Jesse Southwell (born 12 February 2005) is an Australian
rugby league and
rugby sevens footballer who currently plays for the
Newcastle Knights in the
NRL Women's Premiership. Her positions are and .
Background
Southwell was born in
Newcastle, New South Wales. She played her junior rugby league for the
Kotara Bears.
She had played rugby league since she was a 5-year old child and only played rugby sevens for the first time at high school. She also played
touch football growing up. Southwell said she was inspired by the Australian gold medal winning rugby sevens team at the
2016 Olympic Games
)
, nations = 207 (including IOA and EOR teams)
, athletes = 11,238
, events = 306 in 28 sports (41 disciplines)
, opening = 5 August 2016
, closing = 21 August 2016
, opened_by = Vice President Michel Temer
, cauldron = Vanderlei Cordeiro d ...
.
She is the younger sister of Knights teammate
Hannah Southwell.
Playing career
Early years
In 2020, Southwell made history by becoming the first female player to sign a contract with the
Newcastle Knights. In November 2021, she was announced as a development player for the Knights'
NRL Women's Premiership side.
2022
Southwell played for the Knights'
Tarsha Gale Cup
The Tarsha Gale Cup is one of the main Women's rugby league elite aged group competitions in Australia.
The New South Wales Rugby League announced the creation of a nine-a-side under-18s women's league for 2017 Named the Tarsha Gale Nines aft ...
side in 2022. She was selected for the Australian sevens squad in April following her stand out performances in the AON University Sevens Series for the
Newcastle University
Newcastle University (legally the University of Newcastle upon Tyne) is a UK public university, public research university based in Newcastle upon Tyne, North East England. It has overseas campuses in Singapore and Malaysia. The university is ...
in
New South Wales. In May, she played a match for the Knights'
NSWRL Women's Premiership
The Harvey Norman Women's Premiership is a rugby league competition for clubs in New South Wales. It is the only state wide open age competition for women in New South Wales and is run by New South Wales Rugby League.
The NSWRL Women's Premier ...
side.
She won a gold medal with the
Australian sevens team at the
2022 Commonwealth Games
The 2022 Commonwealth Games, officially known as the XXII Commonwealth Games and commonly known as Birmingham 2022, was an international multi-sport event for members of the Commonwealth of Nations that took place in Birmingham, England bet ...
in
Birmingham.
In August, she officially joined the Knights' NRLW top 24-squad after gaining an exemption from the NRL due to being underage.
In round 1 of the
2022 NRLW season, she made her
NRLW debut for the Knights against the
Brisbane Broncos, scoring a try in the Knights' 32-14 win.
On 2 October, Southwell played in the Knights'
2022 NRLW Grand Final win over the
Parramatta Eels, scoring a try and kicking a goal in the Knights' 32-12 victory.
2023
In April, Southwell re-signed with the Knights on a contract until the end of 2027.
Southwell made her
State of Origin debut for
New South Wales in Game 1 of the
2023 Women's State of Origin
The 2023 Women's State of Origin Series was the sixth official Women's State of Origin rugby league series between New South Wales and Queensland. It was the first time in Women's State of Origin history that it was a series rather than a one- ...
at Parramatta's
CommBank Stadium.
Her try against the Sydney Roosters was voted the NRLW try of the year.
References
External links
Newcastle Knights profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Southwell, Jesse
2005 births
Living people
Australian female rugby union players
Australian female rugby league players
Newcastle Knights (NRLW) players
Rugby league halfbacks
Rugby league five-eighths
21st-century Australian women
Australian female rugby sevens players
Commonwealth Games gold medallists for Australia
Commonwealth Games medallists in rugby sevens
Rugby sevens players at the 2022 Commonwealth Games
Rugby league players from Newcastle, New South Wales
Medallists at the 2022 Commonwealth Games
Sportswomen from New South Wales
Touch footballers