Jason Ferris (born 6 July 1976) is an Australian 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 in the 1990s and 2000s. Primarily a , he played for the
Canberra Raiders
The Canberra Raiders are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in the national capital city of Canberra, Australian Capital Territory. They have competed in Australasia's elite rugby league competition, the National Rugby ...
,
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 ...
,
Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks
The Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks are an Australian professional rugby league club based in Cronulla, in the Sutherland Shire, Southern Sydney, New South Wales. They compete in the National Rugby League (NRL), Australasia's premier rugby league ...
,
Northern Eagles
The Northern Eagles were a rugby league team, that competed in the National Rugby League (NRL) between 2000 and 2002. The club was formed during the rationalisation process of the NRL by the merger of the Manly Warringah Sea Eagles and the Nort ...
,
Manly Warringah Sea Eagles
The Manly Warringah Sea Eagles are an Australian professional rugby league club based in Sydney's Northern Beaches. The team colours are maroon and white, while their namesake and logo is the sea eagle. They compete in Australia's premier rugb ...
and
Leigh Centurions
The Leigh Leopards are a professional rugby league club based in Leigh, Greater Manchester, England, who compete in the Betfred Super League.
The club was founded in 1878, and is one of the original twenty-two clubs that formed the Northern R ...
.
Background
Born in
Glen Innes, New South Wales
Glen Innes is a parish and town on the Northern Tablelands, in the New England region of New South Wales, Australia. It is the centre of the Glen Innes Severn Shire Council. The town is located at the intersection of the New England Highway and ...
, Ferris played his junior rugby league for the Glen Innes Magpies before being signed by the
Canberra Raiders
The Canberra Raiders are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in the national capital city of Canberra, Australian Capital Territory. They have competed in Australasia's elite rugby league competition, the National Rugby ...
. In 1994, while attending
Erindale College, he captained 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. Other popular team sports in Australia such as cricket, basketball, association footbal ...
.
Playing career
In 1993, Ferris represented the New South Wales under-17 side, coming off the bench in a 17–22 loss to Queensland.
In Round 3 of the
1996 ARL season
The 1996 ARL premiership (also known as the 1996 Optus Cup due to sponsorship from Optus) was the 89th season of professional rugby league football in Australia, and the second to be administered by the Australian Rugby League (ARL). Twenty team ...
, Ferris made his first grade debut for the Raiders against 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 ...
.
In his rookie season, he played 13 games, scoring a try and kicking eight goals.
In 1997, Ferris signed with 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 ...
, joining his former Raiders' head coach
Tim Sheens
Tim Sheens (born 30 October 1950) is an Australian professional rugby league football coach and former player. Head Coach of the Australia national team between 2009 and 2015, he has also been the head coach of National Rugby League (NRL) clubs ...
at the club. In his first season at the club, he played just seven games. In 1998, he became the club's regular starting , starting 19 games.
In 1999, he joined the
Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks
The Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks are an Australian professional rugby league club based in Cronulla, in the Sutherland Shire, Southern Sydney, New South Wales. They compete in the National Rugby League (NRL), Australasia's premier rugby league ...
, playing 14 games as the club won the minor premiership and made it to the preliminary final, which they lost to the
St George Illawarra Dragons
The St. George Illawarra Dragons is an Australian professional rugby league football club, representing both the Illawarra and St George regions of New South Wales. The club has competed in the National Rugby League since 1999 after a joint- ...
. In 2000, he played 12 games, predominantly off the bench. In 2001, he played 27 games, starting the season as the club's starting halfback before moving into the position. He started at hooker in the Sharks' preliminary final loss to the
Newcastle Knights
The Newcastle Knights are an Australian professional rugby league club based in Newcastle, New South Wales. They compete in Australasia's premier rugby league competition, the National Rugby League (NRL) premiership. Playing in red and blue, th ...
. He finished as the club's top point scorer that season with 121 points.
In 2002, Ferris joined the now-defunct
Northern Eagles
The Northern Eagles were a rugby league team, that competed in the National Rugby League (NRL) between 2000 and 2002. The club was formed during the rationalisation process of the NRL by the merger of the Manly Warringah Sea Eagles and the Nort ...
, playing in the club's last ever game, a 28–68 loss to the
Penrith Panthers
The Penrith Panthers are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in the western Sydney suburb of Penrith that competes in the NRL. The team is based west of the centre of Sydney, at the foot of the Blue Mountains. Penrith ...
. In 2003, Ferris he moved to the
Manly Warringah Sea Eagles
The Manly Warringah Sea Eagles are an Australian professional rugby league club based in Sydney's Northern Beaches. The team colours are maroon and white, while their namesake and logo is the sea eagle. They compete in Australia's premier rugb ...
, playing 18 games in his lone season for the club.
In 2004, Ferris he became captain-coach of
Collegians
Collegians are an Australian rugby league football team based in Wollongong. The club are a part of Country Rugby League and compete in the Illawarra Rugby League premiership.
Originally known as CBC Old Boys, the Club was founded in 1933. The ...
in the
Illawarra Rugby League
The Illawarra Rugby League is a rugby league competition in Wollongong, NSW. It is one of the oldest rugby league competitions in Australia, founded in 1911 with five clubs (Dapto, Helensburgh, Mount Keira, Unanderra and Wollongong). The area pr ...
competition. He was sounded out by the
St George Illawarra Dragons
The St. George Illawarra Dragons is an Australian professional rugby league football club, representing both the Illawarra and St George regions of New South Wales. The club has competed in the National Rugby League since 1999 after a joint- ...
about a return to the NRL during the season but the move did not eventuate.
In 2005, he moved to the
Leigh Centurions
The Leigh Leopards are a professional rugby league club based in Leigh, Greater Manchester, England, who compete in the Betfred Super League.
The club was founded in 1878, and is one of the original twenty-two clubs that formed the Northern R ...
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 ...
, captaining the side for four games before returning to Australia in March after fracturing his cheekbone.
Statistics
ARL/Super League/NRL
Controversy
In November 2009, Ferris was assaulted by two men at
Glen Innes and required corrective facial surgery after the attack.
In 2010, Ferris was sentenced to at least 13 months in jail after he was convicted of stealing $7,500 from his former employers, the Criterion Hotel in Gundagai in October 2009.
He was also charged with a mid-range drink driving offence and two offences of driving with a disqualified license. On appeal, he had his sentence downgraded.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ferris, Jason
1976 births
Living people
Australian rugby league players
Canberra Raiders players
North Queensland Cowboys players
Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks players
Northern Eagles players
Manly Warringah Sea Eagles players
Leigh Leopards players
Rugby league five-eighths
Rugby league halfbacks
Rugby league players from New South Wales