Kerry Boustead

Infobox rugby league biography
playername = Kerry Boustead
fullname = Kerry Boustead
nickname = Bowie

---

caption =
position = rlp|WG
dateofbirth = 12 August, 1959
placeofbirth = Innisfail
countryofbirth = Australia
height =
weight =
club1 = leagueicon|Sydney Roosters|16 Eastern Suburbs
year1start = 1979
year1end = 1982
appearances1 = 80
tries1 = 32
goals1 = 0
fieldgoals1 = 0
points1 = 96
club2 = leagueicon|Manly Sea Eagles|16 Manly-Warringah
year2start = 1983
year2end = 1986
appearances2 = 65
tries2 = 30
goals2 = 0
fieldgoals2 = 0
points2 = 120
club3 = leagueicon|Hull KR|16 Hull Kingston Rovers
year3start = 1985
year3end = 1987
appearances3 =
tries3 =
goals3 =
fieldgoals3 =
points3 =
club4 = leagueicon|North Sydney Bears|16 North Sydney Bears
year4start = 1988
year4end = 1990
appearances4 = 33
tries4 = 8
goals4 = 0
fieldgoals4 = 0
points4 = 32
teamA = leagueicon|Queensland|16 Queensland
yearAstart = 1978
yearAend = 1984
appearancesA = 9
triesA = 8
goalsA = 0
fieldgoalsA = 0
pointsA = 28
teamB = leagueicon|Australia|16 Australia
yearBstart = 1978
yearBend = 1984
appearancesB = 25
triesB = 15
goalsB = 0
fieldgoalsB = 0
pointsB = 46
teamC = leagueicon|New South Wales|16 New South Wales
yearCstart = 1979
yearCend = 1981
appearancesC = 6
triesC = 3
goalsC = 0
fieldgoalsC = 0
pointsC = 9
source = [http://www.yesterdayshero.com.au/PlayerProfile_Kerry-Boustead_1146.aspx Yesterday's Hero]

Kerry Boustead (born 12 August, 1959) is an Australian former rugby league footballer of the 1970s and 80s. A talented representative winger for Queensland and Australia, at the time he was picked for the Australian national rugby league team he was the youngest ever player so selected. A prolific try-scorer, he is considered one of the nation's finest footballers of the 20th century. [ [http://www.livenews.com.au/Articles/2008/02/22/Controversy_reigns_as_NRL_releases_top_100_players Century's Top 100 Players] ]

Club career

An Innisfail junior and younger brother of 1976 Queensland rep Ian Boustead, Kerry was a Queensland Schoolboy representative and made his first grade debut with Innisfail Souths in 1977. In 1978 he became the youngest Test player for Australia.

In 1979 the Queensland Rugby League tried to block Boustead's move to Sydney, although Eastern Suburbs ultimately gained his services. Boustead broke his ankle in his first season in Sydney but recovered to play in the centres in the club's loss to Canterbury in the NSWRL 1980 Grand Final. He stayed with the Roosters till the end of 1982 and then in 1983 followed his club and national coach Bob Fulton to Manly for four season.

In the Australian off-seasons he played in the UK for Hull Kingston Rovers in 1985-86 and 1986-87 but leg, collarbone and shoulder injuries seriously disrupted the momentum of his career in the this period. In 1986 while still at Manly he played in only seven matches of the 25 round regular season. In 1988 Boustead resumed his career with the North Sydney Bears making thirty-three appearances in his last three seasons before retiring at the end of 1990.

Representative career

Boustead first represented for Queensland aged 18 in 1978 while playing for Innisfail Souths. Small in stature Boustead outshone his giant New South Wales outside back rivals in Terry Fahey and Mark Harris. After playing for New South Wales in 1979 under residential selection criteria, Boustead represented Queensland in the first ever State of Origin match, and is one of a handful of players to have scored 3 tries in an Origin game.

He is one of a number of players to have represented both Queensland and New South Wales and one of those rare foundation Origin representatives whose NSW appearances were bookended by selections for Queensland.

Boustead made his international representative debut at 18 years and 310 days in 1978 in a Test against New Zealand thus becoming the youngest ever player to represent Australia. He played in all three Tests of that series.

He was a consistent Australian representative from 1978 to 1984 often appearing in all Tests of a tour, in domestic Ashes series and in series against New Zealand and France. He toured with the 1978 Kangaroos and with Frank Stanton's 1982 'Invincibles'. All up he made twenty-five Test appearances for Australia and played in eighteen minor matches on two Kangaroo tours.

Accolades & post-playing

In 2000 he was awarded the Australian Sports Medal for his contribution to Australia's international standing in the sport of rugby league.

Boustead returned to the game as the Chief Executive of the newly promoted North Queensland Cowboys in 1995 but resigned after five competition matches when the club aligned itself with Super League. He served on the NRL Judiciary Tribunal from 1997-98 and in 2000.

In February 2008, Boustead 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 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] Surprisingly Boustead's position was usurped in the Queensland Team of the Century announced on the night of game II of the 2008 State of Origin by two wingers who were not named in the Australian 100 Greatest - Cec Aynsley and Denis Flannery.

References

ources

* Andrews, Malcolm (2006) "The ABC of Rugby League" Austn Broadcasting Corpn, Sydney
* "Big League's 25 Years of Origin Collectors' Edition" , News Magazines, Surry Hills, Sydney
* Whiticker, Alan & Hudson, Glen (2006) "The Encyclopedia of Rugby League Players", Gavin Allen Publishing, Sydney

External links

*StateofOrigin player|285
*FOGS player|6
* [http://www.yesterdayshero.com.au/PlayerProfile_Kerry-Boustead_1146.aspx Kerry Boustead at yesterdayshero.com.au]
* [http://www.nrlstats.com/archive/players.cfm?PlayerID=33 Kerry Boustead at nrlstats.com]
* [http://www.fullbottle.com/foleyshield/boustea.htm Kerry Boustead at Foley Shield fan site]
* [http://rugbyleagueproject.com/players/Kerry_Boustead.html Kerry Boustead stats at rugbyleagueproject.com]
* [http://www.nqsports.com.au/index.php?page=29&person=89 Kerry Boustead at nqsports.com.au]
* [http://soaringseaeagles.tripod.com/players/boustead.htm Kerry Boustead at soaringseaeagles.tripod.com]
* [http://www.qrl.com.au/qrl_history/qld_rep_b.php Queensland Representatives at qrl.com.au]