Stephen Peter Kearney (born 11 June 1972) is a New Zealand 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 ...

football coach who until 2020 was the head coach of the

New Zealand Warriors The Warriors are a professional rugby league football club based in Auckland, New Zealand that competes in the National Rugby League (NRL) premiership and is the League's only team from outside Australia. They were formed in 1995 as the Aucklan ...

in the

NRL The National Rugby League (also known as the NRL Telstra Premiership for sponsorship reasons) is a professional rugby league competition in Oceania which contains clubs from New South Wales, Queensland, Victoria (state), Victoria, the Austral ...

and a former player. A New Zealand national captain and second-row forward, Kearney's club football career, which spanned from the early 1990s to the mid-2000s, was played for the Randwick Kingfishers,

Western Suburbs Magpies The Western Suburbs Magpies (legal name: Western Suburbs District Rugby League Football Club Ltd) is an Australian rugby league football club based in the western suburbs of Sydney, New South Wales. Formed in 1908, Wests, as the club is commonly ...

Auckland Warriors The Warriors are a professional rugby league football club based in Auckland, New Zealand that competes in the National Rugby League (NRL) premiership and is the League's only team from outside Australia. They were formed in 1995 as the Aucklan ...

Melbourne Storm The Melbourne Storm is a rugby league football club based in Melbourne, Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia that participates in the National Rugby League (NRL). The club plays its home games at AAMI Park, and wears a purple and navy blu ...

(with whom he won the 1999 NRL Premiership), and Hull F.C. (with whom he won the

2005 Challenge Cup The 2005 Powergen Rugby League Challenge Cup was played by teams from across Europe during the 2005 rugby league season. Hull F.C. won the cup defeating Leeds Rhinos in the final. Qualifying round First round Second round Third round F ...

). Kearney was previously the head coach of the New Zealand national team, with whom he won the 2008 World Cup and

2011 Four Nations The 2011 Rugby League Four Nations tournament (also known as the 2011 Gillette Rugby League Four Nations due to sponsorship by Gillette), was the third staging of the Rugby League Four Nations tournament, and was played in England and Wales durin ...

tournaments. He also previously coached 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 (NRL). The Parramatta District Rugby League Football Club was formed in 1947, and ...

in the

National Rugby League The National Rugby League (also known as the NRL Telstra Premiership for sponsorship reasons) is a professional rugby league competition in Oceania which contains clubs from New South Wales, Queensland, Victoria (state), Victoria, the Austral ...

Background

Kearney was born in

Paraparaumu Paraparaumu is a town in the south-western North Island of New Zealand. It lies on the Kāpiti Coast, north of the nation's capital city, Wellington. It is also known to residents as Pram or Paraparam. Like other towns in the area, it has a ...

, New Zealand.

Playing career

A Kapiti Bears junior, Kearney played for the

Junior Kiwis The Junior Kiwis side represents New Zealand in the sport of rugby league. They are commonly known as the Junior Kiwis, after the native bird of that name. Since 2010, they are an under-20s side, with players selected from the NRL, Intrust Sup ...

between 1989 and 1991, becoming the side's captain for the 1991 series against Great Britain. He made his senior début in 1991 for the Randwick Kingfishers and also played for

Wellington Wellington is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the third-largest city in New Zealand (second largest in the North Island ...

that year. Randwick lost the

Wellington Rugby League Wellington Rugby League is the local sporting body responsible for the administration of Rugby league in the Wellington Region, Greater Wellington region. It is responsible for the local competition of the same name, as well as its representative ...

Grand Final 6–14 to the Wainuiomata Lions.Team of Century Week 8
''Wellington Rugby League'' Turning professional he moved to Australia to play for the

in 1992 in what is now the

NSWRL Premiership The New South Wales Rugby League premiership was the first rugby league football club competition established in Australia and contributor to today's National Rugby League. Run by the New South Wales Rugby League (initially named the New Sout ...

. In 1993 he became the

New Zealand national rugby league team The New Zealand national rugby league team () has represented New Zealand in rugby league since 1907. Administered by the New Zealand Rugby League, they are commonly known as the Kiwis, after the Kiwi (bird), native bird of that name. The team' ...

' youngest test captain, aged 21. He left the Magpies at the end of 1994, returning home to play for the

in their inaugural season. At the end of that season he travelled to England to represent New Zealand in the 1995 World Cup. He missed the first test match against a re-unified Australian team in 1998 due to suspension. Kearney remained a Warrior until 1998, when he moved to Australia to join the

. In the Melbourne club's second ever season Kearney played at second-row forward in their victory in the

1999 NRL Grand Final The 1999 NRL Grand Final was the conclusive and premiership-deciding game of the 1999 NRL season. It was contested by the competition's two newest clubs: the Melbourne Storm, competing in only its second year (having finished the regular seas ...

. Kearney was selected for the New Zealand team to compete in the end of season

1999 Rugby League Tri-Nations The 1999 Rugby League Tri-Nations series was contested by Australia, Great Britain and New Zealand in 1999. It was the first multi-national rugby league tournament to feature the sport's three world powers since the 1989–1992 Rugby League Wor ...

tournament. In the final against

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 ...

he played at second-row forward in the Kiwis' 22–20 loss. Having won the 1999 Premiership, the

travelled to England to contest the

2000 World Club Challenge The 2000 World Club Challenge was contested by 1999 NRL season premiers, the Melbourne Storm and 1999's Super League IV champions, St. Helens. The match was played on 22 January at JJB Stadium, Wigan before a crowd of 13,394. The Melbourne St ...

against

Super League Super League (also known as the Betfred Super League for sponsorship reasons, and legally Super League Europe Ltd.) is a professional rugby league competition, and the highest level of the British rugby league system, which consists of twelve t ...

Champions

St Helens R.F.C. St Helens R.F.C., commonly known as Saints, is a professional rugby league club in St Helens, Merseyside, England. Founded in 1873, the club is one of the oldest members of the Rugby Football League, and one of the most successful clubs in its ...

, with Kearney playing at second-row forward in the victory. In 2002 Kearney missed the series-deciding match against Great Britain as he had to rush back home to Melbourne to be with his sick five-year-old daughter, who needed emergency surgery. While captaining the Storm in 2004, Kearney became the first New Zealand footballer to play 250 Australian first-grade matches. He also played his last test match for the Kiwis in 2004, in a game that marked the début of

Sonny Bill Williams Sonny William Williams (born 3 August 1985) is a New Zealand heavyweight boxer, and a former professional rugby league and rugby union player. He is only the second person to represent New Zealand in rugby union after first playing for the cou ...

. Kearney finished his playing career with English club Hull F.C. in the

competition, playing in their

-winning side.

Coaching career

In 2006 Kearney retired from playing and returned to Australia to take up a role as assistant coach at his old club, the

, under

Craig Bellamy Craig Douglas Bellamy (born 13 July 1979) is a Welsh football coach and former professional association football, footballer who played as a Forward (association football), forward. He is the current Football coach (association football), head ...

. In 2008 Kearney was appointed as the

head coach on a two-year contract. Kearney (with assistant Wayne Bennett) coached the Kiwis to their first

World Cup A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the name is ...

win. On 22 November 2008, they defeated Australia 34–20 in the final, at

Suncorp Stadium Brisbane Stadium (Lang Park), currently known as Suncorp Stadium for sponsorship reasons, is a multi-purpose stadium in the suburb of Milton, Queensland, Milton, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. Nicknamed The Cauldron, it is a three-tiered rect ...

in Brisbane. Following this achievement, he was appointed an

Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit The New Zealand Order of Merit () is an order of merit in the New Zealand royal honours system. It was established by royal warrant on 30 May 1996 by Elizabeth II, Queen of New Zealand, "for those persons who in any field of endeavour, have r ...

, for services to rugby league, in the 2009 Queen's Birthday Honours. Stephen Kearney World Cup celebrations

For the

2010 Anzac Test The 2010 ANZAC Test was a rugby league test match played between Australia and New Zealand on 7 May 2010. The match coincided with the official opening of AAMI Park in Melbourne. The match was won by Australia with a score of 12–8. The teams ...

, Kearney coached

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

in their loss against

. In the 2010 post-season Kearney was announced as Daniel Anderson's replacement as head coach of the

for three years beginning in 2011. Shortly after that, he took the Kiwis to victory in the 2010 Four Nations Final against Australia. In 2011 he failed to coach the Parramatta NRL team to any success, with the Eels achieving just 6 wins and 1 draw in 24 matches, and only just missing out on the wooden spoon when they beat the

Gold Coast Titans The Gold Coast Titans are a professional rugby league football club, based on the Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia. The club competes in the National Rugby League (NRL) premiership, Australia's elite rugby league competition. Since 2008, the ...

in the last game of the regular season. Things didn't get any better for Kearney in the 2012 NRL season. With the Eels struggling in last place on the NRL ladder after 16 rounds, Melbourne Storm's inaugural coach, and two time premiership winning coach Chris Anderson was appointed as a mentor to Stephen Kearney to help him turn the club's fortunes around. However this did not eventuate and Kearney was forced to resign only three rounds later on 20 July, after achieving only 3 wins from 19 matches in the season. He left the Eels with just 10 wins from 42 matches, a very poor winning percentage of 24 percent. In October 2012 Kearney signed a two-year contract as

Brisbane Broncos The Brisbane Broncos are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in Red Hill, a suburb of Brisbane, Queensland. Founded in April 1987, the Broncos compete in the National Rugby League (NRL) and play their home games at ...

assistant coach from 2013. Kearney coached the holders, New Zealand in the 2013 World Cup where they were beaten in the final by Australia. In November 2014, Kearney guided New Zealand to their second Four Nations championship, defeating Australia 22–18 in the final. In March 2015, Kearney signed a new deal to remain as coach of the Kiwis until the conclusion of the

2017 Rugby League World Cup The 2017 Rugby League World Cup was the fifteenth staging of the Rugby League World Cup tournament and took place in Australia, New Zealand and Papua New Guinea between 27 October and 2 December 2017. The tournament featured the national teams ...

. At the end of 2015, his 23 test wins as coach and five wins over Australia is the most out of any that has coached New Zealand in the past, in stark contrast to his record as an NRL head coach. On 12 September 2016, Kearney stepped down from his role as coach of New Zealand after accepting a return to head coaching in the NRL as coach of the

on a three-year deal. He replaced

Andrew McFadden Andrew McFadden (born 20 January 1978) is an Australian professional rugby league football coach and former player. He currently works as the Development & Pathways manager at the New Zealand Warriors in the NRL. Early life Born in Canberra, ...

who remained at the Warriors as his assistant. In his first season coaching the Warriors, 2017, the team finished 13th on the table, after managing only 7 wins from their 24 games, a win percentage of 29%. In 2018, however, Kearney's season started brightly, with the club winning their first 5 matches of the season, for the first time in the club's history. Slipping slowly down the ladder through the season, from starting right at the top, they finally secured eighth spot, with 15 wins out of 24, a 62% win percentage. They then crashed out of their first finals match since 2011 with a 27–12 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 ...

ANZ Stadium Stadium Australia, currently known as Accor Stadium for sponsorship reasons, is a multi-purpose stadium located in the suburb of Sydney Olympic Park, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The stadium, which is sometimes referred to as Sydney Ol ...

in Sydney. At the halfway point of the 2019 season, Kearney's Warriors had 4 wins from 12 starts, a 33% win percentage. Kearney signed a contract to extend his time as head coach of the Warriors until 2022 at the end of February 2019. On 20 June 2020, Kearney was sacked by the

, due to poor results, and was replaced by his assistant coach

Todd Payten Todd Payten (born 18 January 1979) is an Australian professional rugby league coach who is the head coach of the North Queensland Cowboys in the National Rugby League (NRL) and former professional rugby league footballer. As a player he played ...

. Kearney returned to the Melbourne Storm for the 2021 NRL season, signing a one-year deal as an assistant coach. In September 2021 his contract was extended for a further two years.

Kiwis coaching record

Legacy

In 2007 Kearney was named in the Melbourne Storm team of the decade. In 2012 Kearney was named as one of the

New Zealand Rugby League The New Zealand Rugby League (NZRL) is the governing body for the sport of rugby league, rugby league football in New Zealand.#SPARC-2009, SPARC, 2009: 13 The NZRL was founded on 25 April 1910 in preparation for a 1910 Great Britain Lions tour o ...

's Legends of League. Born in Wellington, he was also named in the

's Team of the Century. As part of their 20-year celebrations in 2018, Melbourne Storm named Kearney part of their team of the Melbourne Storm Team for the first 20 years.

References

External links

New Zealand Warriors profileKiwi Player Profiles: Stephen KearneyStephen Kearney Player Profile at Hull
Stephen Kearney - a role model for young Rugby League players. {{DEFAULTSORT:Kearney, Stephen 1972 births Living people Hull F.C. players Junior Kiwis players Kapiti Coast Bears players Melbourne Storm players New Zealand Māori rugby league players New Zealand national rugby league team captains New Zealand national rugby league team coaches New Zealand national rugby league team players New Zealand rugby league coaches New Zealand rugby league players New Zealand Warriors captains New Zealand Warriors coaches New Zealand Warriors players Ngāti Toa people Officers of the New Zealand Order of Merit Parramatta Eels coaches People from Paraparaumu Sportspeople from the Kāpiti Coast District Randwick Kingfishers players Rugby league players from Wellington Region Rugby league second-rows Te Āti Awa people Wellington rugby league team players Western Suburbs Magpies players People educated at Paraparaumu College