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]
Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Full name | Wayne John Pearce | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | 29 March 1960 Balmain, New South Wales, Australia | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Coaching career
editPearce 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]
Accolades
editIn 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]
Personal life
editPearce attended Ibrox Park Boys' High School (later renamed Leichhardt High School), now Sydney Secondary College Leichhardt Campus.[9]
His son Mitchell Pearce is a former rugby league player.
References
edit- ^ RLP
- ^ Rugby League Project Coaches
- ^ John Robinson and Garrett Jones (8 June 1988). "Family fights to clear League Hero's Name". The Sydney Morning Herald. Australia. p. 74. Retrieved 20 February 2011.
- ^ "Wayne Pearce | About Wayne".
- ^ "Leichhardt Oval hill to be Wayne Pearce Hill". 29 March 2016.
- ^ "Origin's great controversies". 22 May 2012.
- ^ Peter Cassidy (23 February 2008). "Controversy reigns as NRL releases top 100 players". Macquarie National News. Archived from the original on 25 February 2008. Retrieved 23 February 2008.
- ^ "Centenary of Rugby League – The Players". NRL & ARL. 23 February 2008. Archived from the original on 26 February 2008. Retrieved 23 February 2008.
- ^ Aquilina, John (20 September 1995). "Legislative Assembly Hansard – 20 September 1995". New South Wales Parliament. Retrieved 20 November 2024.