Neil Henry facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Neil Henry

Personal information
Born	(1961-01-23) 23 January 1961 (age 64) Hobart, Tasmania, Australia
Playing information
Position	Five-eighth
Club Years Team Pld T G FG P 1988–89 Hull FC 8 1 0 0 4
Coaching information
Club Years Team Gms W D L W% 2007–08 Canberra Raiders 49 22 0 27 45 2009–13 North Qld Cowboys 124 59 0 65 48 2014–17 Gold Coast Titans 75 28 0 46 37 Total 248 109 0 138 44 Representative Years Team Gms W D L W% 2008 Dreamtime Team 1 1 0 0 100 2010 Indigenous All Stars 1 1 0 0 100 2018– Junior Kangaroos 2 2 0 0 100

Neil Henry, born on January 23, 1961, is an Australian professional rugby league coach and former player. He used to be the main coach for big teams like the Canberra Raiders, North Queensland Cowboys, and Gold Coast Titans in the National Rugby League. People often say he is one of the smartest coaches in the game.

Playing and Early Coaching Career

Neil Henry started his rugby league journey as a player. He was one of the first players for the Canberra Raiders. He played for the club in their lower teams in 1982 and 1984.

After his playing days, he became a player-coach for local clubs. These clubs were in the Canberra and Cooma areas. He also played for Hull FC in England for one season.

Moving into Coaching

In 1997, Henry became a coach for the Under 19 team of the Perth Reds. From 1999 to 2002, he coached the Raiders' junior teams. These were the SG Ball and Jersey Flegg teams.

He then became an assistant coach for the North Queensland Cowboys. This was from 2003 to 2006. He also helped Mal Meninga coach the Queensland State of Origin team from 2006 to 2009.

Head Coach Roles

Canberra Raiders Coach

In 2007, Neil Henry became a head coach in the National Rugby League (NRL). He coached the Canberra Raiders. In his first year, he was fined for questioning a referee's decision. However, fans quickly raised money to pay the fine. They donated the money to charity.

In 2008, Henry was named the Coach of the Year for the Dally M Awards. This is a big award in rugby league. He was chosen over other famous coaches like Craig Bellamy and Ricky Stuart.

North Queensland Cowboys Coach

In October 2009, Henry moved to Townsville, Queensland. He became the head coach of the North Queensland Cowboys. He also coached the Indigenous Dreamtime team in 2008. This team played a special game before the 2008 Rugby League World Cup.

In 2010, Henry coached the Indigenous All Stars team. They won their first ever All Stars match 16–12. That year, the Cowboys had a tough season. They only won five games. However, they avoided last place because another team lost points.

In 2011, Henry helped the Cowboys improve a lot. They won 14 games that season. He was also a finalist for the Dally M coach of the year award again in 2011. Despite leading the team to the finals three years in a row, his time with the Cowboys ended in July 2013.

Gold Coast Titans Coach

After leaving the Cowboys, Henry joined the Gold Coast Titans in September 2013. He started as an assistant coach. He later became the main coach in 2014. This happened after the previous coach resigned.

His first game as the Titans' head coach was in August 2014. They lost a close game to the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles. Henry coached the Titans until August 2017.

Later Coaching and Consulting Work

In 2018, Neil Henry returned to coaching representative teams. He coached the Junior Kangaroos to a win against the Junior Kiwis. In 2019, he coached an Australia A (Under 23) team. They won a big game against a French team.

Also in 2019, Henry started working for the NRL. He became a coaching consultant. In 2020, he joined the Queensland State of Origin staff. He was an assistant coach to Wayne Bennett. They won their series against New South Wales. In 2021, he was an assistant coach to Paul Green for the Queensland team.