cronulla in a 48-10 victory over North Queensland at Kogarah Oval. [5]

In round 20 of the 2021 NRL season, he scored two tries for Cronulla in their 22-40 loss against Manly in the "Battle of the Beaches" rivalry match. [6]

In round 23 of the 2021 NRL season against the Wests Tigers, Kennedy scored two tries for Cronulla in a 50-20 victory. [7]

Kennedy played 24 games for Cronulla and scored a total of 14 tries in the 2021 NRL season which saw the club narrowly miss the finals by finishing 9th on the table. [8]

2022

In round 9 of the 2022 NRL season, Kennedy was sent off in the first half of Cronulla's match against the New Zealand Warriors for a dangerous high tackle. Cronulla would go on to win the match despite being down to 11 men at one point in the game. [9] In the Qualifying Final, Kennedy scored two tries for Cronulla in a 32-30 loss against North Queensland. Kennedy played a total of 19 matches throughout the year scoring seven tries. [10]

2023

In round 2 of the 2023 NRL season, Kennedy scored a hat-trick in Cronulla's 30-26 victory over Parramatta. [11] In round 8, Kennedy scored his second hat-trick of the year in Cronulla's 33-20 victory over Canterbury. [12] Kennedy played a total of 19 games for Cronulla in the 2023 NRL season and scored 14 tries as Cronulla finished sixth on the table. [13]

2024

Kennedy played 26 games for Cronulla in the 2024 NRL season as the club finished 4th on the table and qualified for the finals. Kennedy played in all three of Cronulla's finals matches including their preliminary final loss against Penrith. [14]

Statistics

NRL

*denotes season competing [1]

SeasonTeamMatchesTGGK %F/GPts
2019 Cronulla colours.svg Cronulla-Sutherland 200—00
2020 1730—012
2021 24140—056
2022 1970—028
202319140—056
20242650—020
20252380—032
Career totals130510—0204

All Star

SeasonTeamMatchesTGGK %F/GPts
2022 Indigenous All Stars colours.svg Indigenous All Stars 100—00
Career totals100—00

References

  1. 1 2 Rugby League Project
  2. ↑ "Round 6 NRL squad announcements". NRL.com. 18 April 2019.
  3. ↑ "Debutant Watch Canterbury Cup NSW Rd 1". www.nswrl.com.au. 11 March 2020.
  4. ↑ "Cronulla Sharks win scrappy clash with Dragons; Canberra Raiders beat Wests Tigers with dominant second half". ABC News. 14 March 2021.
  5. ↑ "Diabolical' Cowboys roasted after extending winless start to 2021 season against Sharks". wwos.nine.com.au. 3 April 2021.
  6. ↑ "Trbojevic in a class of his own as Sea Eagles set sights on Storm". www.nrl.com. 2 August 2021.
  7. ↑ "'They cannot attract big names': Ennis savages Tigers as star prop snubs Madge". www.foxsports.com.au. 21 August 2021.
  8. ↑ "Papenhuyzen back to best as Storm secure minor premiership". www.nrl.com. 3 September 2021.
  9. ↑ "Cronulla beat New Zealand Warriors despite send off". www.foxsports.com.au. 8 May 2022.
  10. ↑ "Holmes' field goal leads Cowboys to prelim as Taumalolo stuns in golden point epic: 3 Big Hits". www.foxsports.com.au. 10 September 2022.
  11. ↑ "Reece Walsh stars as Brisbane Broncos beat Cowboys 28-16 in Queensland NRL derby, Cronulla edges Parramatta 30-26 in thriller". ABC News. 10 March 2023.
  12. ↑ "Sharks skipper's big prediction after William Kennedy burns Bulldogs with hat-trick". wwos.nine.com.au. 22 April 2023.
  13. ↑ "Sydney Roosters score 'wild' 13-12 NRL elimination final win over Cronulla Sharks, Penrith Panthers beat Warriors". ABC News. 9 September 2023.
  14. ↑ "The Mole's end of season review: Awkward Sharks puzzle laid bare after $1m star 'lost his way'". www.nine.com.au.
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