Jesse Southwell (born 12 February 2005) is an Australian

rugby league Rugby league football, commonly known as just rugby league and sometimes football, footy, rugby or league, is a full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular field measuring 68 metres (75 yards) wide and 11 ...

and rugby sevens footballer who currently plays for the

Newcastle Knights The Newcastle Knights are an Australian professional rugby league club based in Newcastle, New South Wales. They compete in Australasia's premier rugby league competition, the National Rugby League (NRL) premiership. Playing in red and blue, th ...

in the

NRL Women's Premiership The Telstra NRL Women's Premiership (NRLW) is Australia's national rugby league competition for female players. The first season of the league began in September 2018 with four teams. The league is run by the National Rugby League (NRL) and is ...

. Her positions are and .

Background

Southwell was born in

Newcastle, New South Wales Newcastle ( ; Awabakal: ) is a metropolitan area and the second most populated city in the state of New South Wales, Australia. It includes the Newcastle and Lake Macquarie local government areas, and is the hub of the Greater Newcastle area ...

. She played her junior rugby league for the Kotara Bears. She had played rugby league since she was a 5-year old child and only played rugby sevens for the first time at high school. She also played touch football growing up. Southwell said she was inspired by the Australian gold medal winning rugby sevens team at the

2016 Olympic Games ) , nations = 207 (including IOA and EOR teams) , athletes = 11,238 , events = 306 in 28 sports (41 disciplines) , opening = 5 August 2016 , closing = 21 August 2016 , opened_by = Vice President Michel Temer , cauldron = Vanderlei Cordeiro d ...

. She is the younger sister of Knights teammate

Hannah Southwell Hannah Southwell (born 4 March 1999) is an Australian professional rugby league footballer who currently co-captains the Newcastle Knights in the NRL Women's Premiership. Primarily a , she is an Australian and New South Wales representative. ...

Playing career

Early years

In 2020, Southwell made history by becoming the first female player to sign a contract with the

. In November 2021, she was announced as a development player for the Knights'

side.

2022

Southwell played for the Knights' Tarsha Gale Cup side in 2022. She was selected for the Australian sevens squad in April following her stand out performances in the AON University Sevens Series for the Newcastle University in

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

. In May, she played a match for the Knights' NSWRL Women's Premiership side. She won a gold medal with the Australian sevens team at the

2022 Commonwealth Games The 2022 Commonwealth Games, officially known as the XXII Commonwealth Games and commonly known as Birmingham 2022, was an international multi-sport event for members of the Commonwealth of Nations that took place in Birmingham, England bet ...

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1. ...

. In August, she officially joined the Knights' NRLW top 24-squad after gaining an exemption from the NRL due to being underage. In round 1 of the 2022 NRLW season, she made her NRLW debut for the Knights against the

Brisbane Broncos The Brisbane Broncos Rugby League Football Club Ltd., commonly referred to as the Broncos, is an Australian professional rugby league football club based in Brisbane, Queensland. Founded in April 1987, the Broncos play in Australia's elite c ...

, scoring a try in the Knights' 32-14 win. On 2 October, Southwell played in the Knights' 2022 NRLW Grand Final win over the

Parramatta Eels The Parramatta Eels are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in the Sydney suburb of Parramatta that competes in the National Rugby League. The Parramatta District Rugby League Football Club was formed in 1947, and their ...

, scoring a try and kicking a goal in the Knights' 32-12 victory.

2023

In April, Southwell re-signed with the Knights on a contract until the end of 2027. Southwell made her

State of Origin A State of Origin competition is a type of sporting event between players representing their state or territory. State of Origin began in Australian rules football on 8 October 1977 between Western Australia (WA) and Victoria, at Subiaco Ov ...

debut for

in Game 1 of the 2023 Women's State of Origin at Parramatta's

CommBank Stadium Western Sydney Stadium, commercially known as CommBank Stadium, is a multi-purpose rectangular stadium in Parramatta, within the Greater Western Sydney region, approximately west of Sydney CBD. It replaced the demolished Parramatta Stadium ...

. Her try against the Sydney Roosters was voted the NRLW try of the year.

References

External links

Newcastle Knights profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Southwell, Jesse 2005 births Living people Australian female rugby union players Australian female rugby league players Newcastle Knights (NRLW) players Rugby league halfbacks Rugby league five-eighths 21st-century Australian women Australian female rugby sevens players Commonwealth Games gold medallists for Australia Commonwealth Games medallists in rugby sevens Rugby sevens players at the 2022 Commonwealth Games Rugby league players from Newcastle, New South Wales Medallists at the 2022 Commonwealth Games Sportswomen from New South Wales Touch footballers