Dean Widders

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Dean Widders
Personal information
Full name Dean Widders
Date of birth 25 October 1979 (1979-10-25) (age 28)
Place of birth Armidale, Australia
Height 180 cm (5 ft 11 in)
Weight 94 kg (14 st 11 lb)
Nickname(s) Ralph
Club information
Position(s) Second Row
Current club South Sydney Rabbitohs
Number 15
Youth clubs
Years Club
Armidale, Narwan
Senior clubs*
Years Club Apps (points)
2000–2001
2002–2006
2007–
Sydney Roosters
Parramatta Eels
South Sydney Rabbitohs
13 (4)
112 (112)
25 (20)
Representative teams
2006 Country 1 (0)

* Professional club appearances and points
counted for domestic first grade only and
correct as of 17:05, 1 January 2008 (UTC).

Dean Richard Widders (born 25 October 1979 in Armidale, New South Wales), an Indigenous Australian, is a professional rugby league player in the Australian National Rugby League (NRL).

Contents

[edit] Biography

Childhood Dean Widders played his first game of rugby league at the age of six, he tried many other sports but excelled especially in rugby league. Widders was also an avid reader during his childhood, a skill that he continues to promote.

Teenage Years During Widders' teenage years he honed his rugby league skills and became well-known in the local area as a lock playing for the Armidale greens. During this time a Sydney Roosters selector flew to Armidale to see Widders' play. When Widders' was 14, in 1993, he was invited to a selection trial and proved to be one of the best players. At the age of 17, in 1996, Widders' moved to Sydney to play with the Sydney Roosters, in this year he captained an Aboriginal side. In 1997 Widders' returned to Duval High School in Armidale to complete his Higher School Certificate.

Adult Life Widders' played NRL Premier League for the Roosters, occasionally playing in NRL matches. In 2002 Widders' signed with the Parramatta Eels, he finished with this club at the end of 2006.

Widders' is very well respected in his hometown of Armidale, New South Wales: in 2004 he was awarded the NRL's Ken Stephen's Medal for his positive work with youth in the community and in 2006 he was appointed to the Federal Government's National Indigenous Council. Widders is also an Ambassador for the National Aboriginal Sports Corporation Australia (NASCA).[1]

[edit] Literature program

When Widders' was a child he had access to reading material, in a context where not many Aboriginal children did. Widders' now travels around Australia distributing books to indigenous children and indigenous communities. He also helps indigenous children with their writing skills via email.[citation needed]

[edit] Playing career

Widders' was involved in a racial vilification incident in July 2005 when South Sydney Rabbitohs captain Bryan Fletcher racially abused him [1]. In 2006 he signed a three year contract to play for the South Sydney Rabbitohs starting in 2007, where he hopes to cement a starting position and move on to higher representative achievement.

[edit] Career highlights

  • Junior Club: Armidale, Narwan
  • Career Stats: 103 first grade games to date scoring 26 tries

[edit] Footnotes

  1. ^ "New Member Appointed to National Indigenous Council", Commonwealth Government, 2006-06-19. Retrieved on 2008-01-02. 

[edit] External links