Joshua Morris (born 23 August 1986) is a former
Australian
Australian(s) may refer to:
Australia
* Australia, a country
* Australians, citizens of the Commonwealth of Australia
** European Australians
** Anglo-Celtic Australians, Australians descended principally from British colonists
** Aboriginal A ...
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 11 ...
footballer who last played as a for the
Sydney Roosters
The Sydney Roosters are an Australian professional Rugby League Football Club based in the Eastern Suburbs (Sydney) and parts of inner Sydney. The club competes in the National Rugby League (NRL) competition. The Roosters have won fifteen Ne ...
in the
NRL and
Australia at international level.
He played for the
St. George Illawarra Dragons,
Canterbury-Bankstown 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 facilit ...
and 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 leag ...
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 ...
. Morris played for the
Country Origin
The Country New South Wales rugby league team is a representative rugby league football team. Between 1987 and 2017 there were two tiers: the Origin team that consisted of professional players who originated from clubs of the Country Rugby Leagu ...
,
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 ...
,
New South Wales State of Origin and
NRL All Stars sides.
Background
Morris was born in
Kiama, New South Wales
Kiama () is a coastal town 120 kilometres south of Sydney in the Illawarra. One of the main tourist attractions is the Kiama Blowhole. Kiama features several popular surfing beaches and caravan parks, and numerous alfresco cafes and restaurant ...
, Australia.
Josh is the twin brother of
Brett Morris
Brett Morris (born 23 August 1986) is an Australian former professional rugby league footballer who played on the and as a for the St George Illawarra Dragons, Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs and the Sydney Roosters in the NRL and Australia a ...
who plays for the Sydney Roosters, both having previously played for
St George Illawarra Dragons
The St. George Illawarra Dragons is an Australian professional rugby league football club, representing both the Illawarra and St George, Sydney, St George regions of New South Wales. The club has competed in the National Rugby League since NR ...
and
Canterbury-Bankstown 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 facilit ...
. They are the sons of former 1970s
St George Illawarra Dragons
The St. George Illawarra Dragons is an Australian professional rugby league football club, representing both the Illawarra and St George, Sydney, St George regions of New South Wales. The club has competed in the National Rugby League since NR ...
, New South Wales and Australian rugby league representative
Steve Morris.
St George Illawarra
Following his 2007 first grade debut, he played two seasons for 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, Sydney, St George regions of New South Wales. The club has competed in the National Rugby League since NR ...
in a variety of backline positions, his preferred position being left centre.
He joined the
Canterbury-Bankstown 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 facilit ...
for the
2009 NRL season in the hope of securing a permanent starting spot in the centres.
Injury permitting, Josh achieved this throughout the season.
He made his representative debut for Country in the 2007
City vs Country Origin
City vs Country Origin was an annual Australian rugby league football match that took place in New South Wales between City and Country representative sides. The City side represented the Sydney metropolitan area. While technically it was Sydney ...
match. In 2008, he played wing in the Australian
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 ...
side in its match against
Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea (abbreviated PNG; , ; tpi, Papua Niugini; ho, Papua Niu Gini), officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea ( tpi, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niugini; ho, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niu Gini), is a country i ...
.
Canterbury-Bankstown
Morris moved to the
Canterbury-Bankstown 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 facilit ...
for the
2009 NRL season. In the
2009 State of Origin series
The 2009 State of Origin series was the 28th time that the annual three-game series between the Queensland and New South Wales representative rugby league football teams was played entirely under 'state of origin' selection rules. Queensland won ...
Josh was named in the 40-man
New South Wales
)
, nickname =
, image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates:
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Australia
, established_title = Before federation
, es ...
preliminary squad for
State of Origin
A State of Origin competition is a type of sporting event between players representing their state or territory. State of Origin began in Australian rules football on 8 October 1977 between Western Australia (WA) and Victoria, at Subiaco Ov ...
. He was then selected for game 2 and 3, having missed the first game through injury. Morris made his State of Origin debut for NSW 31 years to the day that his dad Steve had made his only test appearance for Australia in 1978.
Morris finished as Canterbury's top try scorer in 2009 as the club finished the regular season in second place. Morris played in the club's preliminary final defeat against arch rivals
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 ...
at
ANZ Stadium
ANZ may refer to:
People
* Anz (musician), a British DJ and electronic musician
Banks
* ANZ (bank), Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Limited, the fourth-largest bank in Australia
** ANZ Bank New Zealand, the largest bank in New Zealand
* ...
.
He was selected in the 24-man squad for the Gilette Four Nations Tour at the end of the 2009 season and made his international debut for Australia against
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...
at
Charlety Stadium in Paris on 7 November, scoring two tries playing inside his brother Brett, who also scored twice.
In round 3 of the
2010 NRL season
The 2010 NRL season was the 103rd season of professional rugby league football club competition in Australia, and the thirteenth run by the National Rugby League. The season commenced on 12 March and ended with the Grand Final, played on 3 Octobe ...
, he scored the first 4-try haul of his first grade career in Canterbury's 60–14 drubbing of the
Sydney Roosters
The Sydney Roosters are an Australian professional Rugby League Football Club based in the Eastern Suburbs (Sydney) and parts of inner Sydney. The club competes in the National Rugby League (NRL) competition. The Roosters have won fifteen Ne ...
.
Morris was selected to play on the right wing against Wales in the
2011 Rugby League Four Nations
The 2011 Rugby League Four Nations tournament (also known as the 2011 Gillette Rugby League Four Nations due to sponsorship by Gillette) was the third staging of the Rugby League Four Nations tournament and was played in England and Wales during O ...
.
At the
2012 Dally M Awards
The 2012 Dally M Awards were presented on Tuesday 4 September 2012 at the Sydney Town Hall and broadcast on Fox Sports. They are the official annual awards of the 2012 NRL season.
Dally M Medal
Dally M Awards
The Dally M Awards were, as usua ...
Morris was named the NRL's centre of the year. Morris played in the
2012 NRL grand final
The 2012 NRL Grand Final was the conclusive and premiership-deciding game of the 2012 NRL season. Played on Sunday, 30 September at Sydney's ANZ Stadium between the minor premiers Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs and the second-placed Melbourne Sto ...
loss to Melbourne at Centre and nearly scored a try which would have brought Canterbury back into the game but the ball was knocked out of his hands by Melbourne fullback
Billy Slater
William Slater (born 18 June 1983), is an Australian former professional rugby league footballer who played in the 2000s and 2010s. An Australian international and one-time captain of the Queensland State of Origin team, he played his entire ...
.
Morris played for Canterbury in the
2014 NRL Grand Final
The 2014 NRL Grand Final was the concluding and premiership-deciding match of the 2014 NRL season. Played on the evening of Sunday 5 October 2014 at ANZ Stadium, the match was contested by the South Sydney Rabbitohs and the Canterbury-Bankstown B ...
loss to Souths at centre. On 10 July 2018, Morris signed a two-year deal to join Cronulla-Sutherland starting in 2019 due to the salary cap crisis at Canterbury where the club needed to offload players. Morris was in talks 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 ...
but ultimately decided to join Cronulla as he would have a chance to play under coach Shane Flanagan.
Cronulla-Sutherland
Morris made his first appearance for Cronulla-Sutherland in round 1 of the
2019 NRL season
The 2019 NRL season was the 112th season of professional rugby league in Australia and the 22nd season run by the National Rugby League. The Sydney Roosters became the first team to win back-to-back Premierships since the Brisbane Broncos in 1992 ...
against Newcastle which ended in a 14–8 loss. Morris scored his first and second try for the club against North Queensland in round 3 as Cronulla won 42–16.
Morris was selected to play for New South Wales in the
2019 State of Origin series
The 2019 State of Origin series was the 38th annual best-of-three series between the Queensland and New South Wales rugby league teams. Before this series, Queensland had won 21 times, NSW 14 times, with two series drawn.
For just the second t ...
. Morris played in Game 1 which New South Wales lost 18–14 at
Suncorp Stadium
Lang Park, also known as Brisbane Football Stadium, by the sponsored name Suncorp Stadium, and nicknamed: 'The Cauldron', is a multi-purpose stadium in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia, located in the suburb of Milton. The current facility co ...
. Morris was subsequently dropped from the New South Wales team by coach
Brad Fittler
Bradley Scott Fittler (born 5 February 1972), also known by the nickname of "Freddy", is the head coach of the New South Wales State of Origin team, a commentator and a television presenter. Fittler has previously coached the Sydney Roosters i ...
for the second game.
In round 16 against Brisbane, Morris scored a hat-trick but it was ultimately not enough as Cronulla lost the match 24–22 at
Shark Park
Sharks are a group of elasmobranch fish characterized by a cartilaginous skeleton, five to seven gill slits on the sides of the head, and pectoral fins that are not fused to the head. Modern sharks are classified within the clade Selachimorp ...
.
In Round 23 against the
New Zealand Warriors
The New Zealand Warriors are a professional rugby league football club based in Auckland, New Zealand that competes in the National Rugby League (NRL) premiership and is the League's only team from outside Australia. They were formed in 1995 as ...
, Morris scored 2 tries as Cronulla won the match 42–16.
Morris played 23 games for Cronulla in the
2019 NRL season
The 2019 NRL season was the 112th season of professional rugby league in Australia and the 22nd season run by the National Rugby League. The Sydney Roosters became the first team to win back-to-back Premierships since the Brisbane Broncos in 1992 ...
as the club finished 7th on the table and qualified for the finals. Morris scored a try in the club's elimination final defeat against Manly at
Brookvale Oval
Brookvale Oval (also known by the commercial sponsorship name 4 Pines Park) is a sporting ground located within Brookvale Park at Brookvale, New South Wales, Australia. The ground is owned by Northern Beaches Council and is primarily used by th ...
. Morris finished the year as Cronulla's top try scorer with 15 tries.
In February 2020, it was reported by the media that Morris had handed in a transfer request to the Cronulla board citing that he wished to join his brother Brett at the
Sydney Roosters
The Sydney Roosters are an Australian professional Rugby League Football Club based in the Eastern Suburbs (Sydney) and parts of inner Sydney. The club competes in the National Rugby League (NRL) competition. The Roosters have won fifteen Ne ...
. Morris spoke to the media saying “I spoke to the boys at Cronulla and I know the timing isn’t ideal. It’s not because I’m unhappy with any of the boys at the Sharks, But this is a unique opportunity. My brother isn’t just any old mate, this is the bloke who I started this journey with, “Now another opportunity has presented itself and I’d regret it for the rest of my life if I didn’t try and make it happen".
On 11 March 2020, Morris request to be released by Cronulla-Sutherland to join the
Sydney Roosters
The Sydney Roosters are an Australian professional Rugby League Football Club based in the Eastern Suburbs (Sydney) and parts of inner Sydney. The club competes in the National Rugby League (NRL) competition. The Roosters have won fifteen Ne ...
was granted. The Cronulla club released a statement saying "The 33-year-old will be released following the Sharks round two match against the
Melbourne Storm
The Melbourne Storm are a rugby league club based in Melbourne, Victoria in Australia that participates in the National Rugby League. The first fully professional rugby league team based in the state, the Storm entered the competition in 1998. ...
. "After much internal discussion and following lengthy negotiations with the Sydney Roosters, the release request has been granted ultimately due to circumstances surrounding the Sharks salary cap, a situation which has been impacted by previous infringements". A transfer of up to $75,000 was also included by the
Sydney Roosters
The Sydney Roosters are an Australian professional Rugby League Football Club based in the Eastern Suburbs (Sydney) and parts of inner Sydney. The club competes in the National Rugby League (NRL) competition. The Roosters have won fifteen Ne ...
to help alleviate the Sharks’ well-publicised salary cap issues.
Sydney Roosters
In round 3 of the
2020 NRL season
The 2020 NRL season was the 113th season of professional rugby league in Australia and the 23rd season run by the National Rugby League.
Teams
The lineup of teams remained unchanged for the 14th consecutive year.
; Notes
:
:
:
Pre-seaso ...
, Morris made his debut for the
Sydney Roosters
The Sydney Roosters are an Australian professional Rugby League Football Club based in the Eastern Suburbs (Sydney) and parts of inner Sydney. The club competes in the National Rugby League (NRL) competition. The Roosters have won fifteen Ne ...
in their 28-12 win over rivals
South Sydney.
In round 15, Morris scored two tries for the Sydney Roosters in a 38-16 victory over the
Wests Tigers
The Wests Tigers are an Australian professional rugby league football team, based in the Inner West and South West Sydney. They have competed in the National Rugby League since being formed at the end of the 1999 NRL season as a joint-venture ...
at
Leichhardt Oval
Leichhardt Oval is a rugby league and soccer stadium in Lilyfield, New South Wales, Australia. It is currently one of three home grounds for the Wests Tigers National Rugby League (NRL) team, along with Campbelltown Stadium and Western Sydney ...
.
The following week, he scored two tries in a 58-12 victory over Brisbane at the
Sydney Cricket Ground.
In the 2020 qualifying final, Morris scored two tries for the
Sydney Roosters
The Sydney Roosters are an Australian professional Rugby League Football Club based in the Eastern Suburbs (Sydney) and parts of inner Sydney. The club competes in the National Rugby League (NRL) competition. The Roosters have won fifteen Ne ...
in a 29-28 loss against
Penrith.
Morris made 17 appearances for the
Sydney Roosters
The Sydney Roosters are an Australian professional Rugby League Football Club based in the Eastern Suburbs (Sydney) and parts of inner Sydney. The club competes in the National Rugby League (NRL) competition. The Roosters have won fifteen Ne ...
in the
2020 NRL season
The 2020 NRL season was the 113th season of professional rugby league in Australia and the 23rd season run by the National Rugby League.
Teams
The lineup of teams remained unchanged for the 14th consecutive year.
; Notes
:
:
:
Pre-seaso ...
scoring 11 tries. However, premiership success once again eluded him as the club fell short of winning a third straight premiership losing to Canberra in the second week of the finals.
In round 2 of the
2021 NRL season
The 2021 NRL season was the 114th season of professional rugby league in Australia and the 24th season run by the National Rugby League.
Teams
The lineup of teams remained unchanged for the 15th consecutive year.
Regular season
Ladd ...
, the
Sydney Roosters
The Sydney Roosters are an Australian professional Rugby League Football Club based in the Eastern Suburbs (Sydney) and parts of inner Sydney. The club competes in the National Rugby League (NRL) competition. The Roosters have won fifteen Ne ...
defeated
Wests Tigers
The Wests Tigers are an Australian professional rugby league football team, based in the Inner West and South West Sydney. They have competed in the National Rugby League since being formed at the end of the 1999 NRL season as a joint-venture ...
40-6. Following the game, Morris was sent a vile message on
Instagram by 21-year old Koen Thwaite which read “F*** you dog c***, you f***ed up my multi, I’m out the front of leumeah stadium waiting for your bus to rock up, Wait till you walk out of the that
icback door, you won’t know what hit ya".
Morris later shared the message online saying "This stuff needs to stop". Australian betting company Sportsbet issued a statement later that day saying Thwaite had been banned for life from betting with their company.
In round 8 of the
2021 NRL season
The 2021 NRL season was the 114th season of professional rugby league in Australia and the 24th season run by the National Rugby League.
Teams
The lineup of teams remained unchanged for the 15th consecutive year.
Regular season
Ladd ...
, Morris scored a
hat-trick
A hat-trick or hat trick is the achievement of a generally positive feat three times in a match, or another achievement based on the number three.
Origin
The term first appeared in 1858 in cricket, to describe H. H. Stephenson taking three wic ...
in the
Sydney Roosters
The Sydney Roosters are an Australian professional Rugby League Football Club based in the Eastern Suburbs (Sydney) and parts of inner Sydney. The club competes in the National Rugby League (NRL) competition. The Roosters have won fifteen Ne ...
38-4 victory over Newcastle. On 2 August 2021, it was announced that Morris would miss at least five weeks with a hamstring injured he suffered in the club's 28-0 victory over Parramatta. On 30 August 2021, Morris announced he would retire from rugby league following the conclusion of the
2021 NRL season
The 2021 NRL season was the 114th season of professional rugby league in Australia and the 24th season run by the National Rugby League.
Teams
The lineup of teams remained unchanged for the 15th consecutive year.
Regular season
Ladd ...
.
References
External links
Cronulla Sharks profileCanterbury Bulldogs profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Morris, Josh
1986 births
Australian rugby league players
Australia national rugby league team players
Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs players
St. George Illawarra Dragons players
New South Wales Rugby League State of Origin players
Country New South Wales Origin rugby league team players
NRL All Stars players
Prime Minister's XIII players
Rugby league centres
Rugby league fullbacks
Australian twins
Twin sportspeople
People from the Illawarra
Living people
Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks players
Sydney Roosters players
Rugby league players from New South Wales