Luke Covell
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Luke Covell (born 9 November 1981) is a former
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 ...
international
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 played as a goal-kicking winger for 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 ...
and
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 ...
in the NRL. He also played at representative level for NSW Country and was described as one of the most respected players in the NRL. Although born and raised in Australia, Covell was eligible to play for
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 ...
through his father, making one appearance for the Kiwis in 2007.


Early life

Covell was born in
Goondiwindi Goondiwindi () is a rural town and locality in the Goondiwindi Region, Queensland, Australia. It is on the border of Queensland and New South Wales. In the , Goondiwindi had a population of 6,355 people. Geography Goondiwindi is on the MacInt ...
,
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 , establishe ...
, to a New Zealand father and an Australian mother. He was raised in
Murwillumbah Murwillumbah ( ) is a town in far north-eastern New South Wales, Australia, in the Tweed Shire, on the Tweed River. Sitting on the south eastern foothills of the McPherson Range in the Tweed Volcano valley, Murwillumbah is 848 km north-e ...
,
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 ...
, and attended Mt St Patrick's College. Covell played early football for the Murwillumbah Colts.


NRL career

Covell debuted with 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 ...
in 2003 at the age of 21. The winger's limited game time saw him join 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 2004. In 2007, Covell made his Test Debut for New Zealand against Australia, in which a young Australian side defeated the Kiwis 58–0. Covell however was injured in the early minutes of the match and it was to be his sole international appearance. In 2008, Covell won the Dally M Pointscorer of the Year award, playing a major role in the Cronulla-Sutherland's stellar season. He went on to score over a thousand points in his career. Covell was known for his lack of speed, but made up for it in determination, and was a fluent goalkicker. "I know some people out there think I'm too slow for the NRL. Not talented enough. But that's okay ... I've always known it too," Covell once said. In 2010, Covell became the first NRL Player to have (LARS) ligament augmentation and reconstruction surgery. Not long after his return from surgery, he announced he intended to retire at the end of the 2010 season, saying, "I’m proud to say I played for the Cronulla Sharks and Wests Tigers, I’ve had a great time and I wouldn’t change a thing."


Post-NRL career

Covell returned home to play for the Murwillumbah Mustangs in the
Northern Rivers Regional Rugby League The Northern Rivers Regional Rugby League (NRRRL) is a rugby league competition run in the far north of New South Wales, Australia. It is run under the auspices of the Country Rugby League. The league formed in 2005 as an extended Group 1 Rugby L ...
. He played in the second row and as the team's goalkicker. In 2012, Covell won a premiership with his late penalty goal resulting in the Mustangs overhauling the
Grafton Ghosts The Grafton Ghosts are an Australian rugby league football team based in Grafton, New South Wales. The club was founded in 1963 as a joint venture of the Grafton All Blacks and Grafton United teams. Notable players * Danny Wicks (2006-16 St Ge ...
in the final minutes to win 27–26. Covell played for the Mustangs again in 2013, losing to Ballina in the grand final. Covell is an Australian Apprenticeships Ambassador for the Australian Government and an Apprentice Mentor in the NRL's Trade UP With The NRL Program.http://www.australianapprenticeships.gov.au/ambassador/luke-covell In 2014, while undertaking a plumbing apprenticeship and studying at TAFE, Covell represented the New South Wales Tertiary team.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Covell, Luke 1981 births Australian rugby league players Australian people of New Zealand descent New Zealand national rugby league team players Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks players Wests Tigers players Country New South Wales Origin rugby league team players Rugby league wingers People from Goondiwindi Living people