Matt King

Matt King (born 22 August 1980) is an Australian former professional rugby league footballer. A New South Wales State of Origin and Australian international representative or , he played in the Super League for English club the Warrington Wolves and in the National Rugby League (NRL) for the South Sydney Rabbitohs and Melbourne Storm. During his time in England he won the 2009 and 2010 Challenge Cups with Warrington Wolves and was also named at in the 2010 Super League Dream Team. Background and early life Matthew King was born in Casino, New South Wales, Australia on 22 August 1980. King began playing rugby league at the age of seven for his local club side the Casino RSM Cougars in northern New South Wales. When he was eleven he moved to Wauchope where he played Junior League for the Wauchope Blues in the under-11 and under-12 teams before moving back to Casino. He attended St Mary's Primary School and then went on to attend St Mary's High School (St Mary's Catholic College) until Year 10. When back in Casino, King joined the Lismore Marist Brothers Rams who went on to win the Group 1 A-Grade Premiership. In 2000, he was signed by the North Sydney Bears where he worked his way through the grades at the club playing in both Jersey Flegg and reserve grade. King suffered a serious shoulder injury in 2002 while playing off the bench for the Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks' reserve grade side and then quit rugby league because of a claimed disinterest. After hanging up his boots at the age of 22, King took up several odd jobs such as working as a bar man and a garbage collector before deciding to give rugby league another go in 2003. He then signed with the Melbourne Storm's feeder club, Brisbane Norths on the insistence of former North Sydney teammate Matt Orford who was now at the Storm. Ray Warren began to refer to him as "Ropehead", after his return to the NRL with dreadlocked hair.