South Sydney Rabbitohs forward Sam Burgess has been bestowed the honour of captaining the Rabbitohs following the retirement of former Rabbitohs captain Greg Inglis earlier this week.
Burgess, Rabbitohs first grade player number 1073, has previously been part of a five-man leadership group at the Rabbitohs however this is the first time he has been appointed as captain on a full time basis.
Burgess, who has played 168 NRL games for South Sydney since making his debut in 2010, has also captained England under his international and club Head Coach Wayne Bennett.
Burgess is regarded across the sport as an inspirational leader, typified by his Clive Churchill medal-winning performance in the 2014 Grand Final, leading the Rabbitohs to their 21st premiership after suffering a broken cheekbone and eye socket in the opening tackle of the match.
Burgess says it is an absolute honour to captain South Sydney.
“It’s a great honour and privilege to captain the greatest club in the NRL,” Burgess said.
“I’m looking forward to leading the team out on Friday against the Bulldogs, and I’m also looking forward to our team putting our best foot forward each and every week.”
Rabbitohs Head Coach, Wayne Bennett, said: “There is no one better to take on the role of captaincy. He has always been there to help me and fill the void when Greg was not available, and there’s no one better I would rather work with.
“I don’t want to sing any praise. Everyone that knows Sam knows he is the best for the job. Now it’s time for me to coach and him to do his job as a captain.”
General Manager of Football, Shane Richardson, says Burgess is definitely the man for the job.
“Sam Burgess is a natural born leader and is the logical choice to take on the captaincy of this great Club,” Mr Richardson said.
“He is an inspirational player both on and off the field.
“He has the respect of everyone at the Rabbitohs and we could not be happier to have Sam taking over the role from this game against the Bulldogs on Good Friday.”
Biography
| Name: | Sam Burgess |
| Date of Birth: | 14 December 1988 |
| Place of Birth: | Dewsbury, UK |
| Position: | Utility Forward |
| Height: | 196cm |
| Weight: | 116kg |
| Junior Club: | Dewsbury Moor |
| Previous Clubs: | Bradford (2006-09); Rabbitohs (2010-14); Bath Rugby (2015) |
| First Team Games: | Rugby League: 247 games (168 games for Rabbitohs, 79 games for Bradford) Rugby Union: 26 games (all for Bath Rugby) |
| First Team Points: | Rugby League: 242 (from 58 tries and five goals) Rugby Union: 20 points (from four tries) |
| NRL Debut: | Rabbitohs vs Roosters, ANZ Stadium, 14 March 2010 (Rd 1) |
| ESL Debut: | Bradford vs Leeds, Headingley, 7 July 2006 (Rd 20) |
| Rep Honours: | Rugby League: 23 Tests for England (2008-10, 2013, 2016-18); World Cup (2013, 2017); Four Nations (2009-10, 2016); two Tests for Great Britain (2007); one game for Northern Union (2007); one game for NRL All Stars (2010) Rugby Union: Five Tests for England (2015); World Cup (2015); one game for England Saxons (2015) |
| Rep Points: | Rugby League: 36 (from nine tries for England and Great Britain) |
| NRL Premierships: | One - Rabbitohs (2014) |
Awards and Honours
| Jack Rayner Players’ Player award (2010, 2013-14, 2016, 2018) |
| George Piggins Medallist (2014, 2016-17) |
| England captain (2016-17) |
| RLPA Dream Team (2017) |
| Clive Churchill Medallist (2014) |
| Dally M Lock of the Year (2014) |
| RLIF International Player of the Year (2014) |
| Bob McCarthy Clubman of the Year (2014) |
| The Burrow Player of the Year (2014) |
| RLIF Prop of the Year (2013) |
| Dally M Peter Frilingos Memorial award (2013) |
| Super League Young Player of the Year (2007) |
| Bradford Bulls Senior Academy Player of the Year award (2006) |
