Josh King (rugby league)

Josh King (born 2 December 1995) is an Australian professional rugby league footballer who plays as a lock for the Melbourne Storm in the National Rugby League (NRL).

Josh King
Personal information
Full nameJoshua King[1]
Born (1995-12-02) 2 December 1995
Maitland, New South Wales, Australia
Height187 cm (6 ft 2 in)
Weight105 kg (16 st 7 lb)
Playing information
PositionLock, Prop
Club
Years Team Pld T G FG P
2016–21 Newcastle Knights 78 2 0 0 8
2022– Melbourne Storm 51 4 0 0 16
Total 129 6 0 0 24
Representative
Years Team Pld T G FG P
2022 Prime Minister's XIII 1 0 0 0 0
Source: [2]
As of 22 September 2023

King previously played for the Newcastle Knights in the NRL as a prop.

Background

King was born in Maitland, New South Wales, Australia. He was educated at Singleton High School.

King played his junior rugby league for the Singleton Greyhounds as well as junior representatives for the Newcastle Knights.

Playing career

Early career

In 2014 and 2015, King played for the Newcastle Knights' NRL Under-20s team,[3] before graduating to their NSW Cup team late in 2015.[4]

Newcastle Knights – 2016–2021

In round 7 of the 2016 NRL season, King made his NRL debut for Newcastle against the Brisbane Broncos.[1][5] King juggled his playing and training commitments with an apprenticeship as an electrician, working in a coal mine near Singleton. He would complete his apprenticeship during his time at the Knights.[6]

On 28 July, he extended his contract with Newcastle until the end of 2018.[7][8] He finished his debut season with 12 appearances as the club finished last on the table and claimed the Wooden Spoon.[9][10]

In 2017, King was unable to break into the Knights' NRL side for the first 8 rounds, but went on to play 15 NRL matches for the season as the club finished bottom of the table for a third straight year.[11][12]

In March 2018, King re-signed with the Knights on a two-year contract until the end of 2020.[13]

King played 13 games for Newcastle in the 2019 NRL season as the club missed the finals finishing in 11th place on the table.[14]

In August, after playing over 70 games for the Knights, King signed a 2-year contract with the Melbourne Storm starting in 2022.[15]

Melbourne Storm – 2022–present

In round 1 of the 2022 NRL season, King made his club debut for the Melbourne Storm against Wests Tigers which ended in a win at Bankwest Stadium. He had his club debut jersey (cap number 219) presented to him by former Melbourne Storm player Robbie Kearns. King would be the only Melbourne Storm player to play every game in 2022, celebrating his 100th NRL game in round 23. He also made his senior representative debut when he was selected for the Australian Prime Minister's XIII against the Papua New Guinea Prime Minister's XIII in September.[16]

A hard-working forward,[6] King transformed from a bench player playing limited minutes into an almost 80-minute player at Melbourne, missing only one match during the 2023 NRL season only when ordered to take a week off by coach Craig Bellamy.[6] King would be acting captain for the Storm during their round 27 match against the Brisbane Broncos, playing his 50th match for the club during the 2023 NRL finals series.[6] King played in Melbourne's 2023 preliminary final loss against Penrith.[17]

References
  1. "Updated team lists: Broncos v Knights". NRL.com. 28 February 2016. Retrieved 19 April 2016.
  2. "Josh King - Career Stats & Summary". Rugby League Project. Retrieved 28 April 2016.
  3. "K". Nyc Database. Retrieved 16 April 2016.
  4. NRL. "VB NSW Cup Teams Rd 16". NSWRL. Retrieved 16 April 2016.
  5. NRL. "LATE MAIL: Broncos v Knights - Knights". Newcastleknights.com.au. Retrieved 16 April 2016.
  6. Walter, Brad (19 September 2023). "Old King Coal: Storm star's work ethic forged in Hunter Valley mine". NRL.com. Retrieved 20 September 2023.
  7. NewcastleKnights.com.au. "King extends tenure with Knights". Zero Tackle. Retrieved 28 July 2016.
  8. "Home | Live Scores & Latest News". Fox Sports. Retrieved 29 June 2016.
  9. Ferguson, Shawn Dollin and Andrew. "Custom Match List - Rugby League Project". www.rugbyleagueproject.org. Retrieved 30 March 2018.
  10. "The worst teams in NRL history". Sporting News.
  11. Ferguson, Shawn Dollin and Andrew. "Custom Match List - Rugby League Project". www.rugbyleagueproject.org. Retrieved 30 March 2018.
  12. "Knights: 2017 by the numbers". NRL.
  13. "King secures contract extension". 30 March 2018. Retrieved 30 March 2018.
  14. "2019 SEASON REVIEW NEWCASTLE KNIGHT". Nothing But League.
  15. "King to swap Knights for Storm". Melbourne Storm. 17 August 2021.
  16. "Josh King: Season in Review". melbournestorm.com.au. 20 September 2022. Retrieved 21 September 2022.
  17. "NRL 2023: Melbourne Storm season review". www.sportingnews.com.
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