Chris Sandow (born 9 January 1989) is an

Indigenous Australian Indigenous Australians or Australian First Nations are people with familial heritage from, and membership in, the ethnic groups that lived in Australia before British colonisation. They consist of two distinct groups: the Aboriginal peoples ...

former professional

rugby league Rugby league football, commonly known as just rugby league and sometimes football, footy, rugby or league, is a full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular field measuring 68 metres (75 yards) wide and 112 ...

footballer who played as a goal-kicking or , he could also play as a .

Background

Sandow was born in

Kingaroy Kingaroy is a rural town and locality in the South Burnett Region, Queensland, Australia. The town is situated on the junction of the D'Aguilar and the Bunya Highways, north-west of the state capital Brisbane and south west of Gympie. As a ...

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_ ...

. Sandow grew up in

, playing

in the Aboriginal community of

Cherbourg Cherbourg (; , , ), nrf, Chèrbourg, ) is a former commune and subprefecture located at the northern end of the Cotentin peninsula in the northwestern French department of Manche. It was merged into the commune of Cherbourg-Octeville on 28 Feb ...

, a three-hour drive north-west of

Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the states and territories of Australia, Australian state of Queensland, and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a populati ...

. He later moved to

, where he attended

Marsden State High School Marsden State High School (MSHS) is a secondary school in Waterford West, Queensland for students between years 7 and 12. Marsden State High School is located on the corner of Chambers Flat Road and Muchow Road between the suburbs of Marsden and ...

with

Israel Folau Israel Folau ( to, ‘Isileli Folau; born 3 April 1989) is an Australian professional rugby union footballer who plays for the Shining Arcs in the Japan Rugby League One and the Tonga national rugby union team. He has previously played Aust ...

and

Antonio Winterstein Antonio Winterstein (born 30 May 1988) is a former professional rugby league footballer who played for the North Queensland Cowboys and Brisbane Broncos in the NRL. A Samoan international captain, he was a member of the Cowboys' 2015 NRL prem ...

. Sandow is from the Bigambul/

Gubbi Gubbi The Gubbi Gubbi people also known as Kabi Kabi are an Aboriginal Australian people native to south-eastern Queensland. They are now classified as one of several Murri language groups in Queensland. Naming As is often the case, ethnonyms dist ...

traditional Aboriginal territory. Chris Sandow (24 October 2008) 5

Playing career

Previous clubs

He has previously played for the Moranbah Miners of the local Grade A

Mackay Mackay may refer to: *Clan Mackay, the Scottish clan from which the surname "MacKay" derives Mackay may also refer to: Places Australia * Mackay Region, a local government area ** Mackay, Queensland, a city in the above region *** Mackay Airpor ...

competition,

Norths Devils The Northern Suburbs Devils, or North Brisbane Devils, or often simply referred to as Norths for short, are a rugby league club representing the northern suburbs of Brisbane, Australia. The team colours are sky blue, navy blue and gold. They pl ...

in the

Queensland Cup The Queensland Cup, currently known as the Hostplus Cup for sponsorship reasons, is the highest-level regional rugby league football competition in Queensland, Australia. It is run by the Queensland Rugby League (QRL) and is contested by four ...

Warrington Wolves The Warrington Wolves are a professional rugby league club based in Warrington, England, that competes in the Super League. They play rugby at the Halliwell Jones Stadium, having moved there from Wilderspool in 2004. Founded as Warrington Z ...

in the

Super League The Super League (officially known as the Betfred Super League due to sponsorship from Betfred and legally known as Super League Europe), is the top-level of the British rugby league system. At present the league consists of twelve teams, of wh ...

, he has also played for the

Parramatta Eels The Parramatta Eels are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in the Sydney suburb of Parramatta that competes in the National Rugby League. The Parramatta District Rugby League Football Club was formed in 1947, and their ...

and the

South Sydney Rabbitohs The South Sydney Rabbitohs are a professional Australian rugby league Rugby league football, commonly known as just rugby league and sometimes football, footy, rugby or league, is a full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen pla ...

in the

National Rugby League The National Rugby League (NRL) is an Australasian rugby league club competition which contains clubs from New South Wales, Queensland, Victoria, the Australian Capital Territory and New Zealand. The NRL formed in 1998 as a joint partnership ...

Early career

He played Colts and

for the

Souths Logan Magpies The Souths Logan Magpies, more commonly referred to by their former names Southern Suburbs Magpies, or South Brisbane Magpies, or often simply referred to as Souths, are a rugby league football club based in the southern suburbs of Brisbane, Au ...

. Sandow received junior representative honors when he was selected for the

under-17's and under-19's squads. In 2006, while in year 12 at

, his classmates were

and

. Sandow was selected for the

Australian Schoolboys The Australian Schoolboys refer to junior teams that represent Australia in various sports. The name is mainly used in rugby league, rugby union and baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players ...

squad that toured

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

and

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

. In which he was awarded the 'Man-of-the-Match' Award, in the game against the

British Amateur Rugby League Association The British Amateur Rugby League Association (BARLA) is an association for social and recreational rugby league. It works jointly with the Rugby Football League through the RFL Community Board. History BARLA was created in 1973 in Huddersfiel ...

(BARLA) squad. Sandow's first contract was signed with the

Gold Coast Titans The Gold Coast Titans are a professional rugby league football club, based on the Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia. The club competes in the National Rugby League (NRL), Australia and New Zealand's national rugby league club competition. The ...

, where he spent two-years in the lower-grades. He was touted as a first-string back-up for star

NRL The National Rugby League (NRL) is an Australasian rugby league club competition which contains clubs from New South Wales, Queensland, Victoria, the Australian Capital Territory and New Zealand. The NRL formed in 1998 as a joint partnership ...

Scott Prince Scott Prince (born 27 February 1980) is an Australian former professional rugby league footballer who played as a in the 1990s, 2000s and 2010s. An Australian international and Queensland State of Origin representative, he played club footba ...

. But his contract was terminated in early 2008, due to poor discipline. It was later revealed through the media, that Sandow's partner had given birth to their first child and he was struggling with the distance away from his family.

Playing positions

He primary played in the halves as a or , he could also play as a .

Senior career

South Sydney (2008–11)

Sandow's junior representative performances had not gone unnoticed, therefore, South Sydney's Recruitment Manager Mark Hughes, signed Sandow to a minor $30,000 contract with the club. Sandow began playing in the National Youth Competition for the

Rabbitohs The South Sydney Rabbitohs are a professional Australian rugby league club based in Redfern, a suburb of inner-southern Sydney, New South Wales. They participate in the National Rugby League (NRL) premiership and are one of nine existing team ...

squad, from the beginning of the 2008 season. In June 2008, the team's star

Craig Wing Craig Wing (born 26 December 1979), also known by the nickname of "Wingy", is an Australian-born former professional rugby league and rugby union footballer. He began his career in rugby league, playing for the South Sydney Rabbitohs and the S ...

, suffered a near season-ending injury. Sandow was named to replace him in the

first-grade team. At the time Sandow was to make his début the club were sitting at the bottom of the

competition ladder. Having slumped to 11 losses from 12 matches. In round 13 during the 2008 season, Sandow made his first-grade début against the

Warriors A warrior is a person specializing in combat or warfare, especially within the context of a tribal or clan-based warrior culture society that recognizes a separate warrior aristocracies, class, or caste. History Warriors seem to have be ...

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The List of New Zealand urban areas by population, most populous urban area in the country and the List of cities in Oceania by po ...

, New Zealand at

Mt. Smart Stadium Mount Smart Stadium (formerly known as Ericsson Stadium) is a multipurpose stadium in Auckland, New Zealand. It is the main home ground of the New Zealand Warriors of the National Rugby League, and occasionally hosts rugby union and internatio ...

. On début Sandow kicked the game-sealing field-goal in the dying seconds of the match. To record Souths' second victory of the season, defeating the

35–28. This marked the first time since 1999, that the

had beaten the

. In the following match Sandow scored his first

career try against the

. Helping his side to a tight 24–23 victory, that saw them come off the bottom of the table for the first time all season. Sandow's fairy-tale start to his

career continued a week later in round 16, when after trailing 28–4 to the

North Queensland Cowboys The North Queensland Cowboys is an Australian professional rugby league football club based in Townsville, the largest town in North Queensland. They compete in Australia's premier rugby league competition, the National Rugby League (NRL). Sinc ...

and coming back to level the scores at 28–28, he kicked the game-clinching field-goal to win the match 29–28, in what became the second biggest comeback victory in the history of the

. Sandow finished his début season in the

by winning the ''

Dally M Award The Dally M Awards are the official annual player awards for the National Rugby League competition. As well as honouring the player of the year, who received the Dally M Medal, awards are also given to the premier player in each position, the be ...

'' – 'Rookie of the Year Award.' He was presented with the award at the end of the 2008 campaign. He was recognised in the '' Toyota Cup'' – 'Team of the Year,' as the starting . He also received the Inaugural '' George Green Medal'' – 'Indigenous Rising Star' of 2008.

Parramatta Eels (2012–15)

In 2012, Sandow signed a four-year deal with the

, "Reportedly" worth between $1.6 and $2.2 million. Sandow stated that the reason he was leaving the

was to ensure his children were, "well provided for in the future.” Sandow's first two-years with the

proved to be a struggle as his performances were inconsistent and he spent time in the

New South Wales Cup The NSW Cup, currently known as the Knock-On Effect NSW Cup for sponsorship reasons, is a rugby league competition for clubs in New South Wales. The competition has a history dating back to the NSWRFL's origins in 1908, starting off as a reserve ...

, with the

Wentworthville Magpies The Wentworthville Magpies, colloquially known as ''Wenty'', are a rugby league team based in the suburb of Wentworthville in Sydney's Western Suburbs. Founded in 1963 (or 1937), the club has competed in various Sydney district competitions an ...

. In the 2012 season, Sandow was accused by

Parramatta Parramatta () is a suburb and major Central business district, commercial centre in Greater Western Sydney, located in the state of New South Wales, Australia. It is located approximately west of the Sydney central business district on the ban ...

Legend Peter Sterling as being "overweight and unfit". In the 2014 season, Sandow won the ''

Ken Thornett Ken Thornett (27 November 1937 – 16 August 2016), also known by the nickname of "The Mayor of Parramatta", was an Australian rugby league . He represented the Kangaroos in twelve Tests during 1963 and 1964 and on the off-season Kangaroo Tou ...

Medal, f''or being voted as the

' 'Player of the Season.' The 2015 season would prove to be Sandow's final year at the club. After a number of on-the field and off-the field incidents. Including but not limiting crashing a loan-car and abandoning it in an industrial area. Calling out coach Brad Arthur and being critical of his coaching methods publicly, typing a foul-mouthed rant on

Social Media Social media are interactive media technologies that facilitate the creation and sharing of information, ideas, interests, and other forms of expression through virtual communities and networks. While challenges to the definition of ''social medi ...

platform

Facebook Facebook is an online social media and social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. Founded in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with fellow Harvard College students and roommates Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin M ...

and gambling issues. Sandow's final match for the

Eels Eels are ray-finned fish belonging to the order Anguilliformes (), which consists of eight suborders, 19 families, 111 genera, and about 800 species. Eels undergo considerable development from the early larval stage to the eventual adult stage ...

was in round 19, against arch-rivals the

Canterbury Bulldogs The Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in Belmore, a suburb in the Canterbury-Bankstown region of Sydney. They compete in the NRL Telstra Premiership, as well as competitions facilita ...

. Afterwards Sandow was released by the

club and "reportedly" received a $50,000 handshake.

Warrington Wolves (2015–16)

Sandow joined the

at the start of the 2015 Super League Super 8s system. Going on to make his début against the

Leeds Rhinos The Leeds Rhinos are a professional rugby league club in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. The club was formed in 1870 as Leeds St John's and play in the Super League, the top tier of English rugby league. They have played home matches at Headi ...

in a 49–10 defeat. Sandow struggled in his opening games, however he grew more and more into the games as they wore on. In round 1 of the 2016

season, Sandow scored his first try for the

Wolves The wolf (''Canis lupus''; plural, : wolves), also known as the gray wolf or grey wolf, is a large Canis, canine native to Eurasia and North America. More than thirty subspecies of Canis lupus, subspecies of ''Canis lupus'' have been reco ...

in a 12–10 win away at the

. He followed-up in round 3, scoring his first try at the

Halliwell Jones Stadium The Halliwell Jones Stadium is a rugby league stadium in Warrington, England, which is the home ground of the Warrington Wolves. It has also staged Challenge Cup semi-finals, the European Nations Final, the National League Grand Finals' Day, ...

in a 36–14 win against the

Wakefield Trinity Wildcats Wakefield Trinity is a professional rugby league club in Wakefield, West Yorkshire, England, that plays in the Super League. One of the original twenty-two clubs that formed the Rugby Football League, Northern Rugby Football Union in 1895, betw ...

. Sandow was already the early front-runner to win the 2016 '' Steve Prescott Man of Steel Award'', with Head Coach Tony Smith saying, "Sandow has the best kicking game in the

since Sean Long.” Sandow represented the

in both the 2016 Challenge Cup Final defeat by

Hull F.C. Hull Football Club, commonly referred to as Hull or Hull F.C., is a professional rugby league football club established in 1865 and based in West Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, England. The club plays in the Super League competition and were ...

Wembley Stadium Wembley Stadium (branded as Wembley Stadium connected by EE for sponsorship reasons) is a football stadium in Wembley, London. It opened in 2007 on the site of the Wembley Stadium (1923), original Wembley Stadium, which was demolished from 200 ...

and the

2016 Super League Grand Final The 2016 Super League Grand Final was the 19th official Grand Final and conclusive and championship-deciding match of the Super League XXI season. It was held on Saturday 8 October 2016, at Old Trafford, Manchester, with a 6pm kick-off time. Brit ...

defeat by the

Wigan Warriors The Wigan Warriors are a professional rugby league club in Wigan, Greater Manchester, England, which competes in the Super League. Formed in 1872 as Wigan Football Club, Wigan was a founding member of the Rugby Football League, Northern Rugby ...

Old Trafford Old Trafford () is a football stadium in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, England, and the home of Manchester United. With a capacity of 74,310 it is the largest club football stadium (and second-largest football stadium overall after Wemb ...

where he finished a runner-up in both major finals. In November 2016, Sandow announced that he wasn't going to be returning to

Warrington Warrington () is a town and unparished area in the borough of the same name in the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England, on the banks of the River Mersey. It is east of Liverpool, and west of Manchester. The population in 2019 was estimat ...

for the 2017 season. In light of Sandow's statement, the club (

), were said to be, "retaining Sandow's registration until further notice.”

Return to Australia (2017)

On 2 January 2017, Sandow was charged with a public nuisance offence after being filmed in a street brawl in

South Burnett Region The South Burnett Region is a local government area in the South Burnett district of Queensland, Australia. Origins This Local Government was created in March 2008 as a result of the report of the Local Government Reform Commission released in ...

. On 10 January 2017, Sandow was fined $300 at Murgon Magistrates Court in

over the brawl and he escaped conviction.

Norths Devils (2017)

In 2017, Sandow signed with

team

on a 1-year deal. Chris was stood-down from his duties at the

Devils A devil is the personification of evil as it is conceived in many and various cultures and religious traditions. Devil or Devils may also refer to: * Satan * Devil in Christianity * Demon * Folk devil Art, entertainment, and media Film an ...

, due to missing a training session which subsequently lead towards his departure from the club.

Moranbah Miners (2018)

On 20 December 2017, Sandow signed a contract to join the Moranbah Miners, who play in the local grade A

competition for the 2018 season.

Representative career (2008–12)

Sandow earned selection in the Indigenous All Stars team, that defeated the New Zealand Māori 34–26, in a curtain-raising game at the

Rugby League World Cup The Rugby League World Cup is an international rugby league tournament contested by the top national men's representative teams. The tournament is administered by the International Rugby League and was first held in France in 1954, which was ...

Opening Ceremony in October 2008. Sandow played for the

Prime Minister's XIII Prime Minister's XIII, or sometimes informally referred to as the PM's XIII, is the name of a representative rugby league team, comprising Australian players from National Rugby League clubs that did not qualify for the NRL Finals, or whose tea ...

in 2010. Making only one appearance and scoring a single try. Chris Sandow (24 October 2008) 4

Honours

Individual Honours (Career Awards and Accolades)

2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...

: Peter Moore Award –

Dally M The Dally M Awards are the official annual player awards for the National Rugby League competition. As well as honouring the player of the year, who received the Dally M Medal, awards are also given to the premier player in each position, the b ...

'Rookie of the Year' *

: George Green Medal – 'Indigenous Rising Star of 2008' *

: Toyota Cup – 'Halfback of the Year' *

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...

Medal –

' 'Player of the Season'

References

External links

Statistics at nrl.comChris Sandow To Play In Queenslands Intrust Super Cup
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sandow, Chris 1989 births Living people Australian Aboriginal rugby league team players Australian rugby league players Indigenous All Stars players Indigenous Australian rugby league players Norths Devils players Parramatta Eels players People from Kingaroy Prime Minister's XIII players Rugby league fullbacks Rugby league halfbacks South Sydney Rabbitohs players Souths Logan Magpies players Rugby league players from Logan, Queensland Warrington Wolves players Wentworthville Magpies players