Darren Fritz (born 13 March 1969) is an Australian former professional

rugby league Rugby league football, commonly known as rugby league in English-speaking countries and rugby 13/XIII in non-Anglophone Europe, is a contact sport, full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular Rugby league playin ...

footballer who played in the 1980s and 1990s. He played at representative level for

Queensland Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...

, and at club level for

Canberra Raiders The Canberra Raiders are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in the national capital city of Canberra, Australian Capital Territory. They have competed in Australasia's elite rugby league competition, the National Rugb ...

Wakefield Trinity Wakefield Trinity is a professional rugby league club in Wakefield, West Yorkshire, England. The club play their home fixtures at the DIY Kitchen Stadium, Belle Vue (Wakefield), Belle Vue and currently compete in the Super League, the top tier o ...

, Illawarra Steelers,

North Sydney North Sydney is a suburb and commercial district on the Lower North Shore of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. And is the administrative centre for the local government area of North Sydney Council. History The Indigenous people on the s ...

and Western Suburbs, as a , or .

Playing career

A Rockhampton junior, Fritz was a reserve in Canberra's 1991 Grand Final loss to the

Penrith Panthers The Penrith Panthers are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in the Greater Western Sydney suburb of Penrith, New South Wales, Penrith that competes in the National Rugby League (NRL). The team is based west of the cen ...

at the Sydney Football Stadium. Fritz played for

in the 1992–93 English season. Darren Fritz played right- in

's 29–16 victory over Sheffield Eagles in the 1992–93 Yorkshire Cup Final during the 1992–93 season at

Elland Road Elland Road, or Elland Road Stadium, is a football stadium in Beeston, Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, which has been the Home (sports), home of Leeds United F.C., Leeds United since the club's formation in 1919. The stadium is the List of foot ...

Leeds Leeds is a city in West Yorkshire, England. It is the largest settlement in Yorkshire and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds Metropolitan Borough, which is the second most populous district in the United Kingdom. It is built aro ...

on Sunday 18 October 1992.Hoole, Les (2004). ''Wakefield Trinity RLFC – FIFTY GREAT GAMES''. Breedon Books. Fritz joined the Illawarra Steelers in the 1994 season. One of the biggest players in the premiership, he played in all 3 matches for Queensland in the 1994 State of Origin series. Fritz's stint with the Steelers ended at the conclusion of the 1996 season. In 1997, Fritz joined the North Sydney Bears. Chronic back injuries saw him released from his contract with Norths.

Retirement

In 1998, Fritz joined Western Suburbs. He played his final two seasons of rugby league with Wests before announcing his retirement at the end of the 1999 season.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fritz, Darren 1969 births Living people Australian rugby league players Canberra Raiders players Illawarra Steelers players North Sydney Bears players Queensland Rugby League State of Origin players Rugby league players from Rockhampton, Queensland Rugby league props Rugby league second-rows Wakefield Trinity players Western Suburbs Magpies players 20th-century Australian sportsmen