James Maloney (rugby league)
 | ||||||
| Personal information | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nickname | Jimmy | |||||
| Born | 15 June 1986 Orange, New South Wales, Australia | |||||
| Height | 176 cm (5 ft 9 in) | |||||
| Weight | 83 kg (13 st 1 lb) | |||||
| Playing information | ||||||
| Position | Five-eighth, Halfback | |||||
| Club | ||||||
| Years | Team | Pld | T | G | FG | P |
| 2009 | Melbourne Storm | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2010–12 | New Zealand Warriors | 75 | 24 | 222 | 7 | 547 |
| 2013–15 | Sydney Roosters | 79 | 23 | 320 | 4 | 736 |
| 2016– | Cronulla Sharks | 25 | 7 | 91 | 3 | 213 |
| Total | 183 | 54 | 633 | 14 | 1496 | |
| Representative | ||||||
| Years | Team | Pld | T | G | FG | P |
| 2010 | Prime Minister's XIII | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| 2013–16 | NSW Country | 3 | 2 | 8 | 0 | 24 |
| 2013–16 | New South Wales | 6 | 1 | 7 | 0 | 18 |
| 2016 | Australia | 2 | 1 | 7 | 0 | 18 |
| Source: [1] | ||||||
James Maloney (born 15 June 1986 in Orange, New South Wales) is an Australian professional rugby league footballer who currently plays for the Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks (with whom he won the 2016 NRL Premiership) in the National Rugby League. A New South Wales State of Origin representative five-eighth, he previously played for the Melbourne Storm, New Zealand Warriors and the Sydney Roosters (with whom he won the 2013 NRL Premiership).
Playing career
Maloney's father, Brian Maloney, was a lock forward and captain coach of Orange CYMS in country New South Wales.[2] A St Edward’s and North Sydney Bears junior, James Maloney joined the Parramatta Eels in 2007 and helped the Wentworthville Magpies win the New South Wales Cup in 2008.[3]
Parramatta Eels (2007-2008)
Maloney joined the Parrmatta Eels squad in 2007 at the age of 21. He was a member of the NSW Cup team of the year in 2008. Despite Maloney's good form in the NSW cup over these two seasons, he failed to break into first grade and instead signed with the Melbourne Storm for the 2009 season.
Melbourne Storm (2009)
In 2009, he moved to Melbourne and played for the Central Coast Storm in the NSW Cup. Maloney made his National Rugby League debut for the Melbourne Storm in Round 5 2009. He played four NRL matches for the club. Maloney represented the NSW Residents in 2009 against the Queensland Residents. Despite good form at both NSW Cup and NRL level, Maloney was restricted to just 4 games in the top grade in 2009, rival clubs were lining up to give Maloney a better opportunity in first grade and by seasons end Maloney had signed a 3-year deal with the New Zealand Warriors beginning in 2010.
New Zealand Warriors (2010-2012)
Maloney was signed by the New Zealand Warriors for the 2010 and 2011 seasons with an option for 2012.[4][5] He made his debut for the club on 14 March 2010.
Maloney had a breakthrough 2010 season, scoring 188 points including 10 tries in his first full NRL campaign. It put him in contention for Dally M recognition and he was on the shortlist for the standoff of the year at the Rugby League International Federation's awards.[6] On 14 September 2010, he was selected in the Prime Minister's XIII to play Papua New Guinea. Maloney played in the 2011 Grand Final against Manly. Maloney kicked a goal in the Warriors' 24-10 loss. Maloney announced that he would leave the club at the end of the 2012 season to return to New South Wales and be closer to his family.[7] He left the Warriors as the club's highest ever goal kicker.
Sydney Roosters (2013-2015)
Maloney signed to play for the Sydney Roosters from 2013 onward, playing five-eighth alongside New South Wales halfback Mitchell Pearce. On 26 May 2013, Maloney was selected for the New South Wales rugby league team for Game 1 of the 2013 State of Origin series. He became the first ever NSW five-eighth on debut to win an Origin game when the Blues defeated Queensland 14-6 in front of 80,380 fans at the ANZ Stadium in Sydney. Maloney kicked 3 of his 4 attempts at goal.
On 6 October 2013, Maloney starred for the Roosters in the 2013 NRL Grand Final, setting up two tries with the boot, and scoring 10 points. Roosters went on to win 26-18 and won his maiden NRL title.
Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks (2016 – present)
On 19 June 2015, Maloney signed a 3-year contract with the Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks until 2018. In September 2016, Maloney was named as the Dally M five eighth of the year. Cronulla went on to defeat Melbourne 14-12 in the 2016 Grand Final with Maloney playing the full 80mins and kicking at 100% including a crucial conversion in the 71st minute. Maloney was selected in the Australian squad for the 2016 Four Nations Tournament. He made his test debut in the Kangaroo's 54-12 win over Scotland in Hull, scoring a try and kicking 7 from 10 goals.
Statistics
| Season | Appearances | Interchanges | Tries | Goals | F/G | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | 4 | 1 | – | – | – | 0 |
| 2010 | 24 | – | 10 | 73 | 2 | 188 |
| 2011 | 27 | – | 10 | 82 | 2 | 206 |
| 2012 | 23 | 1 | 4 | 67 | 3 | 153 |
| 2013 | 25 | – | 9 | 108 | – | 252 |
| 2014 | 26 | – | 5 | 106 | 2 | 234 |
| 2015 | 25 | - | 9 | 94 | 2 | 226 |
| Overall | 153 | 2 | 47 | 530 | 11 | 1259 |
References
- ↑ James Maloney rugbyleagueproject.org
- ↑ Bellamy, Craig (24 September 2011). "Darren Lockyer story reflects code's steady growth". The Australian. Retrieved 23 September 2011.
- ↑ "James Maloney profile". Television New Zealand. 7 August 2009. Retrieved 6 October 2011.
- ↑ "Warriors sign unheralded halfback". Television New Zealand. 7 August 2009. Retrieved 6 October 2011.
- ↑ Maloney signs up with New Zealand Warriors Central Coast Express Advocate, 28 August 2009
- ↑ Maloney to make first appearance for 2011 rleague.com, 16 February 2011
- ↑ Warriors fail to extend Maloney's contract New Zealand Herald, 26 November 2011