Anthony Minichiello

Anthony Minichiello

Player information
birthday	May 24, 1980
place of birth	Sydney , New South Wales , Australia
size	1.82 m
Nickname	Mini, The Count
society
society	Sydney Roosters
position	Goalkeeper, outside three quarters
Clubs as active
Years	society	Games (points)
2000-2014	Sydney Roosters	302 (557)
National team
Years	National team	Games (points)
1999-2013	Italy	7 (4)
2001-2010	NSW City	4 (8)
2003-2011	New South Wales Blues	11 (32)
2003-2005	Australia	19 (44)
As of September 26, 2014

Anthony Minichiello (born May 24, 1980 in Sydney ) is a former Australian rugby league player of Italian descent. He played his entire career in the NRL for the Sydney Roosters , with whom he won the NRL in 2002 and 2013 and the World Club Challenge in 2003 and 2014 .

Minichiello played for both the Australian and Italian national teams, with Australia winning the Tri Nations in 2004 . His brother Mark Minichiello is also a rugby league player.

Career

Minichiello was born in Liverpool, a south-western suburb of Sydney. He went to All Saints Catholic Senior College and played rugby for the East Valley United Junior Rugby League Club. There he was discovered and signed by Arthur Beetson , a rugby legend who had played for the Sydney Roosters in the 1970s .

On February 25, 2000, Minichiello made his NRL debut against the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs at the age of 19 . In his first season he made it with the Roosters to the NRL Grand Final, in which they lost 6:14 to the Brisbane Broncos . Because of his season accomplishments, he played for NSW City in the City vs. Country Origin game in 2001 .

In 2002 he put 16 attempts in 26 games and won with the Roosters the NRL Grand Final against the New Zealand Warriors and the subsequent World Club Challenge against St Helens . Since Luke Phillips had ended his career due to an injury, Minichiello moved to the 2003 season from the position of the outer three quarters to the goalkeeper.

In 2003 he made it to the Grand Final for the third time, in which the Roosters lost this time to the Penrith Panthers , and completed his 100th NRL game. He also took part in the State of Origin Series with New South Wales and completed a tour with Australia against Great Britain , which Australia won 3-0.

In 2004 he put 18 attempts, won the State of Origin Series with the New South Wales Blues and made it to the NRL Grand Final with the Roosters, in which they lost 13:16 to the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs . After the end of the season he took part in the Tri Nations 2004 with Australia . He made three attempts, two of them in a 44-4 final win over Great Britain . He was voted Fullback of the Year at the 2004 Dally M Awards.

In 2005 he won the State of Origin Series with New South Wales and made it to the final of the Tri Nations 2005 with Australia , in which they lost 0:24 against New Zealand . He also won the Wally Lewis Medal, an award for Best Player in the State of Origin Series since 2003, and the Golden Boot Award.

On March 26, 2006, Minichiello sustained a back injury during a game against the Canberra Raiders , which ended the season prematurely for him and forced him to undergo surgery.

In 2007 the Roosters celebrated the 100th anniversary of their club. On this occasion, a "Team 100 - The Centurions" was published, which also contained Minichiello. Minichiello completed a State of Origin game again in 2007, he did not take part in the second and third game because the consequences of his back injury made themselves felt. Because of them, he had to end the season early again.

The next two years were also marked by injuries. In 2008, the back pain returned during a Round 4 game against Canterbury-Bankstown. The result was that he could regain his position as goalkeeper neither with the Blues nor with the Australian national team, which was filled with Brett Stewart and Billy Slater . In 2009, he played two games before sustaining an ankle injury in a game against the Raiders that didn't let him return to the field until round 20.

2010 was Minichiello's first injury-free season since 2005. As part of a restructuring process at the Roosters that took place due to poor performance in recent seasons, he first moved from the position of goalkeeper to that of the outer three-quarter, before returning to his old position in round 8 Position returned. On August 23, 2010, he made his 100th attempt against the Gold Coast Titans . He was absent from the last two regular season games due to a hamstring injury when the playoffs began, but had recovered. The Roosters made it to the Grand Final, where they lost 8:32 to the St. George Illawarra Dragons .

In 2011 it was announced that he would qualify for the 2013 World Cup with Italy in 2013 . He last participated with the Blues in the State of Origin Series, replacing the injured Josh Dugan , and put two tries in two games. In round 16 he put against the Newcastle Knights his 105th attempt for the Roosters, which he replaced Bill Mullins as the Roosters top try scorer. On October 29, Italy played 19:19 against Lebanon , which qualified them for the 2013 World Cup.

In 2013, the Roosters won the NRL Grand Final 26:18 against the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles with Minichiello as captain . It was the first time since 1934 that the captain of the winning team was a goalkeeper. After the end of the 2013 season, he took part in the World Cup with Italy. Italy's first World Cup participation came to an end after beating Wales , drawing against Scotland and losing to Tonga after the group stage.

On August 4, 2014, Minichiello announced that he would end his career at the end of the season. In his last game, the semifinals against the South Sydney Rabbitohs , he made two attempts, but the Roosters lost 22:32. It was his 302nd game for the Roosters, which he replaced Luke Ricketson as the Roosters record player.

Web links

• Statistics on rugbyleagueproject.org

Individual evidence

1. ↑ http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/09/29/1064819874267.html
2. ↑ Steve Mascord: The Late Mail . In: The Sydney Morning Herald , September 26, 2003. Retrieved December 17, 2015. 
3. ↑ http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2004/09/07/1094530617889.html
4. ↑ http://www.smh.com.au/news/league/surgery-may-rule-minichiello-out-of-origin/2006/05/07/1146940411409.html