Phil Kearns
Encyclopedia
Philip Nicholas Kearns is a former Australia
n rugby union
player. He represented Australia
67 times and was captain of on 10 occasions.
He was born in Sydney
Australia and educated at Newington College
(1979–1984) and the University of New South Wales
where he graduated with a degree in Economics. He played his provincial rugby for New South Wales.
He made his Wallaby debut in 1989. He enjoyed a rivalry on the pitch with New Zealand's Sean Fitzpatrick
. During one Bledisloe Cup
match he scored a try
by barging through Fitzpatrick and then made a two fingered gesture to him and saying something which most TV watchers thought they could lip read. Kearns insisted he said "Two sausages at tonight's barbecue please". The catalyst for this incident was from the previous season when Fitzpatrick sledged Kearns without mercy, telling him to "Go home to your Mummy".
He was a member of Australia's Rugby World Cup
-winning teams of 1991 and 1999. Although he was injured mid-way through the 1999 tournament he is one of only six players to be twice involved in a World Cup-winning side.
Retired since 1999, he now commentates on rugby for the Fox Sports TV channel.
In October 2005, Phil Kearns accidentally ran over his 19-month-old daughter, Andie, in the driveway of his home. After a long hospital stay, his daughter made a full recovery. Phil Kearns later launched a driveway safety campaign.
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n rugby union
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
player. He represented Australia
Australia national rugby union team
The Australian national rugby union team is the representative side of Australia in rugby union. The national team is nicknamed the Wallabies and competes annually with New Zealand and South Africa in the Tri-Nations Series, in which they also contest the Bledisloe Cup with New Zealand and the...
67 times and was captain of on 10 occasions.
He was born in Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
Australia and educated at Newington College
Newington College
Newington College is an independent, Uniting Church, day and boarding school for boys, located in Stanmore, an inner-western suburb of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia....
(1979–1984) and the University of New South Wales
University of New South Wales
The University of New South Wales , is a research-focused university based in Kensington, a suburb in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia...
where he graduated with a degree in Economics. He played his provincial rugby for New South Wales.
He made his Wallaby debut in 1989. He enjoyed a rivalry on the pitch with New Zealand's Sean Fitzpatrick
Sean Fitzpatrick
Sean Fitzpatrick MNZM is a former rugby union footballer who represented New Zealand, and is widely regarded as one of the finest players ever to come from that country. He is also the son of former player Brian Fitzpatrick....
. During one Bledisloe Cup
Bledisloe Cup
Rugby Union's Bledisloe Cup is contested by the Australia national rugby union team and New Zealand national rugby union team. It is named after Lord Bledisloe, the former Governor-General of New Zealand who donated the trophy in 1931. The trophy was designed in New Zealand by Nelson Isaac, and...
match he scored a try
Try
A try is the major way of scoring points in rugby league and rugby union football. A try is scored by grounding the ball in the opposition's in-goal area...
by barging through Fitzpatrick and then made a two fingered gesture to him and saying something which most TV watchers thought they could lip read. Kearns insisted he said "Two sausages at tonight's barbecue please". The catalyst for this incident was from the previous season when Fitzpatrick sledged Kearns without mercy, telling him to "Go home to your Mummy".
He was a member of Australia's Rugby World Cup
Rugby World Cup
The Rugby World Cup is an international rugby union competition organised by the International Rugby Board and held every four years since 1987....
-winning teams of 1991 and 1999. Although he was injured mid-way through the 1999 tournament he is one of only six players to be twice involved in a World Cup-winning side.
Retired since 1999, he now commentates on rugby for the Fox Sports TV channel.
In October 2005, Phil Kearns accidentally ran over his 19-month-old daughter, Andie, in the driveway of his home. After a long hospital stay, his daughter made a full recovery. Phil Kearns later launched a driveway safety campaign.