Information AboutAndrew Johns |
This article is about the rugby league player. For the triathlete, see Andrew Johns (triathlete) . Andrew Gary "Joey" Johns (born 19 are the only players to have won the Golden Boot Award more than once. Johns has also won the Dally M medal for best player more than once. Johns finished his career as the highest points scorer in Australian first grade premiership history with 2,176 points. Johns captained the Newcastle Knights in the National Rugby League , for whom he played a record 249 games. He also represented his country at two World Cups , and one Kangaroos tour, playing in 21 Test matches for the National Side . Johns played in 23 games for New South Wales in State Of Origin (captaining the side to a series win in 2003 ), and twice for the Country Origin side in 1995 and 1996 . He announced his retirement from rugby league on 10 April , 2007 at the age of 32. This followed a long run of injuries, the last of which was a bulging disk in his neck suffered in his last game against the Canberra Raiders . He is a popular identity in Newcastle where he lives with his son Samuel. FOOTBALL CAREER Early days Johns was born in Cessnock , in the Hunter Valley region of New South Wales , a Rugby League heartland inland from Newcastle. His father Gary is a former coal miner, highly respected Cessnock Goannas rugby league player and later captain/coach. Andrew initially played football from a young age, showing great promise. After playing junior rugby league in Cessnock and Newcastle League rival Kurri Kurri Bulldogs, Johns joined the Newcastle Knights in 1989. Although he was tested off the bench in the 1993 Season , he made his first grade debut in the starting line up in 1994, when, in the last trial of the year, Matthew Rodwell, Newcastle's regular halfback sustained a knee injury, giving Johns an opportunity against the South Sydney Rabbitohs . In his debut match he scored 23 points and won the man-of-the-match award, making an immediate impact. He soon formed a partnership with his older brother Matthew, who played Five-eighth . 1995-2001 The 1995 Season saw prosperous times for Johns, as he was picked to represent New South Wales in the State Of Origin competition and went on to play in Australia 's successful retention of the World Cup in England . Success for Johns continued through into the 1996 Season . Johns played a pivotal role when the Knights reached the 1997 NRL grand final against Manly . There were grave concerns that Johns would be unable to play the game, as he had a received three broken ribs and a punctured lung only a fortnight ago. Local newspaper headlines even read "You Will Die". However, Johns defied the odds to play, and was able to win the game for the Knights by setting up a try for Darren Albert with six seconds remaining in the game. The partnership with brother Matthew continued until 2000, when Matthew joined British club Wigan . Also that year, Andrew was awarded the Australian Sports Medal for his contribution to Australia's international standing in the sport of rugby league.5 Johns would soon become captain of the Knights, despite initial concerns after the retirement of Paul Harragon , and lead them to another grand final win,where he starred, defeating the Parramatta Eels 30-24 in 2001 . He was awarded the Clive Churchill Medal for man of the match. 2002-2005 In 2002 , Johns was awarded the captaincy of both New South Wales and Australia , going on to win the title of player of the series against Great Britain . He also won the Dally M Medal for a record third time, a feat achieved by none other to-date. Johns has been plagued by injury in the past few seasons, often before or during the finals series. He injured his neck and damaged the ligaments in his left ankle when he rolled it. He broke his jaw in 2005, sustained a Knee injury which kept him out of most of the 2004 Season , he had a serious neck injury that threatened his career in 2003 and he broke his back during the 2002 finals. Johns created a national debate in 2004 after receiving a massive offer from rugby union to switch codes. Numerous past legends of both codes expressed their opinions, and the only thing everybody agreed on was the fact Johns would be a star for the Wallabies if he switched codes. After David Gallop , the CEO of the NRL , and Channel Nine contributed money and a promise of a commentary position after his career finished, Johns finally decided to stay in league, ending months of speculation and debate. He says his decision was massively affected by his son, who wanted him to stay in league. In June 2005 , Johns was picked to replace Brett Kimmorley in the New South Wales State Of Origin squad. The second game in the series was his first in returning from a series of injuries that sidelined him for a number of weeks. Johns went on to command the game, receiving man of the match honours and absolutely blitzing the stunned Queensland team. He also went on to play in the deciding third game of the series, having a similar effect. In August 2005, it was announced that Johns would be joining the English side Warrington Wolves on a short-term deal, playing in the final two games of the regular Super League and any playoff games the Wolves might get to. The Knights first made him sign a new contract, making him available to captain the team until the end of 2008. 2006 Johns scored 30 points against Canberra in Round 2 of the 2006 competition, and in doing so claimed the point scoring record for a single club, surpassing Mick Cronin's 1,971 points for Parramatta . On 5 May , Johns played in his 21st and final Test match for the Kangaroos at Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane , with Australia defeating New Zealand by 50 points to 12. On 30 June , it was announced that Johns would play for the NSW Cricket Side for their Twenty20 series; which sparked a lot of media interest, with some suspecting a public relations stunt. Despite this,Johns scored nine in his second match,against Tasmania at Telstra Stadium.He also could have taken a wicket in his first match,against South Australia in Newcastle,as a short pitched delivery was pulled to the boundary.Much to the dismay of the large crowd in attendance,the catch was put down by the outfielder. On 8 July against the Parramatta Eels, Johns converted a try scored by Riley Brown and became the highest point scorer in Australian first grade rugby league history, eclipsing Jason Taylor 's previous record of 2,107 points. This came, ironically, in a 46-12 loss to the Eels who were coached by Taylor. ALL GOLDS To celebrate the inclusion of Australia's Dally Messenger in the original All Golds tour, Andrew Johns had been invited to join the New Zealand team for the match against the Northern Union. 6 However, due to a career ending neck injury, he is unable to play with the squad. 7 Current Australia captain Darren Lockyer took 'John's place. 8 Lockyer himself has been ruled out after suffering a season ending knee injury has forced him out of the team. 9 His place has been taken by New Zealand Warriors captain and Queensland front row Steve Price . The Australian Test prop said it was "mind-blowing". 10 11 RETIREMENT On 10 April 2007 , Johns announced his retirement from rugby league because of a bulging disc in his neck. He told team-mates of his plans to retire in the hour before the press conference. Johns played his final match against the Canberra Raiders in the Third Round of the 2007 Season before suffering a minor injury at training the following Thursday.However when Johns was examined by a specialist,Dr John Yeo,the bulging disc was revealed.It had been present for some time and was not related to the training incident. Johns was obviously shattered by the event but was seriously considering retirement at the end of the 2007 season and was quoted in the press conference as saying "I knew this year would be my last year, it's just unfortunate it's stopped five months before the end of the season." Commenting on his teammates reaction to his retirement, Johns noted "They were sort of relieved I think, after a couple of injuries this year ... I think the time's right," {Link without Title} It was the second occasion Johns suffered a serious neck injury after his 2003 season was brought to a premature halt due to an identical injury..12 Andrew's brother Matthew Johns retired with the same injury. Matthew was telling him for the whole week to retire because 'Joey had nothing left to prove in the game'.Johns' retirement brought suggestions that he was the greatest ever to play Rugby League,and calls for him to be immediately inducted into the so-called Immortals.In August of 2007,Johns was named halfback and captain in the Newcastle Knights team of the era. EVENTS AFTER RETIREMENT On 22 April 2007 The Newcastle Knights held a tribute to Andrew Johns before their game against the Brisbane Broncos.http://www.foxsports.com.au/story/0,8659,21602616-23214,00.html Andrew Johns was appointed as the Wallabies kicking coach for the 2007 Tri-Nations. The Australian Rugby Union hopes he will continue to assist the team throughout the 2007 World Cup. Andrew Johns will attend the 2007 Challenge Cup Final on Saturday 25th August 2007 at Wembley Stadium .13 On the 30th August 2007 Johns was arrested in London for possessing Ecstasy . He was cautioned and subsequently released. On the 30th August, Andrew Johns revealed, on the Footy Show , that he had regularly taken ecstasy throughout his playing career, mainly during the off-season. Dealing with the high level of psychological 'pressure' associated with his career as an elite sportsman was cited as a significant factor.14 ACHIEVEMENTS First grade for Newcastle Knights
NRL Records Career Records
Match records
Season records
Representative honours
Awards
CRICKET CAREER On 30 June 2006 it was announced that Johns would play for the New South Wales Cricket Side for their Twenty20 series. This sparked a lot of media interest, with some suspecting it being a Public Relations stunt. Johns was reported in the media admitting that he could neither bat nor bowl very well.15 Johns played in two Twenty20 cricket matches in 2007 . In the first game, against Southern Redbacks , Johns fumbled numerous Fielding attempts. During the New South Wales innings it was very controversial. He came in at number 11 and faced one ball in the second last over, during which he was lucky not to be stumped.16 In the last over Simon Katich was on strike and hit the ball to Long On but refused to run, lest Johns be forced to bat again. This sparked a fair amount of anger from the crowd.17 This forced the blues to lose and rule them out of the finals series. In the second game he played, against the Tasmanian Tigers he came in at number 9 and scored a respectable 9 runs off 10 balls. Despite this, the Blues lost the match by 37 runs and finished last on the ladder.18 REFERENCES EXTERNAL LINKS
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