Owen Finegan (born 22 April 1972, in

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

) is an Australian former

rugby union Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In its m ...

player who played as a flanker or

lock Lock(s) may refer to: Common meanings *Lock and key, a mechanical device used to secure items of importance *Lock (water navigation), a device for boats to transit between different levels of water, as in a canal Arts and entertainment * ''Lock ...

, for the Australian national team. Finegan is currently the CEO of The Kids' Cancer Project Australia. He was a key performer for the

ACT Brumbies The ACT Brumbies (known from 2005–2022 as simply the Brumbies) is an Australian professional rugby union team based in Canberra, Australian Capital Territory (ACT), The team competes in Super Rugby and named for the brumby, feral horses whi ...

from their inception in 1996, joining from Randwick Rugby Club. Finegan played in 90

Super 12 Super Rugby is a men's professional rugby union club competition involving teams from Australia, Fiji, New Zealand, and the Pacific Islands. It previously included teams from Argentina, Japan, and South Africa. Building on various Southern Hem ...

matches for the Brumbies and was one of three remaining foundation players in the 2005 squad. He has helped them to two titles, including captaining them to their 2004 triumph, and scoring a Super 12 record 31 tries for a forward. He made his international debut against

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

in 1996 and went on to win 56 caps despite having ankle and knee reconstructions, plus operations on both shoulders. He was an integral part of the Wallabies’ success over following decade and was named in the Wallaby team of the first professional decade in 2005. The highlight of Finegan's career came in 1999, when he scored an injury time try as Australia won the

Rugby World Cup The Rugby World Cup is a men's rugby union tournament contested every four years between the top international teams. The tournament is administered by World Rugby, the sport's international governing body. The winners are awarded the Webb E ...

. Australia's player of the year in 2001, Finegan was controversially not picked by the Wallabies for the 2003 World Cup on home soil. In 2005, he signed with English club

Newcastle Falcons Newcastle Falcons is a rugby union team that play in Premiership Rugby, England's highest division of rugby union. The club was established in 1877 as the Gosforth Football Club. Around 1882 the club merged with the Northumberland Football Cl ...

for two seasons, but was subsequently released after one year. Finegan played the 2006–7 season in Dublin with Bective Rangers and the Irish province

Leinster Leinster ( ; ga, Laighin or ) is one of the provinces of Ireland, situated in the southeast and east of Ireland. The province comprises the ancient Kingdoms of Meath, Leinster and Osraige. Following the 12th-century Norman invasion of Ir ...

, where he was coached by his former Randwick boss and teammate, Michael Cheika. Finegan signed for English Rugby Union team

Leicester Tigers Leicester Tigers (officially Leicester Football Club) are a professional rugby union club based in Leicester, England. They play in Premiership Rugby, England's top division of rugby. The club was founded in 1880 and since 1892 plays its hom ...

, on a short term five-month contract as cover during the 2007

. He featured in many pre-season games and started the first game of the season against

Bristol Rugby Bristol Bears (officially Bristol Rugby Club or Bristol Rugby) are a professional rugby union club based in Bristol, England. They play in Premiership Rugby, England's top division of rugby. The club was founded as Bristol Football Club in 18 ...

before picking up a groin injury which prevented him from making any more appearances.

Retirement

In 2008, Finegan returned to the ACT Brumbies as assistant coach. Finegan, at one time played for

Waverley Rugby Club The Waverley Rugby Football and Sporting Club (Waverley RF&SC) was founded in 1971. It is plays in the New South Wales Suburban Rugby Union, the largest rugby union football competition in New South Wales. The club is based in Bondi in the east ...

. Finegan is an Ambassador for the White Ribbon Foundation, an organisation committed to the elimination of violence against women. In 2011, Finegan commenced the role of CEO of the

Snowy Hydro SouthCare Snowy Hydro SouthCare was a rescue and aeromedical helicopter service based in Canberra, Australia from 1998 to 2017. The area served covered the Australian Capital Territory, as well as parts of New South Wales including the South Coast (New S ...

Rescue Helicopter Service. The helicopter is based in Canberra and provides aero-medical retrieval services for the ACT & Southern NSW. In 2015, Finegan commenced as the CEO of The Kids’ Cancer Project, an independent national charity driven to supporting bold childhood cancer research. Since 1993, thanks to strong community support, the charity has committed over $36 million to scientific research projects to help children with many types of cancer.

References

External links

Leicester profileNewcastle Falcons profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Finegan, Owen 1972 births Living people Australian people of Irish descent Australian rugby union coaches Australian rugby union players Australia international rugby union players ACT Brumbies players Rugby union flankers Rugby union locks Leicester Tigers players Newcastle Falcons players Leinster Rugby players Rugby union players from Sydney