Michael De Vere
Encyclopedia
Michael De Vere is an Australian former rugby league
footballer of the 1990s and 2000s. He represented Australia in four tests and New South Wales
in five State of Origin
matches. A winger and skillful goal-kicker, De Vere played club football for the Brisbane Broncos
in the NRL, with whom he won three premierships, and then later played with the Huddersfield Giants
in the European Super League
, with whom he reached the 2006 Challenge Cup final. In 2009, he instigated a comeback with his former club, the Brisbane Broncos, but only lasted one game.
in 1995.
The following year he wrote to Brisbane coach Wayne Bennett
requesting a trial. Bennett went one better, offering the young winger/centre an incentive contract.
De Vere won the Broncos rookie of the year award in 1997
and also played in their Super League grand final win. In 1998
De Vere, a last-minute inclusion to the side due to a finger injury to Michael Hancock
, scored the opening try in Brisbane’s 38–12 1998 NRL grand final
win against the Canterbury Bulldogs
. The club’s top point-scorer in 2000
, De Vere made it two premierships in four seasons with the club when he landed three goals in the 14–6 grand final win against the Sydney Roosters
in 2000.
The following year he joined the ranks of other Brisbane players (Terry Matterson
, Glenn Lazarus
, Luke Priddis
, Chris Johns) to have represented New South Wales against his Queensland teammates in a State of Origin
match. He was again top point-scorer for the Broncos in 2001
, 2002
and 2003
. After the 2003 NRL season he went on the 2003 Kangaroo tour
.
In 2004
he was dropped from the New South Wales team after the Blues’ narrow 9–8 win in the first match of the series. De Vere then left the Broncos at the end of the season after again being the club's top-point scorer, to take up a contract with English club Huddersfield Giants
, becoming the club's first Australian international player since Pat Devery
in the 1950s. At the time Michael was the Broncos highest ever point scorer with 1,062 points as well as record-holder of most goals in a match (9).
The following season at the Broncos' 20-year anniversary celebration, the club announced a list of the 20 best players to play for them to date which included De Vere.
He was set to join the Carina Leagues club as a Development/Coaching Officer in 2007. On January 23, 2009 it was announced that Michael De Vere will return to the Brisbane Broncos for the 2009 season, more than two years after retiring.
Officially, the National Rugby League
has approved De Vere's comeback following concerns over salary cap concessions, given he also works as a Development Officer. It will be De Vere's final playing year in first grade Rugby League, and the 10th for the Broncos.
De Vere's NRL comeback was short-lived only playing one game in 2009, He announced his retirement on 7 April 2009, only playing one game for the Brisbane Broncos.
Rugby league
Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...
footballer of the 1990s and 2000s. He represented Australia in four tests and New South Wales
New South Wales Rugby League team
The New South Wales rugby league team has represented the Australian state of New South Wales in rugby league football since the sport's beginnings there in 1907. Administered by the New South Wales Rugby League, the team competes in the annual State of Origin series against arch-rivals, the...
in five State of Origin
Rugby League State of Origin
State of Origin is an annual best of three series of rugby league football matches contested by the Maroons and the Blues, who represent the Australian states of Queensland and New South Wales respectively...
matches. A winger and skillful goal-kicker, De Vere played club football for the Brisbane Broncos
Brisbane Broncos
The Brisbane Broncos are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in the city of Brisbane, the capital of the state of Queensland. Founded in 1988, the Broncos play in Australasia's elite competition, the National Rugby League premiership. They have won six premierships and two...
in the NRL, with whom he won three premierships, and then later played with the Huddersfield Giants
Huddersfield Giants
Huddersfield Giants are a professional rugby league club from Huddersfield, West Yorkshire who play in the European Super League competition. They play their home games at the Galpharm Stadium which is shared with Huddersfield Town F.C....
in the European Super League
Super League
Super League is the top-level professional rugby league football club competition in Europe. As a result of sponsorship from engage Mutual Assurance the competition is currently officially known as the engage Super League. The League features fourteen teams: thirteen from England and one from...
, with whom he reached the 2006 Challenge Cup final. In 2009, he instigated a comeback with his former club, the Brisbane Broncos, but only lasted one game.
Brisbane
A product of Campbelltown, De Vere spent a year playing with Appin in the Group 6 competition before being graded with St. GeorgeSt. George Dragons
The St George Dragons was an Australian Rugby league football club in St George, Sydney, New South Wales that played in Australia's top-level Rugby league competition from New South Wales Rugby Football League in 1921 until 1998; in 1999 they formed a joint venture with the Illawarra Steelers,...
in 1995.
The following year he wrote to Brisbane coach Wayne Bennett
Wayne Bennett (rugby league coach)
Wayne James Bennett AM is an Australian professional rugby league football coach and former player. He is the current head coach for the Newcastle Knights of the NRL...
requesting a trial. Bennett went one better, offering the young winger/centre an incentive contract.
De Vere won the Broncos rookie of the year award in 1997
Brisbane Broncos 1997
The 1997 Brisbane Broncos season was the tenth in the club's history. This season was unique in that they participated in the Australian Super League's 1997 Telstra Cup premiership and 1997 World Club Championship, winning both competitions.-Season summary:...
and also played in their Super League grand final win. In 1998
Brisbane Broncos 1998
The 1998 Brisbane Broncos season was the eleventh in the club's history. They participated in the newly formed National Rugby League's 1998 premiership and posted their three biggest ever wins in rounds 5, 7 and 15 before capturing their fourth premiership in seven seasons.Broncos trio Allan...
De Vere, a last-minute inclusion to the side due to a finger injury to Michael Hancock
Michael Hancock (rugby league)
Michael John "Mick" Hancock is an Australian former rugby league footballer of the 1980s, 90s and 2000s. An Australian international and Queensland State of Origin representative winger, he played in the Brisbane Broncos' 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th grand final victories...
, scored the opening try in Brisbane’s 38–12 1998 NRL grand final
1998 NRL grand final
The 1998 NRL grand final was the conclusive and premiership-deciding game of the 1998 NRL season. It was the first grand final since the National Rugby League's formation and featured minor premiers and the previous year's Super League premiers, the Brisbane Broncos against the Canterbury Bulldogs,...
win against the Canterbury Bulldogs
Canterbury Bulldogs
The Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in Belmore, a suburb in the Canterbury-Bankstown region of Sydney. They compete in the National Rugby League premiership, as well as New South Wales Rugby League junior competitions...
. The club’s top point-scorer in 2000
Brisbane Broncos 2000
The 2000 Brisbane Broncos season was the thirteenth in the club's history. They competed in the NRL's 2000 Telstra Premiership, finishing the regular season 1st to claim the minor premiership before going on to win the grand final, their fifth title in the last nine years.-Season summary:Brisbane...
, De Vere made it two premierships in four seasons with the club when he landed three goals in the 14–6 grand final win against the Sydney Roosters
Sydney Roosters
The Sydney Roosters are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in the Eastern Suburbs of Sydney. The club competes in the National Rugby League and is one of the oldest and most successful clubs in Australian rugby league history, having won twelve New South Wales Rugby League...
in 2000.
The following year he joined the ranks of other Brisbane players (Terry Matterson
Terry Matterson
Terry Matterson is an Australian rugby league football coach and former player. He has been the coach for the Castleford Tigers of Europe's Super League since 2005....
, Glenn Lazarus
Glenn Lazarus
Glenn Patrick Lazarus is an Australian former rugby league footballer of the 1980s and 90s who has been named amongst the nation's finest of the 20th century. He primarily played at prop forward, representing Australia internationally and New South Wales in State of Origin...
, Luke Priddis
Luke Priddis
Luke Priddis is an Australian former professional rugby league footballer of the 1990s and 2000s...
, Chris Johns) to have represented New South Wales against his Queensland teammates in a State of Origin
Rugby League State of Origin
State of Origin is an annual best of three series of rugby league football matches contested by the Maroons and the Blues, who represent the Australian states of Queensland and New South Wales respectively...
match. He was again top point-scorer for the Broncos in 2001
Brisbane Broncos 2001
The 2001 Brisbane Broncos season was the fourteenth in the club's history. They competed in the NRL's 2001 Telstra Premiership and finished the regular season in fifth position, going on to play in the finals and coming within one match of the grand final....
, 2002
Brisbane Broncos 2002
The 2002 Brisbane Broncos season was the fifteenth in the club's history. They competed in the NRL's 2002 Telstra Premiership and finished the regular season in third position before going on to again come within one match of the grand final for the second consecutive year.- Season summary :The...
and 2003
Brisbane Broncos 2003
The 2003 Brisbane Broncos season was the sixteenth in the club's history. They competed in the NRL's 2003 Telstra Premiership and were once again in the upper echelons of the ladder before losing their last eight games and falling to eighth place, nearly missing the finals for the first time since...
. After the 2003 NRL season he went on the 2003 Kangaroo tour
2003 Kangaroo Tour
The 2003 Kangaroo Tour was a six-match tour by the Australia national rugby league team of France, Wales and England. The last three matches were all Tests against Great Britain...
.
In 2004
Brisbane Broncos 2004
The 2004 Brisbane Broncos season was the seventeenth in the club's history. They competed in the NRL's 2004 Telstra Premiership, making it to the finals again, but were knocked out of contention by the North Queensland Cowboys, their first ever loss to the club....
he was dropped from the New South Wales team after the Blues’ narrow 9–8 win in the first match of the series. De Vere then left the Broncos at the end of the season after again being the club's top-point scorer, to take up a contract with English club Huddersfield Giants
Huddersfield Giants
Huddersfield Giants are a professional rugby league club from Huddersfield, West Yorkshire who play in the European Super League competition. They play their home games at the Galpharm Stadium which is shared with Huddersfield Town F.C....
, becoming the club's first Australian international player since Pat Devery
Pat Devery
Pat Devery is an Australian former rugby league footballer and coach of the 1940s and 50s. An Australian international representative half, he played in Australia for the Balmain club, winning the 1944, '46 and '47 grand finals with them...
in the 1950s. At the time Michael was the Broncos highest ever point scorer with 1,062 points as well as record-holder of most goals in a match (9).
Huddersfield
De Vere played with Huddersfield in 2005 and 2006, scoring four points in the 2006 Challenge Cup final. On November 20, 2006, he announced that he would retire from professional football and return to Brisbane.The following season at the Broncos' 20-year anniversary celebration, the club announced a list of the 20 best players to play for them to date which included De Vere.
He was set to join the Carina Leagues club as a Development/Coaching Officer in 2007. On January 23, 2009 it was announced that Michael De Vere will return to the Brisbane Broncos for the 2009 season, more than two years after retiring.
Officially, the National Rugby League
National Rugby League
The National Rugby League is the top league of professional rugby league football clubs in Australasia. The NRL's main competition, called the Telstra Premiership , is contested by sixteen teams, fifteen of which are based in Australia with one based in New Zealand...
has approved De Vere's comeback following concerns over salary cap concessions, given he also works as a Development Officer. It will be De Vere's final playing year in first grade Rugby League, and the 10th for the Broncos.
De Vere's NRL comeback was short-lived only playing one game in 2009, He announced his retirement on 7 April 2009, only playing one game for the Brisbane Broncos.
Point scoring summary
| Games | Tries | Goals | F/G | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 197 | 70 | 477 | – | 1234 |
Matches played
| Team | Matches | Years |
|---|---|---|
| Brisbane Broncos | 161 | 1996–2009 |
| Huddersfield Giants | 36 | 2005–2006 |
| New South Wales | 5 | 2001–2004 |
| Australia | 4 | 2003–2004 |