Steve Rogers (rugby league)

Infobox rugby league biography
playername = Steve Rogers
fullname = Steve Rogers
nickname = Sludge


country =
position = Centre
currentclub =
dateofbirth = birth date|1954|11|29
placeofbirth =
countryofbirth =
dateofdeath = death date and age|2006|1|3|1954|11|29
placeofdeath = Cronulla, New South Wales
countryofdeath =
height =
weight =
club1 = Cronulla
year1start = 1973
year1end = 1982
appearances1 = 231
tries1 = 82
goals1 = 502
fieldgoals1 = 5
points1 = 1253
club2 = St. George
year2start = 1983
year2end = 1984
appearances2 = 29
tries2 = 8
goals2 = 42
fieldgoals2 = 5
points2 = 121
club3 = Cronulla
year3start = 1985
year3end =
appearances3 = 1
tries3 = 0
goals3 = 0
fieldgoals3 = 0
points3 = 0
club4 = Widnes
year4start = 1986
year4end =
appearances4 =
tries4 =
goals4 =
fieldgoals4 =
points4 =
teamA = New South Wales
yearAstart = 1973
yearAend = 1979
appearancesA = 17
triesA =
goalsA =
fieldgoalsA =
pointsA = 17
teamB = Australia
yearBstart = 1973
yearBend = 1981
appearancesB = 21
triesB =
goalsB =
fieldgoalsB =
pointsB = 21
teamC = New South Wales
yearCstart = 1980
yearCend = 1982
appearancesC = 4
triesC =
goalsC =
fieldgoalsC =
pointsC = 0
updated = October 3, 2008
source =
new = yes

Steve Rogers (November 29, 1954 – January 3, 2006) was an Australian rugby league footballer. He played for the Cronulla Sharks and St. George Dragons teams in the New South Wales Rugby League premiership competition and for Widnes in the English competition, usually in the position of centre. Rogers represented New South Wales and Australia captaining the national team once in 1981.

After his retirement, Rogers was named as one of the five "immortals" of the Cronulla club (see [http://nrl.rleague.com/news/index.php?id=13065] ).

He became involved in the administration of rugby league, and held the position of Cronulla's CEO at the time of his death (see [http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5744,17719304%255E1702,00.html] ).

Steve Rogers died after swallowing a combination of prescription drugs and alcohol on January 3, 2006. In April, 2006, the NSW state coroner ruled that the death was accidental, and that Rogers had not intended to commit suicide. He is survived by his sons, Mat and Don, his daughter Melanie, and his second wife Ingrid.

Biography

1973

Rogers began playing first grade rugby league at the age of eighteen for the Cronulla Sharks in 1973. Playing the position of centre, his talent did not go unnoticed. He was described by the club's captain/coach, Tommy Bishop as a "rare, rare talent - the greatest all round centre three-quarter I have seen." In that year, he played in his first Grand final, which Cronulla lost to the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles and made the first of three Kangaroo Tours.

1974-1982

Rogers led Cronulla to the grand final as captain, in 1978, once more against the Sea Eagles. The match was a tie, and Cronulla lost a replay in the following week. During that season, he was often switched to lock forward and was effective in that role. Three years later, he won the Dally M Lock Of The Year award.

In 1975 Rogers won the Rothmans Medal for best and fairest player in the NSWRFL. He played for New South Wales in 1980's first state of origin match. He was named player of the series in the 1981 Tooth Cup tournament and also won that year's Dally M Award.

Rogers was selected to tour with the Australian national rugby league team on the 1973 Kangaroo Tour. National honours continued when he was selected in the Australian squad for the 1975 Rugby League World Cup, 1977 Rugby League World Cup, 1978 Kangaroo tour, 1980 Tour of New Zealand and was a centre in all three tests against Great Britain and the two tests against France on the 1982 Kangaroo Tour. Rogers would captain the Kangaroos in 1981 against France.

1983-1984

As a result of Cronulla's serious financial difficulties, Rogers signed for 1983 with Cronulla's local rival, the St. George Dragons. He played with them for two seasons, culminating in an appearance in the 1984 reserve grade Grand Final, which the Dragons lost.

1985-1986

Rogers was to return to Cronulla in 1985, but only played nine minutes in the season after breaking his jaw in his first game of the year against the Canterbury Bulldogs.

In 1986 Rogers signed with Widnes in the English competition, but only played for 13 minutes after breaking his leg in his first game of the year against Wigan. This was to be the last game of his career.

Post Playing

After league Rogers remained involved with rugby league coaching. He coached for a time in Queensland, and worked in administrative roles for the Australian Rugby League in Darwin and Perth. After an unsuccessful business venture running a hotel at Lennox Head, Rogers became involved once more with the Cronulla club, becoming the football manager and later, general manager of the club.

His personal life was marred with some tragedy. After losing his father (Don) and mother (Marj) to cancer, his wife Carol also died from the disease on May 11 2001. Rogers' brother also committed suicide. [http://www.news.com.au/story/0,10117,17731842-2,00.html]

On January 3 2006 Rogers was found dead outside the door of his Cronulla apartment. Initial reports of a heart attack soon turned to suggestions of suicide as the existence of three letters - apparently suicide notes to his three children - was revealed. His son Mat also confirmed that his father had been suffering from depression: "He was suffering from some depression and, as a person of his stature and a public figure, he found it really hard to talk about it to other people and therefore exacerbated the problem," he said. Police believed that he had swallowed a cocktail of alcohol and prescription drugs. There has been some speculation that Rogers may have attempted to make an emergency telephone call in the moments before his death. [http://www.smh.com.au/news/league/phone-slipup-may-have-killed-rogers/2006/01/05/1136387572842.html]

In February 2008, Rogers was named in the list of Australia's "100 Greatest Players" (1908-2007) which was commissioned by the NRL and ARL to celebrate the code's centenary year in Australia. [cite news|author=Peter Cassidy |publisher="Macquarie National News"|title=Controversy reigns as NRL releases top 100 players |url=http://www.livenews.com.au/Articles/2008/02/22/Controversy_reigns_as_NRL_releases_top_100_players |accessdate=2008-02-23|date=2008-02-23] [cite web|publisher="NRL & ARL"|title=Centenary of Rugby League - The Players |url=http://www.centenaryofrugbyleague.com.au/site/the-players.aspx?cat=3&list=true |accessdate=2008-02-23|date=2008-02-23] While playing football, Rogers also served in the New South Wales Police Force and in 2008, rugby league's centennary year in Australia, he was named at fice-eighth in a NSW Police team of the century.

Career playing statistics

Point scoring summary

Matches played

Records

*Until 2002, Rogers held the record for the most points scored in a match (26) for the Cronulla club.
*Rogers is one of twenty Australian internationals to come from the Cronulla club, and one of two players (alongside Greg Pierce) to have captained the national side.
*Rogers holds the standing record for the most points ever scored for the Cronulla club (1253) [http://www.sharks.com.au/index.php?id=175]

ources

* ABC Online (April 29, 2006) [http://www.abc.net.au/sport/content/200604/s1626751.htm "Rogers didn't commit suicide]
* Australian Associated Press (January 3, 2006) [http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5744,17719304%255E1702,00.html "Football great Rogers found dead"] , "The Australian". Retrieved January 4, 2006
* Cubby, Ben et al (January 5, 2006) [http://www.smh.com.au/news/league/mat-on-his-dads-struggle/2006/01/04/1136050499732.html "Depressed and unable to talk about it: Mat tells of his father's greatest struggle"] , "Sydney Morning Herald". Retrieved January 5, 2006
*Heads, Ian (January 4, 2006) "Vale 'the complete footballer'" "The Australian" (page 14)
*Kogoy, Peter and McDonald, Annabelle (January 5, 2006) [http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5744,17733139%255E2722,00.html "Legend's fatal drug, alcohol cocktail"] "The Australian". Retrieved January 5, 2006.
*Magnay, Jacquelin (January 6, 2005) [http://www.smh.com.au/news/league/phone-slipup-may-have-killed-rogers/2006/01/05/1136387572842.html "Phone slip-up may have killed Rogers"] "Sydney Morning Herald". Retrieved 9 January, 2006.
*Watson, Rhett (January 5, 2006) [http://www.news.com.au/story/0,10117,17731842-2,00.html "Depression plagued league star"] "www.news.com.au". Retrieved January 5, 2005.
* [http://www.sharks.com.au/index.php?id=175 Cronulla Sharks official website (Individual Player Records)]
* [http://widnes.ported-valhalla.co.uk/playerbiog.php?mid=698 Widnes Vikings official website (Player Biography)]
* [http://nrl.rleague.com/news/index.php?id=13065 World of Rugby League website]

External links

* [http://www.sharks.com.au/index.php?id=204 Cronulla Sharks First Grade Juniors]
* [http://sharks.4eva.com/players/Steve_Rogers Steve Rogers Photo Gallery]
* [http://www.stateoforigin.com.au/soogame/PlayerDetails.aspx?Pid=237 Steve Rogers at stateoforigin.com.au]
* [http://www.eraofthebiff.com/p75a.html Steve Rogers at eraofthebiff.com]

Footnotes