Stacey William Jones (born 7 May 1976) is a New Zealand 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 has been named amongst the greatest New Zealand has ever produced. He played as a , but he has also briefly played at during his distinguished career, which includes 46 Tests 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 ...

(1995–2006). Stacey Jones is the first and only life member of 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 ...

club whose records for most appearances, tries and points he held at the time of his retirement. Jones' vision and ability to control the game when his team was on attack earned him the sobriquet "the little general", a reference also to his small stature in comparison to that of most rugby league players. Jones was often able to find players with a high bombing kick at either sides of the field or place a sneaky through ball for oncoming players to pounce on.

Early years

Māori Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the C ...

descent, Stacey Jones was born in

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The List of New Zealand urban areas by population, most populous urban area in the country and the List of cities in Oceania by po ...

, New Zealand on 7 May 1976, a grandchild to

rugby league great Maunga Emery.Coffey and Wood ''The Kiwis: 100 Years of International Rugby League'' He played junior grades for the

Ponsonby Ponies The Ponsonby Ponies are a rugby league club based in Ponsonby, New Zealand. The club was founded in 1908 and was originally named Ponsonby United. The Ponies compete in the Auckland Rugby League competition and are the oldest rugby league club in ...

and

Mt Albert Lions The Mount Albert Lions are a rugby league club based in Mount Albert, New Zealand. The Lions home ground is at Fowlds Park. Their patron is the former Prime Minister of New Zealand, Helen Clark. In 2008 and 2009 the Lions won the Fox Memorial. ...

before moving to the City-

Pt Chev Pirates The Point Chevalier Pirates are an Auckland rugby league club based in Point Chevalier. The Pirates currently compete in the Fox Memorial (First Division) competition run by the Auckland Rugby League. History The club was founded in 1919."Yo ...

when he was 9. Jones attended St. Paul's College, Auckland. In 1994 he played for the

Auckland City Vulcans The Auckland City Vulcans were a New Zealand rugby league club that represented Auckland City in the 1994 Lion Red Cup. They were replaced in 1995 by the Auckland Warriors' Colts team. Notable players Notable players included Stacey Jones, Vin ...

side in the

Lion Red Cup The Lion Red Cup was a New Zealand domestic rugby league competition that ran from 1994 to 1996 sponsored by brewers Lion Nathan. It was created due to the increase in public awareness of domestic rugby league due to the Auckland Warriors being a ...

.Stacey Jones bio
''rugbyleague.co.nz'' In July 1994 he captained the

Junior Kiwis The Junior Kiwis side represents New Zealand in the sport of rugby league. They are commonly known as the Junior Kiwis, after the native bird of that name. Since 2010, they are an under-20s side, with players selected from the NRL, Intrust Super ...

as they toured Australia. Here he played against

Darren Lockyer Darren James Lockyer (born 24 March 1977) is an Australian television commentator and former professional rugby league footballer. Lockyer was an Australian international and Queensland State representative captain, who played his entire profes ...

, who was playing for the

Junior Kangaroos The Junior Kangaroos side represents Australia in the sport of rugby league. They are commonly known as the Junior Kangaroos, after the native marsupial of that name. Since 2019, they are an under-23 side, with players selected from the NRL. The ...

at the time.

Playing career

Auckland Warriors

Jones was spotted by the new

Auckland 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 ...

franchise and made his first grade debut in 1995 against the

Parramatta Eels The Parramatta Eels are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in the Sydney suburb of Parramatta that competes in the National Rugby League. The Parramatta District Rugby League Football Club was formed in 1947, and their ...

in their inaugural year in what is now 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 ...

(NRL). On 23 April 1995 Jones made his first-grade début in Sydney, coming off bench to score a try in the Warriors' 40–4 win over the

. The Warriors' halfback

Greg Alexander Gregory Peter Stephen Alexander (born 4 March 1965), also known by the nickname of "Brandy" is an Australian former professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1980s and 1990s, who has since become a radio, television commentator an ...

missed Rounds 10 and 11 through injury which resulted in Jones taking over at halfback. Jones played well enough to retain the position and force Alexander to move to fullback upon his return. He also quickly established his place in the international scene, replacing Gary Freeman as the

New Zealand national rugby league team The New Zealand national rugby league team (Māori: Tīma rīki motu Aotearoa) has represented New Zealand in rugby league since 1907. Administered by the New Zealand Rugby League, they are commonly known as the Kiwis, after the native bird of ...

halfback during the 1995 World Cup. Over the next several years Jones cemented his spot in both the Warriors and Kiwis, sticking with the Warriors despite the lack of success on and off the field. Between 1995 and 1999 he played over 100 consecutive first grade games for the Warriors. In 1999 he broke his arm playing for the Kiwis against

Tonga Tonga (, ; ), officially the Kingdom of Tonga ( to, Puleʻanga Fakatuʻi ʻo Tonga), is a Polynesian country and archipelago. The country has 171 islands – of which 45 are inhabited. Its total surface area is about , scattered over in ...

, and as a result missed the first half of the 2000

NRL 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 ...

season, breaking his consecutive streak. At the end of 2000 the Warriors were bankrupt and were sold for the second time in their short history. Jones was the first signing by the new franchise, with owner Eric Watson, and it was his signing that convinced many other players to re-sign with the club. It was under the new management where he first became club captain – in 2001 co-captaining with Kevin Campion – and although already considered in the top reaches of halfbacks in the NRL, he started to show he was on an equal par with the games' best halfbacks at the time. In the 3-year period 2001-03 he led the Warriors to 3 successive finals appearances. In 2002 the club not only won the Minor Premiership, but also reached the 2002 NRL grand final against the

Sydney Roosters The Sydney Roosters are an Australian professional Rugby league, 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 ...

. Playing at scrum half back, Jones captained the losing side that evening but scored a great

try Try or TRY may refer to: Music Albums * ''Try!'', an album by the John Mayer Trio * ''Try'' (Bebo Norman album) (2014) Songs * "Try" (Blue Rodeo song) (1987) * "Try" (Colbie Caillat song) (2014) * "Try" (Nelly Furtado song) (2004) * " Try (Ju ...

in which he beat 3 Roosters defenders from 30 metres out to go over from dummy half. He was then selected to go on the 2002 New Zealand rugby league tour of Great Britain and France and won the George Smith Medal as player of the series against Great Britain. Also in 2002, Jones became only the second New Zealand player to win the

Golden Boot Award Golden means made of, or relating to gold. Golden may also refer to: Places United Kingdom *Golden, in the parish of Probus, Cornwall *Golden Cap, Dorset *Golden Square, Soho, London *Golden Valley, a valley on the River Frome in Gloucestershir ...

for the best international rugby league player. Stacey Jones passing

In his career, he has also represented

at two World Cups (1995 and 2000), three Tri Nations series (1999, 2005, 2006), and has played 41 games for the New Zealand Kiwis. He retired from the national team in 2004 while having a disappointing year at club level. However, on 15 October 2005 Stacey ended 2 years of international retirement, answering an SOS from Kiwis coach

Brian McClennan Brian "Bluey" McClennan (born 16 February 1962) is a New Zealand former professional rugby league footballer and coach. He was previously the head coach of the New Zealand national team (with whom he won the 2005 Tri-nations) and then England' ...

intending only to play the

Australasia Australasia is a region that comprises Australia, New Zealand and some neighbouring islands in the Pacific Ocean. The term is used in a number of different contexts, including geopolitically, physiogeographically, philologically, and ecologica ...

n section of the Tri Nations series. He then went on to play the rest of their round robin matches against Great Britain in England. Stacey Jones was an integral part of the New Zealand Tri Nations campaign. In the first match, he guided the Kiwis to their first win in Sydney in 50 years before being part of their narrow loss to Australia in Auckland. He set up 4 tries in the first match in England which the Kiwis won by 42–26. He then missed the fourth Kiwi game, instead returning to New Zealand to be with his wife for the birth of their son. In the 2005 Rugby League Tri-Nations Final, he continually kicked

Bomb A bomb is an explosive weapon that uses the Exothermic process, exothermic reaction of an explosive material to provide an extremely sudden and violent release of energy. Detonations inflict damage principally through ground- and atmosphere-t ...

s aimed at the Australian wingers that set up three tries in the Kiwis' 24–0 victory over Australia. Until then Australia had not lost a series in 27 years. Jones is widely regarded as the best New Zealand player of his generation. In New Zealand he had a video game named after him, Stacey Jones' Rugby League. He currently still holds the record for most appearances (238 NRL games) and is the second highest try scorer (77) behind Manu Vatuvei (99).

Les Catalans

In April 2005 Stacey Jones announced he was leaving the Warriors, then his only professional club to join the new French addition to the Super League for the 2006 season

Catalans Dragons The Catalans Dragons (French: ''Dragons Catalans'', Catalan: ''Dracs Catalans'') are a professional rugby league club from Perpignan, Pyrénées-Orientales department, France. The team competes in the Super League and are the only team from outs ...

. In doing so he became the last foundation member of the Warriors to leave the club. After the 2006 Rugby League Tri-Nations Final it was announced that Jones was retiring from international football however he returned for a final time against a 'Northern Union' side for New Zealand 'All Golds' to celebrate the centenary of New Zealand's national rugby league team who first toured England in 1907. Jones kicked five goals as the 'All Golds' won 25–18 at Warrington's Halliwell Jones stadium. Jones helped Catalans reach the

2007 Challenge Cup Final The 2007 Carnegie Challenge Cup Final was played by the holders St. Helens and Catalans Dragons at the new Wembley Stadium on 25 August 2007. The Dragons were the first French club ever to take part in the competition's final. After a competi ...

. In September 2007 he announced his retirement from the game and left the Dragons.

Return to New Zealand

Stacey Jones returned home and rejoined the

as their kicking coach for the 2008 season. As part of his release from the Dragons he was not allowed to play for any other club during the 2008 season. During the New Zealand 2008 election Jones publicly appeared with then Prime Minister

Helen Clark Helen Elizabeth Clark (born 26 February 1950) is a New Zealand politician who served as the 37th prime minister of New Zealand from 1999 to 2008, and was the administrator of the United Nations Development Programme from 2009 to 2017. She was ...

and offered his support to the Labour Party campaign. In November 2008 he played for the All Golds again in

New Plymouth New Plymouth ( mi, Ngāmotu) is the major city of the Taranaki region on the west coast of the North Island of New Zealand. It is named after the English city of Plymouth, Devon from where the first English settlers to New Plymouth migrated. ...

against the New Zealand Māori. The game served as both a testimonial to

Ruben Wiki Ruben James Wiki (born 21 January 1973) is a New Zealand former professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1990s and 2000s. A New Zealand international representative centre-turned-prop forward, he retired with the record for most ...

and a warm up for the 2008 World Cup. Participating in this game made Jones realise he still wanted to play rugby league.

Warriors comeback

On 7 November 2008 it was announced that Stacey Jones had re-signed as a player with the New Zealand Warriors on a one-year contract for 2009. He reportedly signed a contract worth over $220,000. In his March 2009 return game to the NRL, Jones set up two tries and guided his team to a 26–24 victory over Manly, reaffirming his nickname as "The Little General". Despite being predicted to play mostly off the bench in 2009, the early release of incumbent halfback

Nathan Fien Nathan Fien (born 1 August 1979), also known by the nickname of "Fieny", is a former New Zealand international rugby league footballer who played as a and in the 2000s and 2010s. He last played for the St. George Illawarra Dragons in the Nat ...

in June saw Jones thrust into the familiar role of starting playmaker for the Warriors once again. Unfortunately, Jones' early good form did not continue and the

Warriors A warrior is a person specializing in combat or warfare, especially within the context of a tribal or clan-based warrior culture society that recognizes a separate warrior aristocracies, class, or caste. History Warriors seem to have be ...

struggled to a disappointing 14th placing on the ladder. In early September Jones announced that his comeback was over and he would not be returning for the 2010 NRL season.

Coaching career

Following his retirement from professional rugby league, Jones took up a role as

player-coach A player-coach (also playing coach, captain-coach, or player-manager) is a member of a sports team who simultaneously holds both playing and coaching duties. A player-coach may be a head coach or an assistant coach. They may make changes to the sq ...

for the

, alongside

Awen Guttenbeil Awen Guttenbeil (born 14 March 1976) is a former professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1990s and 2000s. Since retiring after a playing career spanning fifteen years, he went on to work as a broadcaster for Sky Network Televisio ...

. He later worked as the

Auckland Rugby League The Auckland Rugby League (ARL) is the governing body for the sport of rugby league in the Auckland Region of New Zealand. It is responsible for rugby league in the region, including both club and school rugby league. It began in 1910 when the fi ...

's Development officer. Jones was appointed as the New Zealand Warriors Junior Recruitment and Pathways Coach for the 2013 season. He became the Junior Warriors head coach in the

Holden Cup The NRL Under-20s (known commercially as the Holden Cup due to sponsorship from Holden) was the top league of professional rugby league for players aged 20 years or younger in Australasia. Contested by sixteen teams, the Under-20s competition c ...

for the 2014 season and in his inaugural season the Warriors won the Cup, defeating the Brisbane Broncos 34–32 in the Grand Final.Warriors survive Broncos scare to win Holden Cup
''nrl.com'', 5 October 2014 In 2015 Jones coached the Warriors side in the

NSW Cup The NSW Cup, currently known as the Knock-On Effect NSW Cup for sponsorship reasons, is a rugby league competition for clubs in New South Wales. The competition has a history dating back to the NSWRFL's origins in 1908, starting off as a reserv ...

.Jones to coach NSW Cup side in 2015
''warriors.co.nz'', 5 October 2014 Jones was subsequently an assistant coach for the Warriors in various capacities under coaches;

Andrew McFadden Andrew McFadden (born 20 January 1978) is an Australian rugby league football coach and former player. He is an assistant coach at the Canberra Raiders in the NRL. Early life Born in Canberra, Australia. McFadden was educated at Hawker Colleg ...

, Stephen Kearney,

Todd Payten Todd Payten (born 18 January 1979) is an Australian professional rugby league coach who is the head coach of the North Queensland Cowboys in the NRL and former professional rugby league footballer. As a player he played as a and forward for ...

and Nathan Brown. On June 7, 2022 Jones was named interim head coach of the

after the sudden departure of coach Nathan Brown who refused to commit to the club long term.

Tohu Harris Tohu Harris (born 7 January 1992) is a New Zealand professional rugby league footballer who plays as a and forward and captains the New Zealand Warriors in the NRL, and New Zealand and the New Zealand Māori at international level. He prev ...

expects a lot more from him than Nathan Brown. Jones takes over for remainder of 2022 season
''newshub.co.nz'', 7 June 2022

Awards and achievements

Awards and Honours *

New Zealand Sports Hall of Fame The New Zealand Sports Hall of Fame is an organisation commemorating New Zealand's greatest sporting triumphs. It was inaugurated as part of the New Zealand sesquicentenary celebrations in 1990. Some 160 members have been inducted into the Hall o ...

member * Rugby League Golden Boot Award – World's Best Rugby League Player of the Year (2002) *

Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit The New Zealand Order of Merit is an order of merit in the New Zealand royal honours system. It was established by royal warrant on 30 May 1996 by Elizabeth II, Queen of New Zealand, "for those persons who in any field of endeavour, have ren ...

for services to rugby league ( 2006 New Year Honours) *Rugby League Players Association – Best Back Award (2005) *

Life Membership (2005) *New Zealand Warriors Special Award for 100 NRL games (1999) *New Zealand Warriors Special Award for 200 NRL games (2004) *

Halberg Awards The Halberg Awards are a set of awards, given annually since 1949, recognising New Zealand's top sporting achievements. They are named for New Zealand former middle-distance runner and Olympic gold medalist Sir Murray Halberg. The initial award ...

Sportsman of the Year runner-up * Prime TV Viewers' Choice Award (2001) *

New Zealand Rugby League The New Zealand Rugby League (NZRL) is the governing body for the sport of rugby league football in New Zealand. SPARC, 2009: 13 The NZRL was founded on 25 April 1910 in preparation for a tour of Great Britain that same year.Coffey and Wood ''T ...

Player of the Year (2002, 2001, 1999) *New Zealand Rugby League Promising Player of the Year (1995) *New Zealand Warriors Player of the Year (1997) *New Zealand Warriors Back of the Year (1999) *New Zealand Warriors Development Player of the Year (1995) *New Zealand Warriors Supporters' Player of the Year (1999) *New Zealand Rugby League Personality of the Year (2002) *New Zealand Rugby League Annual Player of the Year (2002, 1999, 1997) *

ImmortalStacey Jones, Auckland Rugby League Immortal
''est1995.co.nz'', 21 September 2003 Captaincy *

Captain 2001–2005 *

Captain 2006 *New Zealand Captain 2002–2006 Achievements *1995 Rugby League World Cup Semi-finalist *1996

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It is ...

Tour of New Zealand Series Winner *1997 Rugby League World Club Challenge Semi-finalist *1998 New Zealand Tour of Great Britain Series Winner **1998 New Zealand Tour of Great Britain Player of the Series *1999

Rugby League Tri-Nations The Rugby League Tri-Nations (known as the Gillette Tri-Nations for sponsorship reasons) was a rugby league tournament involving the top three teams in the sport: Australia, Great Britain and New Zealand and is the predecessor of today's Rugby ...

*2000 Rugby League World Cup Finalist (Silver) *2002

Minor Premier *2002 National Rugby League Grand Finalist *2002 New Zealand Tour of Great Britain Series Draw **2002 New Zealand Tour of Great Britain Player of the Series *2003 National Rugby League Semi-finalist *2005 Rugby League Tri-Nations Champion *2007 Rugby League Challenge Cup Finalist

References

External links

Official Player Profile (Warriors.co.nz)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jones, Stacey 1976 births Living people Auckland rugby league team players Catalans Dragons players Junior Kiwis players Mount Albert Lions players Ngāpuhi people Ngāti Maniapoto people New Zealand Māori rugby league players New Zealand Māori rugby league team coaches New Zealand Māori rugby league team players New Zealand national rugby league team captains New Zealand national rugby league team players New Zealand rugby league coaches New Zealand rugby league players New Zealand Warriors captains New Zealand Warriors players Officers of the New Zealand Order of Merit People educated at St Paul's College, Auckland Point Chevalier Pirates coaches Point Chevalier Pirates players Ponsonby Ponies players Rugby league five-eighths Rugby league halfbacks Rugby league players from Auckland Rugby league wingers