Matt Sing facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Matt Sing

Sing playing for Hull FC in 2007
Personal information
Full name	Matthew Charles Sing
Born	(1975-03-13) 13 March 1975 (age 50) Winton, Queensland, Australia
Playing information
Height	175 cm (5 ft 9 in)
Weight	86 kg (13 st 8 lb)
Position	Wing, Centre
Club Years Team Pld T G FG P 1993–95 Penrith Panthers 36 14 0 0 56 1996–01 Sydney Roosters 135 72 0 0 288 2002–06 North Qld Cowboys 104 73 0 0 292 2007–08 Hull FC 48 17 0 0 68 Total 323 176 0 0 704 Representative Years Team Pld T G FG P 1995–05 Queensland 24 5 0 0 20 1995–05 Australia 14 5 0 0 20

Matthew Charles Sing (born 13 March 1975) is a former professional rugby league player from Australia. He played in the 1990s and 2000s. Matt Sing represented both Australia and Queensland. He played for several clubs: the Penrith Panthers, Sydney Roosters, and North Queensland Cowboys in Australia's National Rugby League (NRL). Later, he played for Hull FC in the Super League in England.

Matt Sing was a fantastic try-scorer. He was the sixth player in Australian top-level rugby league history to score 150 tries. As of 2025, he is tied for tenth place on the list of all-time try scorers.

Matt Sing's Early Life

Matt Sing was born in Winton, Queensland, Australia. He is of Indigenous Australian background. He grew up in a town called Dysart. There, he started playing junior rugby league for the Dysart Bulls. He later went to North Rockhampton State High School. In 1992, when he was a teenager, Matt was chosen to play for the Queensland under-17 team.

Matt Sing's Rugby League Career

Playing for the Penrith Panthers

Matt Sing joined the Penrith Panthers in 1993. He first played as a halfback (halfback). After some tough games in the Panthers' lower teams, he was moved to a local Penrith competition. There, a former coach, Len Stacker, suggested he play as a centre (centre). This change really helped his career.

He quickly returned to the Panthers' reserve team. He was also picked for the Junior Kangaroos, which is a team for young Australian players. Matt made his first-grade debut in Round 13 of the 1993 NSWRL season. In his first year, he played four games, usually coming off the bench. In 1994, he became a regular starting centre for Penrith. He played 17 games and scored six tries. He was even named the club's Rookie of the Year.

In 1995, Matt Sing played his first State of Origin game for Queensland. He started on the wing in all three games. Queensland won the series 3–0 against New South Wales. In July 1995, he also played his first game for Australia. He started on the wing in their 20–10 win against New Zealand. Matt left the Panthers at the end of 1995. The club decided to join the new Super League competition. However, Matt chose to stay with the Australian Rugby League. He signed with the Sydney City Roosters. In his last season with the Panthers, he scored 8 tries in 15 games.

Playing for the Sydney Roosters

In 1996, Matt Sing's first year with the Roosters, he scored 12 tries in 21 games. For his first five years at the club, he scored 10 or more tries every season. He played all three games for Queensland in the 1996 State of Origin series, which they lost to New South Wales. In October, he played for Australia in a big 52–6 win against Papua New Guinea.

In 1997, he scored 11 tries in 22 games. The Roosters almost made it to the Grand Final. In June 1997, he scored his first try for Queensland. In July 1997, he scored for Australia in their 28–8 win against the Rest of the World team. In 1998, Sing scored 15 tries in 27 games for the Roosters. He also played all three games for Queensland again, helping them win the series. In Round 21 of 1998, he played his 100th first-grade game.

In 1999, he was called back to play for Australia. He came off the bench in their Anzac Test win against New Zealand. In 2000, he received the Australian Sports Medal. This award recognized his important contributions to Australian rugby league on the world stage. On 27 August 2000, he started on the wing for the Roosters in the Grand Final. They lost to the Brisbane Broncos. In Round 5 of the 2001 NRL season, he played his 150th first-grade game.

Playing for the North Queensland Cowboys

In 2002, Matt Sing joined the North Queensland Cowboys. In his first year with the team, he scored 16 tries in 23 games. He won the club's Player of the Year and Players' Player awards. In Round 22 of 2002, he scored his 100th first-grade try. In the 2003 NRL season, he scored an amazing 21 tries in 20 games. He won the Players' Player award again. That season, he was called back to play for both Queensland and Australia. In the third game of the 2003 State of Origin series, he scored three tries (a hat-trick) in a 36–6 win over New South Wales. He was named man of the match for his great performance. In November 2003, he started two games on the wing for Australia in their Ashes series win against Great Britain.

In 2004, Matt Sing played only 12 games because of jaw and knee injuries. He recovered in time for the finals. He scored another hat-trick in a 30–22 win against the Canterbury Bulldogs. This was the Cowboys' first-ever finals game win. In October and November 2004, he played for Australia in their winning Tri-Nations tournament. He started on the wing in all five games. After the Tri-Nations, he said he would retire from playing for his state and country.

In 2005, Matt Sing changed his mind about retiring from representative football. He started all three games for Queensland in the 2005 State of Origin series. He also played for Australia in the 2005 Anzac Test. In the 2005 NRL season, he played 25 games and scored 16 tries. He played his 250th first-grade game in the Cowboys' 29–0 win over the Parramatta Eels in the preliminary final. On 2 October 2005, he started on the wing in the Cowboys' Grand Final loss to the Wests Tigers. In 2006, Sing played his last season for the Cowboys. He played 24 games and was the team's top try scorer with 13 tries. In Round 2 of the 2006 NRL season, he scored his 150th first-grade try. He was only the sixth player ever to do this. On 6 June 2006, he signed a two-year deal to play for Hull F.C. in England.

Playing for Hull F.C.

In 2007, Matt Sing scored 11 tries in 23 Super League games for Hull F.C.. On 30 August 2008, he started on the wing in Hull's 2008 Challenge Cup Final loss to St Helens. He retired from professional rugby league at the end of the 2008 season. He played 48 games for Hull over two seasons, scoring 17 tries.

Achievements and Awards

Individual Awards

• Penrith Panthers Rookie of the Year: 1994
• North Queensland Cowboys Player of the Year: 2002
• North Queensland Cowboys Players' Player: 2002, 2003

Career Statistics

NRL Games

These numbers are correct up to the end of the 2008 season.

Season	Team	Matches	T	G	GK %	F/G	Pts
1993	Penrith	4	0	0	—	0	0
1994	Penrith	17	6	0	—	0	24
1995	Penrith	15	8	0	—	0	32
1996	Sydney City	21	12	0	—	0	48
1997	Sydney City	22	11	0	—	0	44
1998	Sydney City	27	15	0	—	0	60
1999	Sydney City	20	13	0	—	0	52
2000	Sydney	19	13	0	—	0	52
2001	Sydney	26	8	0	—	0	32
2002	North Queensland	23	16	0	—	0	64
2003	North Queensland	20	21	0	—	0	84
2004	North Queensland	12	7	0	—	0	28
2005	North Queensland	25	16	0	—	0	64
2006	North Queensland	24	13	0	—	0	159
Career totals		275	159	0	–	0	636

Super League and Challenge Cup Games

Season	Team	Matches	T	G	GK %	F/G	Pts
2007 Super League	Hull F.C.	23	11	0	—	0	44
2007 Challenge Cup	Hull F.C.	3	1	0	—	0	4
2008 Super League	Hull F.C.	18	3	0	—	0	12
2008 Challenge Cup	Hull F.C.	4	2	0	—	0	8
Career totals		48	17	0	–	0	68

International Games

Season	Team	Matches	T	G	GK %	F/G	Pts
1995	Australia	1	0	0	—	0	0
1996	Australia	1	0	0	—	0	0
1997	Australia	1	1	0	—	0	4
1999	Australia	1	0	0	—	0	0
2003	Australia	4	2	0	—	0	8
2004	Australia	5	1	0	—	0	4
2005	Australia	1	1	0	—	0	4
Career totals		14	5	0	—	0	20

State of Origin Games

Season	Team	Matches	T	G	GK %	F/G	Pts
1995†	Queensland	3	0	0	—	0	0
1996	Queensland	3	0	0	—	0	0
1997	Queensland	3	1	0	—	0	4
1998†	Queensland	3	1	0	—	0	4
1999	Queensland	2	0	0	—	0	0
2000	Queensland	2	0	0	—	0	0
2003	Queensland	3	3	0	—	0	12
2004	Queensland	2	0	0	—	0	0
2005	Queensland	3	0	0	—	0	0
Career totals		24	5	0	—	0	20

Life After Playing Rugby League

In 2009, Matt Sing became an assistant coach for the Central Comets team in the Queensland Cup. He helped coach the backs (players who play behind the main forwards). In June 2009, he even played a few games for the Comets, briefly coming out of retirement.

On 17 May 2015, Matt Sing was chosen for the Cowboys' 20-year team. This team celebrated the best players from the club's first two decades. Along with Paul Bowman, he was one of the first players to be added to the Cowboys' Hall of Fame.