Cory Paterson

Cory Paterson
Cory Paterson in 2009 when he was with the Newcastle Knights.
Personal information
Nickname Pato, Donny
Born 14 July 1987 (1987-07-14) (age 24)
Perth, Western Australia, Australia
Height 195 cm (6 ft 5 in)
Weight 102 kg (16 st 1 lb)
Playing information
Position Second-row, Centre, Five-eighth, Lock
Club
Years Team Pld T G FG P
2007–2011 Newcastle Knights 77 21 12 0 108
2011– North Queensland 7 3 0 0 12
Total 84 24 12 0 120
Representative
Years Team Pld T G FG P
2010–2011 Indigenous All Stars 2 0 0 0 0
As of 22 October 2011
Source: RLP

Cory Paterson (born 14 July 1987 in Perth, Western Australia) is an Australian professional rugby league player. He currently plays for the North Queensland Cowboys in the National Rugby League (NRL). He previously played 77 NRL matches for the Newcastle Knights. His usual position is in the second-row.

Career

After playing junior rugby league in his home town of Perth, Western Australia,[1] Paterson attended St Francis Xavier College in Hamilton, Newcastle and in 2005 represented Australia at schoolboy level.[2]

In 2007, Cory Paterson was promoted to train with the Newcastle Knights first team squad.[3] He made his debut in round 2 of that year in a win against the St. George Illawarra Dragons.

At the end of the 2008 season, Paterson was selected in the Prime Minister's XIII to play the Papua New Guinea national team in Port Moresby.[4] He then toured the United States to visit a number of National Football League clubs and trial for the Oakland Raiders.[5] Paterson suffered depression during the 2009 season, causing him to miss some NRL matches, but returned to good form on the field in 2010 season, when he was selected for the Indigenous All Stars squad.[6][7] In 2011, Paterson represented the Indigenous All Stars again, but midway through the season he was released from his contract by the Knights, a decision made by the club's incoming coach Wayne Bennett.[8]

After being released by Newcastle, Paterson almost immediately signed for the North Queensland Cowboys, on a contract to play for the remainder of the 2011 season and two additional seasons. Paterson was told by the Knights that he was not part of their long term plans and was free to look elsewhere for 2011 and beyond.[9] Paterson converted to Islam during the 2011 season, requiring him to fast during daylight hours in the month of August, co-inciding with the Cowboys run-in to the NRL finals series. Paterson is close to Anthony Mundine and Sonny Bill Williams, two prominent former rugby league players who converted to Islam.[10] He sought advice on fasting as a professional rugby league player from Hazem El-Masri, a devout Lebanese-born Muslim who played over 300 first-grade matches for the Canterbury Bulldogs.[11]

References

  1. ^ "Player profile: Cory Paterson". www.cowboys.com.au. North Queensland Cowboys. Archived from the original on 22 October 2011. http://www.webcitation.org/62dJ6tXxv. Retrieved 22 October 2011. 
  2. ^ "Australian Rugby League: Annual Report 2005". Australian Rugby League. p. 27. https://secure.ausport.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0007/98638/Australian_Rugby_League_2005.pdf. Retrieved 22 October 2011. 
  3. ^ "Paterson re-signs with Knights". RLeague.com. 2007-06-15. http://www.rleague.com//db/player/p/paterson_cory/index.php. Retrieved 2007-06-22. 
  4. ^ O'Neill, Matthew (16 September 2008). "Hindmarsh to lead PM's XIII". rleague.com. http://www.rleague.com/content/article.php?id=31463. Retrieved 22 October 2011. 
  5. ^ Hooper, James (1 November 2008). "Cory kicks up a storm in US". The Sunday Telegraph. http://www.couriermail.com.au/sport/nrl/cory-kicks-up-a-storm-in-us/story-e6frep8f-1111117919495. Retrieved 22 October 2011. 
  6. ^ Ritchie, Dean (22 March 2010). "Melbourne fullback Billy Slater allegedly taunts Newcastle forward Cory Paterson over depression". Herald Sun. http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/nrl/melbourne-fullback-billy-slater-allegedly-taunts-newcastle-forward-cory-paterson-over-depression/story-e6frfgbo-1225843490978. Retrieved 22 October 2011. 
  7. ^ Keeble, Brett (22 March 2010). "Paterson accepts apology from Storm fullback after sledging incident". Newcastle Herald. http://www.theherald.com.au/news/local/sport/rugby-league/paterson-accepts-apology-from-storm-fullback-after-sledging-incident/1782212.aspx?storypage=0. Retrieved 22 October 2011. 
  8. ^ Badel, Peter (24 July 2011). "Wayne Bennett's snubbing of Cory Paterson has only made him stronger". Herald Sun. http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/nrl/wayne-bennetts-snubbing-of-cory-paterson-has-only-made-him-stronger/story-e6frfgbo-1226100368244. Retrieved 22 October 2011. 
  9. ^ Ryan, Nathan (3 June 2011). "Paterson to join Cowboys immediately". www.sportsnewsfirst.com.au. http://www.sportsnewsfirst.com.au/articles/2011/06/02/paterson-to-join-cowboys-immediately/. Retrieved 22 October 2011. 
  10. ^ Massoud, Josh (2 August 2011). "North Queensland Cowboys NRL star Cory Paterson converts to Islam". The Daily Telegraph (Australia). http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport/nrl/north-queensland-cowboys-nrl-star-cory-paterson-converts-to-islam/story-e6frexnr-1226106289628. Retrieved 22 October 2011. 
  11. ^ Massoud, Josh (3 August 2011). "Muslim convert Cory Paterson approached Hazem El Masri for advice on Islam during All Star camp". The Daily Telegraph (Australia). http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport/nrl/muslim-convert-cory-paterson-approached-hazem-el-masri-for-advice-on-islam-during-all-star-camp/story-e6frexnr-1226107013910. Retrieved 22 October 2011.