Kurt Geoffrey Gidley (born 7 June 1982) 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 last played for the
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 ...
.
An
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
international and
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 ...
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 ...
representative and captain, he previously played 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 ...
for 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 ...
, captaining them for 123 games. He played as a and , although due to his versatility, he was able to slip into the positions of and when needed throughout his career.
In 2011, Gidley competed in the third season of the
Channel Seven television series ''
Australia's Greatest Athlete
''Australia's Greatest Athlete'' is an Australian television program that debuted in 2009. The first season was broadcast on the Nine Network and was hosted by Andrew Voss and Michael Slater, with Ricky Ponting as a sideline commentator. The sec ...
''.
Early and personal life
Gidley was born in
Newcastle, New South Wales
Newcastle ( ; Awabakal: ) is a metropolitan area and the second most populated city in the state of New South Wales, Australia. It includes the Newcastle and Lake Macquarie local government areas, and is the hub of the Greater Newcastle area, w ...
, Australia.
He is the younger brother of
Matthew Gidley
Matthew "Matt" Gidley (born 1 July 1977) is an Australian former professional rugby league footballer and administrator. Gidley played for the Newcastle Knights in the ARL Premiership and the NRL, and St Helens in the Super League, and for ...
, and is the youngest of three brothers. He was an apprentice butcher when he left high school. Gidley's current partner is Brooke McNamara.
He was a
Hunter Mariners
The Hunter Mariners were an Australian professional rugby league club based in the Hunter Region's largest city, Newcastle. Hunter was formed in mid-1995 and was later disbanded at the end of 1997. The club was formed because of the Super Leag ...
junior.
Playing career
2000s
Having won the
2001 NRL Premiership, the Knights traveled to England to play the
2002 World Club Challenge against
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 ...
champions, the
Bradford Bulls
The Bradford Bulls are a professional rugby league club in Bradford, West Yorkshire, England, playing in the Championship. They have won five Challenge Cups, six league championships and three World Club Challenges. The team jersey is predom ...
. Gidley played on the in Newcastle's loss. Gidley had a productive 2004 season (being 18th man for the NSW Blues). In round 10 of the
2004 NRL season
The 2004 NRL season (also known as the 2004 Telstra Premiership due to sponsorship from Telstra) was the 97th season of professional rugby league football in Australia, and the seventh run by the National Rugby League. Fifteen clubs competed dur ...
Gidley made history when he won the Knights' first ever golden point match by kicking the winning field goal after 3 minutes and 26 seconds of extra time. The Knights were without
Andrew Johns
Andrew Gary Johns (born 19 May 1974) is an Australian former professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1990s and 2000s. He is widely considered to be one of the greatest players in rugby league history. Johns captained the Newcas ...
for the season. That game was against the Broncos at
Lang Park
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 ...
(Suncorp Stadium). Gidley missed most of season 2005 due to injury.
In 2006, Gidley travelled to
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 ...
to play 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 ...
against the
Kumuls. Gidley had a productive season in 2007. He scored multiple times for 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 ...
as well as having done well at converting goals. He scored 15 points against 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 their round 5 clash including 2 tries 3/4 goals and a field goal. He has also represented NSW in
2007 State of Origin
The 2007 State of Origin series was the 26th year that the annual best-of-three series of interstate rugby league football matches between the Queensland and New South Wales representative teams was contested entirely under 'state of origin' sel ...
. In the final round of the 2007 season, with scores level at 24–24, he kicked a penalty goal 12 seconds before full-time to give the Knights a 26–24 victory over the
Wests Tigers
The Wests Tigers are an Australian professional Rugby league, 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 j ...
(who needed to win to book a finals spot), which also ended a 7 match losing streak and allowed Newcastle to avoid the wooden spoon.
He was then selected in the
2008 State of Origin series shortly after a fractured cheekbone Gidley was the stand-out player at the club in the 2008 season as they finished ninth on the NRL ladder with 12 wins and 12 losses. Gidley led the scoring at the club with 150 points and also took the try-scoring award with nine tries. Regarded as one of the best utility players in the game, Gidley was also appointed captain of the Knights for the next season, replacing England-bound and club legend
Danny Buderus
Danny Buderus (born 6 February 1978) is an Australian rugby league commentator, coach and former professional footballer who played in the 1990s, 2000s and 2010s. An Australian international and New South Wales State of Origin representative , ...
. At the end of the
2008 NRL season
The 2008 NRL season was the 101st season of professional rugby league club competition in Australia, and the eleventh run by the National Rugby League. For the second year, National Rugby League teams, sixteen teams competed for the 2008 Telstr ...
, Gidley was named the Newcastle club's player of the year. In August 2008, Gidley was named in the
preliminary 46-man Kangaroos squad for the
2008 Rugby League World Cup
The 2008 Rugby League World Cup was the thirteenth staging of the Rugby League World Cup since its inauguration in 1954, and the first since the 2000 tournament. The tournament was held in Australia from 26 October, culminating in the final b ...
,
and in October 2008 he was selected in the final 24-man
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
squad.
He was selected for
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
in the one-off test match against
New Zealand
New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...
on 8 May 2009.
In May 2009, he was named as captain and to represent New South Wales in the opening State of Origin match on 3 June 2009, in Melbourne. In the 2009 season Kurt Gidley again led the club's season in points as the Knights finished 7th after a good year. Kurt also achieved the second best percentage of kicking goals, with 82.1%, only being beaten by
Michael Gordon with 93.4%. In November 2009, he was named in the
Australian national team to take part in the
2009 Four Nations
The 2009 Rugby League Four Nations tournament (officially known as the Gillette Four Nations due to sponsorship) was the first Rugby League Four Nations since its expansion from the Tri-Nations tournament. Played in England and France over three ...
. In Australia's opening game of the tournament against
New Zealand
New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...
he played as the 17th man utility, making an impact in the last quarter of the game. In game three against
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 ...
, he was chosen to replace regular
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 ...
who was rested along with others. He successfully converted two goals which played part in the final 42–4 Australian win. On 7 November, Gidley was chosen on the interchange bench for the Four Nations final played in Leeds in which the Kangaroos thrashed England 46–16. He was brought on into the s to replace an injured Justin Hodges early in the game.
2010s
In January 2010, Gidley was named in the
NRL All Stars team
The NRL All Stars team was a rugby league football team made up of professional players in the National Rugby League. These players were selected by fan vote. However, fans were only allowed to select one player from each NRL team to join the Au ...
to play on 13 February 2010. He was voted as the Knight's representative after beating
Ben Cross
Harry Bernard Cross (16 December 1947 – 18 August 2020) was an English stage and film actor. He was best known for playing Billy Flynn in the original West End production of the musical ''Chicago'', and his portrayal of the British Ol ...
,
Chris Houston Chris Houston may refer to:
*Chris Houston (American football) (born 1984), American football cornerback
* Chris Houston (musician), Canadian musician
*Chris Houston (rugby league)
Chris Houston (born 15 February 1985) is an Australian former p ...
and
Jarrod Mullen
Jarrod Stephen Mullen (born 9 April 1987) is an Australian former professional rugby league footballer. He last played for the Sunshine Coast Falcons in the Queensland Cup. A New South Wales State of Origin representative, he played at and . H ...
. Kurt suffered a knee injury in the game which left him sidelined until Round 6 of the 2010 season.
For the
2010 ANZAC Test, Gidley was selected to play for
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
from the interchange bench in their victory against
New Zealand
New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...
. On 7 May, 28 minutes into the Test match, starting Australian
Cameron Smith Cameron Smith may refer to:
* Cameron Smith (rugby league, born 1983), Australian rugby league footballer
* Cameron Smith (rugby league, born 1998), English rugby league footballer
* Cameron Smith (golfer) (born 1993), Australian golfer
* Cammy Smi ...
came off the field with a shoulder injury, which led to Kurt coming on and playing
dummy half for the rest of the game. On 17 May 2010 Gidley was named as and captain of the
New South Wales Blues. For the first time in Origin history, Gidley captained the side from the reserves bench for Game 2. During a team bonding session on 10 June 2010 Gidley's ex teammate and friend Andrew Johns who at the time was the NSW assistant coach caused controversy when it emerged that he had encouraged a player to attack Queensland player Greg Inglis, referring to him as a "black cunt". Gidley defended Andrew Johns as not a racist and stipulated that "He's obviously still going to be a great mate of mine."
Game 3 of the
2010 State of Origin series saw Gidley again starting from the bench, and this time stripped of his captaincy. Gidley came on to replace
Michael Ennis
Michael Ennis (born 16 March 1984) is an Australian sports commentator for Fox League and former professional rugby league footballer of Irish descent. A New South Wales State of Origin representative , he played for the Canterbury-Bankstown ...
after 30 minutes and went on to play the rest of the game. Just before half-time, Gidley set up an inside pass for
Paul Gallen
Paul Gallen (born 14 August 1981) is an Australian professional boxer and former professional rugby league footballer who played as a and forward and captained the Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks in the NRL to their maiden NRL Premiership in 2016. ...
to crash over the try line for New South Wales first try of the game. In the 47th minute, Kurt scored the next try for the Blues which narrowed the point deficit to just one. He continued to make several linebreaks and defended strong. Gidley was later awarded the
Brad Fittler Medal
State of Origin results and statistics have been accumulating since the 1980 State of Origin game. Every game played under State of Origin selection rules, including the additional 1987 exhibition match and the matches played between New South Wa ...
for NSW's Player of the Series.
At the end of the 2010 season, Gidley was selected to play for
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
for the
Four Nations Tournament. He played in 3 out of the 4 games and played in the final against
New Zealand
New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...
. He played the whole 2nd half of the final in the s due to a knee injury to teammate
Brent Tate
Brent Tate (born 3 March 1982) is an Australian former professional rugby league footballer who played as a or er in the 2000s and 2010s. An Australia national rugby league team, Australia international and Queensland rugby league team, Queens ...
.
2011 saw Gidley selected in the
NRL All Stars team
The NRL All Stars team was a rugby league football team made up of professional players in the National Rugby League. These players were selected by fan vote. However, fans were only allowed to select one player from each NRL team to join the Au ...
for a second year in a row after
Wayne Bennett used one of his two personal picks for Gidley.
Gidley was selected for
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
in the
2013 ANZAC Test
The 2013 ANZAC test (also known as the VB Test due to sponsorship by Victoria Bitter) was the 14th annual Anzac test, and was not only the first time the Australian Kangaroos played at Canberra Stadium, but the first time they had played in the ...
and played from the interchange bench. In what was the first
test match Test match in some sports refers to a sporting contest between national representative teams and may refer to:
* Test cricket
* Test match (indoor cricket)
* Test match (rugby union)
* Test match (rugby league)
* Test match (association football)
...
ever played in
Canberra
Canberra ( )
is the capital city of Australia. Founded following the federation of the colonies of Australia as the seat of government for the new nation, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The ci ...
,
New Zealand
New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...
were defeated.
On 5 May 2015, Gidley signed a 1-year contract with
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 ...
team
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 ...
, with an option for a second year, starting in 2016, ending a 15-year stint 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 ...
.
On his
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 ...
début for the Wolves, Gidley converted 2 goals in a man of the match performance against 2015 champions 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 April, he picked up the Super League Player of the Month award.
He played in 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 ...
at
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 ...
.
He played in 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 ...
at
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 ...
.
In June 2017 it was announced that Gidley would retire at the end of the 2017 season.
References
External links
Newcastle Knights profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gidley, Kurt
1982 births
Living people
Australia national rugby league team players
Australian expatriate sportspeople in England
Australian rugby league players
Country New South Wales Origin rugby league team players
New South Wales Rugby League State of Origin captains
New South Wales Rugby League State of Origin players
Newcastle Knights captains
Newcastle Knights players
NRL All Stars players
Prime Minister's XIII players
Rugby league five-eighths
Rugby league fullbacks
Rugby league halfbacks
Rugby league hookers
Rugby league players from Newcastle, New South Wales
Warrington Wolves players
Western Suburbs Rosellas players