Elton Flatley (born 7 May 1977,

Tamworth, New South Wales Tamworth is a city and administrative centre of the north-eastern region of New South Wales, Australia. Situated on the Peel River (New South Wales), Peel River within the local government area of the Tamworth Regional Council, it is the largest ...

) is an

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

n former international

rugby union Rugby union football, commonly known simply as rugby union in English-speaking countries and rugby 15/XV in non-English-speaking world, Anglophone Europe, or often just rugby, is a Contact sport#Terminology, close-contact team sport that orig ...

footballer. He played for the

Queensland Reds The Queensland Reds is the rugby union team based in Brisbane for the Australian state of Queensland that competes in the Southern Hemisphere's Super Rugby competition. Prior to 1996, they were a representative team selected from the rugby union ...

Career

Flatley was educated at St. Joseph's Nudgee College where he was signed into the professional ranks of

upon graduating. He made his debut for the

in 1996, the inaugural season of the Super 12, at the very young age of 18 against New Zealand side, Highlanders. In 1997, he made his international debut for

, playing against

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

Twickenham Twickenham ( ) is a suburban district of London, England, on the River Thames southwest of Charing Cross. Historic counties of England, Historically in Middlesex, since 1965 it has formed part of the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, who ...

on 15 November, aged 20. The game was a 15–15 draw. Flatley was again in the team for the next game against

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

, which Australia won. In 2001, he was a member of the Wallabies team that won the test series against the British & Irish Lions during the 2001 tour to Australia. Flatley figured prominently in Australia's

2003 Rugby World Cup The 2003 Rugby World Cup was the fifth Rugby World Cup and was won by England national rugby union team, England. Originally planned to be co-hosted by Australia and New Zealand, all games were shifted to Australia following a contractual dispu ...

campaign, going right to the final against

and scoring the penalty that took the match to extra time, then another penalty which evened the scores at 17-17 before England ultimately prevailed. He finished the tournament as the third highest point score, scoring 100 points for Australia. In April 2004, Flatley reached another milestone, becoming the youngest player ever to reach 100 caps for the

when he led the side out against the

Sharks Sharks are a group of elasmobranch cartilaginous fish characterized by a ribless endoskeleton, dermal denticles, five to seven gill slits on each side, and pectoral fins that are not fused to the head. Modern sharks are classified within the ...

Durban Durban ( ; , from meaning "bay, lagoon") is the third-most populous city in South Africa, after Johannesburg and Cape Town, and the largest city in the Provinces of South Africa, province of KwaZulu-Natal. Situated on the east coast of South ...

. Flatley prematurely retired from all forms of rugby on 16 March 2006, on medical advice as he was suffering from continued blurred vision due to a number of concussions.

Personal life

Flatley has two children with his wife, whom he separated from in 2007. In 2006 he was a contestant on '' Australian Celebrity Survivor: Vanuatu''.

Post retirement

Flatley works as a promotional speaker, and works in the finance industry. He also worked for a period for the

Australian Rugby Union Rugby Australia Ltd, previously named Australian Rugby Union Limited and Australian Rugby Football Union Limited, is an Australian company operating the premier rugby union competition in Australia and teams. It has its origins in 1949. It is a ...

(now known as

Rugby Australia Rugby Australia Ltd, previously named Australian Rugby Union Limited and Australian Rugby Football Union Limited, is an Australian company operating the premier rugby union competition in Australia and teams. It has its origins in 1949. It is a ...

) as a consultant.

References

External links

Elton Flatley retirement announcement
smh.com.au; accessed 11 April 2014. {{DEFAULTSORT:Flatley, Elton 1977 births Australian rugby union players Australia international rugby union players Queensland Reds players Living people Rugby union centres Rugby union fly-halves Rugby union players from New South Wales Sportspeople from Tamworth, New South Wales Survivor (franchise) contestants Participants in Australian reality television series 2003 Rugby World Cup players People educated at St Joseph's College, Nudgee