Rod Jensen facts for kids
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Personal information
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| Full name | Rod Frederick Jensen | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | 19 January 1979 Atherton, Queensland, Australia |
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Playing information
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| Height | 178 cm (5 ft 10 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Position | Wing, Centre | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Rod Frederick Jensen (born 19 January 1979) is a former professional rugby league player from Australia. He was known by his nickname, 'Rocket' Rod Jensen, because of his amazing speed on the field.
Rod played for several teams during his career. These included the Northern Pride in the Queensland Cup, the Huddersfield Giants in the Super League in the United Kingdom, and the North Queensland Cowboys in Australia's National Rugby League (NRL). He also spent five seasons playing for the Canberra Raiders. Rod began his professional journey with the Adelaide Rams in 1997.
Early Life and Education
Rod Jensen was born in Atherton, Queensland, Australia. He grew up there and attended St Augustine's College for his schooling.
Rod also went to James Cook University of North Queensland. He graduated in 2005 with a degree to become a teacher.
Playing Career Highlights
Rod Jensen was a very versatile player. This means he could play well in many different positions on the rugby league field. His speed and agility were a big part of his game, which is how he earned his nickname 'Rocket'.
- North Queensland Cowboys: In 2005, Rod played for the North Queensland Cowboys in their first-ever Grand Final. He came off the bench as an interchange player in that big game. However, the Cowboys unfortunately lost to the Wests Tigers.
- Huddersfield Giants: Later in his career, Rod played in the Super League in the United Kingdom. He showed off his incredible speed there. In 2007, he scored several tries by running the full length of the field. One famous moment was when he outran Kevin Penny, who was known as one of the fastest players in the Super League at the time.
- Northern Pride: After his time in the Super League, Rod returned to Australia. He played for the Northern Pride in the Queensland Cup. He scored 19 tries for the team before he first retired after the 2009 season.
Rod came out of retirement in the middle of the 2010 season to rejoin the Northern Pride. That year, the team went on to win the Queensland Cup championship! He continued playing for the Northern Pride in 2011 and 2012. After that, he moved on to play for the Mareeba Gladiators.
After Playing Rugby League
After his professional playing career ended, Rod Jensen continued to be involved in rugby league. He is currently the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Northern Pride club, the same team he played for.
Rod also became involved in politics. In the 2022 Australian federal election, he ran as a candidate. He wanted to represent the Division of Leichhardt, which is a region in Far North Queensland. He ran as a candidate for the Katter's Australian Party.
