The A to Z of the NRL – C is for Rugby League Cult Heroes

Thanks to the ultimate killjoy Coronavirus, the NRL is now suspended, but a lack of on-field action won’t stop our A to Z of the NRL – this time it is the letter C for Rugby League Cult Heroes.

We have previously brought you the A to Z of Obscure NRL, which has proven quite popular, but this “season” we are giving every letter the treatment it deserves.

We have currently explored Advertisements and Broadcasters, so for C we thought it was time to get to the actual players.

For C is it time to think about the Cult Hero, those players who are loved just that little bit by rugby league fans around the world; often they don’t necessarily have to be the most gifted or achieve too much.

Some became a rugby league cult hero for having a great name, great facial hair or haircut, for being the likeable larrikin on and off the field, and in a few cases it is really hard to tell why. 

For your non-NRL viewing pleasure, here are our favourite rugby league Cult Heroes. 

We have included a poll at the bottom to decide once and for all who is the greatest NRL Cult Hero of all, as we compile the ultimate A to Z of the NRL.

 All player stats from the excellent Rugby League Project website.

A to Z of the NRL – C is for NRL Cult Heroes

SCOTT MINTO

2002-2007: 52 Games for Broncos, Cowboys – 15 Tries

We’ll start off with the most unlikely rugby league cult hero, former Broncos and Cowboys winger Scott Minto.

He had a modest first grade career – with the Broncos for five seasons and the Cowboys for one – where he was no superstar, but he was a match winner on occasion, like this one against the Melbourne Storm.

He still featured for the Broncos’ feeder club Toowoomba Clydesdales in the Queensland Cup after his NRL career was cut short, and featured in at least one Queensland Cup Grand Final at Lang Park. 

We can admit to having a Scott Minto playing card from back in the day, and getting it signed by former Brisbane Bullets basketball king Derek Rucker for no good reason and putting it on eBay. Still no takers.

He looked a little too much like Wayne Bennett, but somehow his fame grew since he retired,  even being involved in a poll for the next Immortal. Perhaps some of it was ironic, but you can’t deny rugby league cult hero status when Sportsbet wheeled out a bronze statue of Minto at Suncorp Stadium/Lang Park in 2018.

FUIFUI MOIMOI

2004–2014: 201 Games for Parramatta – 22 Tries; 12 Tests for NZ – four Tests for Tonga; also played for Leigh, Toronto and Workington in UK comps.

A man who became a cult hero for having a great name, at times large hair, and loads of power. But Moimoi was one of the better props in the game as Parramatta charged to the NRL Grand Final in 2009.

His career eventually fizzled out at Parramatta, 11 seasons after his debut, as did his international career; perhaps it didn’t quite hit the heights we’d hoped for, but his name was always first class.

His career is one of the longest for a rugby league cult hero, spanning 2004 to 2019, and has taken him to three continents after linking up with the trans-continental Toronto Wolfpack.

For some fun, here is some YouTube footage of fellow Eel Shane Shackleton doing an impersonation of Fuifui on The Footy Show a few years ago (when the show was still funny-ish).

LUKE WILLIAMSON

1997-2008: 218 Games for Adelaide, Canberra, Northern Eagles, Manly – 30 Tries

Another player in the 200 club, in addition to being a rugby league cult hero, and the only player on this list that we have been at the same school as.

Williamson had a decent rugby league pedigree, with his grandfather and father playing at a high level.

He was most famous for his lookalike status with the Cougar Bourbon ads, during the era where they were popular, and that was probably where he gained his cult hero status.

The fact that he played for Adelaide Rams and Northern Eagles back in the day makes his cult hero status even better.

A great read on the man came from a recent NRL article.

KIRK REYNOLDSON

2002- 2008: 125 Games for Melbourne, Newcastle, Dragons – 11 Tries

Possibly the nicest human that we have ever had the pleasure of knowing.

He reached cult hero status because of his bushranger look, often compared to Ned Kelly or the drummer from Creedence Clearwater Revival, but he was more than a beard; he was a solid NRL performer who was as honest a worker as they come.

The on-field career probably didn’t go on as long as he deserved, but played over 100 games, which was a decent return.

He has done well for himself off the field, now serving as CEO of a company he co-founded: Eggy – a company that deals with life admin.

 GEORGE ROSE

2004-2015: 151 Games for Roosters, Manly, Melbourne, Dragons – 11 Tries

It seems this list has a lot of forwards, and no surprise really given that rugby league cult heroes tend to come from slightly underappreciated players.

George Rose was another larger than life character that became a fan favourite during his career. From memory he was the only exciting prospect ahead of attending the 2013 Roosters v Manly Grand Final.

He may not have had the ultimate modern-day athlete’s look, which was accentuated by the tighter modern jerseys, but that’s what made him a fan favourite. He was a throwback to the 1980s, where rugby league players looked like the average Joe.

A move to the Storm didn’t quite work out: for once Craig Bellamy was unable to turn an unwanted player into a superstar down in Melbourne; and another season at the Dragons was the last of his decent NRL career, much like Reynoldson above.

FONDA METASSA

Brisbane Rugby League legend

Forgive the indulgence of going back to the 1960s, and to the Brisbane-based competition, but there would hardly be a rugby league players who reached cult status with so many great stories like Brisbane North’s Fonda Metassa.

The best story can be found here, as it delves into the history of the ambulance story.

A story which goes along the lines of Metassa being knocked out and in an ambulance before breaking out the back of the medical wagon and scoring a try. Other legends of him include having a comb in his sock for fixing his hair and switching wings at half time to ensure he was playing in front of the biggest crowd in each half.

A real pioneer as rugby league cult hero status.

DAVID WILLIAMS

2008-2015: 103 Games for Manly – 66 Tries; two Tests for Australia, two Matches for NSW

David Williams was known as the Wolfman, thanks to his unique facial hair, and he was a cult hero playing on the wing for Manly. Being a cult hero from Manly isn’t a bad effort given the level of disdain most other fans hold for them.

He was the RLPA Rookie of the year in 2008, played for Australia the same year and had two games for NSW the year after.

But the career didn’t quite hit the heights it could have, as Williams was unlucky with injuries and was caught up in the illegal betting crackdown in 2014. 

In 2011, he broke his neck in the match against the Storm that was made infamous for the sideline brawl between Adam Blair and Glenn Stewart.

Still, it was an impressive look there for a while.

Here’s a read from Athlete’s Voice.

SEMI RADRADRA

2013-2017: 94 Games for Parramatta – 82 Tries

A very good winger who could excite at his best, and he often did.

It also helped that he had a surname which was the most fun to say as any other surname of any rugby league player ever.

And a great beard.

He was Dally M Winger of the Year in both 2014 and 2015 and played just shy of 100 games with a super tries-per-game ratio.

The downside is some off-field accusations and disappearing to rugby union, which is always a negative in our books.

NATHAN ROSS

2015-2018: 60 Games for Newcastle – 23 Tries

Nathan Ross was a fan favourite at Newcastle, going by two nicknames of Ross Dog or White Lightning, which he apparently gave to himself.

He made the NRL later than usual (in defiance of the advice of then-coach Wayne Bennett, which would have endeared him to Newcastle fans even more), after a lot of hard graft in local competitions, and playing for French side Toulouse is the lower tiers of UK rugby league.

The winger looked to give everything every time he played and looked like he thoroughly enjoyed it.

He had to medically retire after the 2018 season, making it a short but interesting career.