Blake Ferguson (rugby league) facts for kids
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Personal information
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| Born | 20 March 1990 Wellington, New South Wales, Australia |
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| Height | 191 cm (6 ft 3 in) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 102 kg (16 st 1 lb) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Playing information
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| Position | Wing, Centre | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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As of 24 July 2023
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Blake Ferguson (born 20 March 1990) is a former professional rugby league footballer. He played as a winger or centre. Earlier in his career, he also played as a fullback.
During his rugby league career, he played for several teams in the National Rugby League (NRL). These included the Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks, Canberra Raiders, Sydney Roosters, and Parramatta Eels. He also played for the Leigh Leopards in England.
Blake represented important teams like the Indigenous All Stars and Country NSW. He also played for New South Wales in the famous State of Origin series. He was part of the NSW Blues team that won the 2019 State of Origin series. He also helped the Sydney Roosters win the 2018 NRL Grand Final. Blake Ferguson is also an amateur boxer.
Contents
Early Life and Background
Blake Ferguson was born in Sydney, Australia, on 20 March 1990. He is of Aboriginal descent, from the Wiradjuri people. This heritage made him eligible to play for the Indigenous All Stars team.
He started playing junior rugby league at local clubs. These clubs were the Wellington Cowboys and Earlwood Saints.
NRL Career Highlights
Playing for the Cronulla Sharks
Blake Ferguson started his professional career with the Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks. In his first year, the 2009 Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks season, he was the team's top try scorer. He was a strong contender for the rookie of the year award that season.
After the 2010 season, Ferguson left the Sharks. This was due to a special part of his contract. It allowed him to leave if his coach, Ricky Stuart, also left the club.
Time with the Canberra Raiders
Ferguson then signed a two-year deal with the Canberra Raiders. He joined them starting in 2011. He quickly became a key player for the team.
In the 2011 Canberra Raiders season, he was the Raiders' top try-scorer. He continued to be a strong performer for the club. He also finished as the Raiders' top try scorer in the 2013 Canberra Raiders season.
Success with the Sydney Roosters
In May 2014, Blake Ferguson joined the Sydney Roosters. He was seen as a strong player to help the team. He even took a refereeing course as part of his training.
For the 2015 NRL season, Ferguson played very well. Many people thought he was one of the best new players that season. He was expected to play fullback for the 2016 NRL season. However, after one game, he moved back to the centres.
Ferguson was part of the Roosters team that reached the finals in 2017. He scored an important try in the preliminary final. However, the Roosters lost that game in an upset.
On 4 July 2018, Ferguson signed a contract to join the Parramatta Eels in 2019. He had wanted to stay with the Roosters. However, they only offered him a one-year deal.
In the last game of the 2018 season, Ferguson scored his 100th career try. This was against his future team, the Parramatta Eels. His last game for the Roosters was the 2018 NRL Grand Final. He played the second half of that game with a broken leg.
Playing for the Parramatta Eels
Ferguson made his debut for Parramatta in Round 1 of the 2019 season. He scored his first two tries for the Eels in Round 2. This helped his team win 36–16 against Canterbury.
In Round 5, he got a broken nose and bruised ribs. This injury made him miss the next game. Later in the season, he scored two tries against Canberra. Parramatta came back from a big deficit to win that game.
In July 2019, Ferguson had to stop playing due to a knee infection. He needed surgery and missed several weeks. His coach said his health was the top priority.
He returned to play in Round 24. At the end of the 2019 season, Parramatta made the finals. In the first final, Ferguson scored a try. Parramatta won that game 58–0. This was the biggest finals win in history.
In 2020, Ferguson scored his first try of the year in Round 17. This was his first try in almost a year. In 2021, he scored two tries in a win over Cronulla. The next week, he scored two more tries against the Wests Tigers.
He was later dropped from the Parramatta team for a few weeks. After playing in the NSW Cup, he returned to the main team. In Round 24, he scored two tries against Melbourne. This win ended Melbourne's 19-game winning streak.
In the 2021 Finals Series, Ferguson scored two tries. This helped Parramatta win their elimination final against Newcastle. His last game for Parramatta was the following week. Parramatta lost to Penrith in a close game. He left the Parramatta club on 22 September 2021.
Playing in England with Leigh
On 29 April 2022, Blake Ferguson signed a one-year deal with the RFL Championship team, Leigh. He made his debut for Leigh on 23 May 2022. In that game, he scored four tries.
On 28 May 2022, Ferguson won his first trophy with Leigh. They defeated Featherstone 30-16 in the RFL 1895 Cup final. On 3 October 2022, Ferguson played in Leigh's Million Pound Game victory. This win helped the club get promoted back to the Super League.
Later Career in Australia
On 3 October 2023, it was reported that he had joined the Kurri Kurri Bulldogs. He later left the club. The next day, Ferguson signed with a new club, the Wellington Cowboys.
Representative Career
Playing for the All Stars
In 2010, Blake was chosen to play for the Indigenous All-Stars team. He replaced an injured player. In that game, he famously chased down and tackled Israel Folau.
Representing Country NSW
In 2012, Ferguson had one of his best seasons. He was selected to represent the Country New South Wales rugby league team.
Playing for New South Wales
In 2013, Ferguson made his debut for the New South Wales rugby league team. This was in Game I of the 2013 State of Origin series. He had previously been asked to play for Queensland.
In 2018, Ferguson was not chosen for the State of Origin series. Despite his strong performance that year, the coach chose other players.
However, after missing out in 2018, Ferguson was selected for Game 2 of the 2019 State of Origin series. New South Wales won that game 38–6. He was also chosen for Game 3, the deciding match. With only one minute left, Ferguson made a great run. He passed the ball to James Tedesco, who scored the winning try. This helped New South Wales win the series with only 20 seconds left.
Playing for Australia
In 2012, Blake was part of the training squad for the Australian national team.
On 6 May 2016, Ferguson made his international debut for Australia. This was against New Zealand in the 2016 Anzac Test. He scored a try in his very first international game.
Boxing Career
Blake Ferguson is also an amateur boxer. He made his professional boxing debut on 27 November 2013. He fought against Luke Turner in that match.
Images for kids
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Ferguson playing for Cronulla in 2009
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Ferguson playing for the Canberra Raiders in 2012
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Ferguson playing for the Parramatta Eels in 2021
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Ferguson representing the Prime Ministers XIII in 2011
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Ferguson playing for Australia
