Tim Sheens facts for kids
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Personal information
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| Full name | Timothy George Sheens | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | 30 October 1950 Lidcombe, New South Wales, Australia |
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| Height | 179 cm (5 ft 10 in) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 99 kg (15 st 8 lb) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Playing information
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| Position | Prop | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Coaching information
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As of 1 September 2023
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| Education | St Gregory's College, Campbelltown | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Relatives | Bob Sheens (brother) Joe Regent (great uncle) |
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Timothy "Tim" Sheens (born October 30, 1950) is a famous Australian rugby league coach and former player. He was the head coach for the Australian national team from 2009 to 2015. He has also coached several top clubs in Australia's National Rugby League (NRL). These include the Penrith Panthers, Canberra Raiders, North Queensland Cowboys, and Wests Tigers.
As a player, Tim Sheens was a strong "prop forward" for the Penrith club in the 1970s and 1980s. After he stopped playing, he became a coach. He led the Canberra Raiders to win three championships in 1989, 1990, and 1994. He also guided the Wests Tigers to a championship win in 2005. Tim Sheens holds a record for coaching the most games in Australian rugby league history. He also coached the New South Wales Blues in 1991.
In 2015, he joined the Super League club Salford Red Devils as Director of Rugby. He then coached Hull Kingston Rovers from 2017 to 2019. In 2021, he returned to the Wests Tigers in a development role. He became their head coach again for the 2023 season but stepped down at the end of that year.
Playing Career
Tim Sheens grew up in a well-known rugby league family in the Penrith area. He went to St Dominic's College in Penrith. For his last two years of school, he attended St Gregory's College, Campbelltown. There, he was the school captain and captain of the First XIII rugby team in 1968.
Playing for Penrith Panthers
Sheens played many games for the Penrith Panthers. He played 166 first-grade games between 1970 and 1982. He scored 11 tries during his time as a player. He started his career playing in the "backrow" position. Later, he became a "ball-playing prop," which is a forward who helps set up plays.
In 1974, he was named the Penrith Panthers' Player of the Year. He played a club record 258 games across all grades by 1982. This was the most games for a Penrith Panthers player until Royce Simmons played more in 1989. After leaving Penrith, Sheens played one season for the Campbelltown City Kangaroos in 1983. He captained them to win the Group 6 Rugby League championship that year.
In 2006, Tim Sheens was honored as one of the Penrith Panthers "Team of Legends." This recognized his important contributions as a player. Tim's brother, Bob Sheens, also played first-grade rugby league for Eastern Suburbs.
Coaching Career
Tim Sheens is known for taking teams that weren't doing well and helping them win championships. His first game as a first-grade coach was a loss to St. George.
Coaching the Penrith Panthers
Sheens led the Penrith Panthers to their first-ever finals series in 1985. He left the club at the end of the 1987 season.
Coaching the Canberra Raiders
Sheens coached the Canberra Raiders to their first championship win in 1989. After that season, he traveled with the team to England for the 1989 World Club Challenge. They lost that game to Widnes. He then led Canberra to win two more championships in 1990 and 1994.
Coaching the North Queensland Cowboys
His time with the North Queensland Cowboys (1997–2001) was not as successful. The team finished last twice, earning the "Wooden Spoon" award. He resigned from the Cowboys in May 2001.
Coaching the Wests Tigers
In 2002, Sheens became the coach for the Wests Tigers for the 2003 season. Many people believe he was key to the Wests Tigers winning the 2005 Grand Final against the Cowboys.
Sheens has coached four championship-winning teams. This makes him one of the most successful coaches in Australian rugby league history. He won the Dally M Coach of the Year award in 1984, 1990, and 2005.
After winning the NRL championship, the Wests Tigers traveled to England. They played against the Super League champions Bradford Bulls in the 2006 World Club Challenge. The Tigers lost that game 30–10.
In May 2010, Sheens became the first coach in Australian rugby league history to reach 600 games coached. In 2011, he chose to stay with the Wests Tigers, extending his contract until 2014. However, in September 2012, the Wests Tigers announced that Sheens would not coach the team in 2013. They offered him other roles at the club instead.
Coaching in England
On June 23, 2015, Sheens became the Director of Rugby League at the English club Salford Red Devils.
In September 2016, it was announced that he would join Hull Kingston Rovers for the 2017 season. In his first year, he coached Hull Kingston Rovers to get promoted back to the Super League. After two years, Sheens was let go from Hull KR in June 2019.
On October 13, 2020, it was announced that Sheens had resigned as head coach of Widnes Vikings.
Return to Wests Tigers (Second Time)
In 2021, it was announced that Sheens would return to the Wests Tigers. He worked in areas like player development and finding new talent. Later, he was named the club's coach for the 2023 and 2024 seasons. The plan was for Benji Marshall, a hero from the 2005 championship team, to take over as head coach in 2025.
Sheens' second time as Wests Tigers head coach started with a tough period. The team lost their first five matches in 2023. In round 9 of the 2023 NRL season, Sheens led the club to their first win in 273 days. They defeated the Penrith Panthers 12-8. However, in round 18, the Wests Tigers lost to North Queensland 74-0. This was the biggest loss in NRL history.
On August 16, 2023, the Wests Tigers announced that Sheens had asked to step down as head coach at the end of the season. Benji Marshall then took over as head coach in 2024, earlier than planned. Sheens was expected to stay with the Tigers in a mentoring role.
Representative Coaching
Tim Sheens has also coached at the representative level, meaning he coached teams made up of players from different clubs.
Coaching New South Wales
In 1991, he coached the ARL City Origin team to a 22–12 win over Country. In the same year, he coached the New South Wales State of Origin team. They lost the series 2–1 to Queensland. In 1997, Sheens coached the New South Wales Super League team to a win over Queensland in a Tri-series competition.
Sheens returned to coaching the City Origin team in 2006, 2007, and 2008. City lost in 2006 but won in 2007. The 2008 match was a 22–22 draw, with City keeping the trophy.
Coaching the Australian Kangaroos
In February 2009, Sheens was appointed coach of the Australian national rugby league team, known as the Kangaroos. He led the Kangaroos to their first win under his charge against the Kiwis in May 2009.
He coached the Kangaroos to a successful 2013 Rugby League World Cup victory. The Australian team was very strong, only allowing four tries against them in the entire tournament. This win was a great comeback after losing to New Zealand in the 2008 World Cup Final.
Sheens resigned as the Kangaroos head coach on October 3, 2015. He left to take on a full-time role as director of the Super League club Salford Red Devils.
Coaching Combined Nations
On June 25, 2021, he coached the Combined Nations All Stars. They won 26-24 against England. This game was part of England’s preparations for the 2021 Rugby League World Cup.
