John Monie is a former professional
rugby leagueRugby 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...
coach and player. He is probably best known for his coaching career where he won premierships in both Australia and England.
Playing career
Monie was a Standoff who played for his local club on the Central Coast,
Woy WoyWoy Woy is a coastal town and a southern suburb of the Central Coast region of New South Wales, Australia, located on the southern reaches of Brisbane Water north of Sydney...
. After playing in over 100 first grade games for Woy Woy, in 1968 he moved to the Cronulla Sutherland Sharks. Monie played for the Sharks for three seasons, almost making the
AustralianThe Australian national rugby league team have represented Australia in senior men's rugby league football competition since the establishment of the game in Australia in 1908. Administered by the Australian Rugby League, the Kangaroos' are ranked number one in the RLIF World Rankings...
touring team.
Coaching career
Monie began his coaching career at his old Woy Woy club. However he soon moved back to Parramatta to act as an assistant coach under the legedary
Jack GibsonJack Arthur Gibson OAM was an Australian rugby league identity – a player, commentator and most notably a coach...
. When Gibson retired in 1984 Monie took over and he led Parramatta to a Grand Final victory in 1986 over Canterbury, winning 4-2.
He moved to
WiganWigan Warriors is an English rugby league club based in Wigan, Greater Manchester. The club's first team squad competes in the engage Super League and the team are the current Challenge Cup holders as of the 27th August 2011....
in 1989. He guided the team to four consecutive league Championship and Challenge Cup doubles, a feat no other coach has achieved in the English game. During the 1991–92 Rugby Football League season, Monie coached defending champions Wigan to their
1991 World Club ChallengeThe 1991 World Club Challenge was contested by 1990–91 RFL Championship winners, Wigan and 1991 NSWRL season premiers, the Penrith Panthers. The match was played on a dry Wednesday the 2nd of October, 1991 at Anfield, Liverpool...
victory against the visiting
Penrith PanthersThe Penrith Panthers are an Australian professional rugby league football team based in the western Sydney suburb of Penrith. They compete in the National Rugby League premiership, the top rugby league football competition in Australasia. For the 2012 NRL season they will be coached by Ivan...
. During the 1992–93 Rugby Football League season Monie coached Wigan, again defending RFL champions, in the
1992 World Club ChallengeThe 1992 World Club Challenge match was contested by the 1991–92 Rugby Football League season champions Wigan and the 1992 NSWRL season's premiers, the Brisbane Broncos...
against the visiting
Brisbane BroncosThe 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...
but lost.
In 1995 he returned to the Australasian competition, being made head coach of the new Auckland Warriors franchise. Monie was fired halfway through the 1997 season.
Monie then returned to Wigan for the 1998 season and guided them to a
Super League Grand FinalThe Super League Grand Final is the championship-deciding game of the Super League rugby league football competition...
victory but failed to land the double after losing 17-8 to Sheffield in the Challenge Cup final. Monie stayed with Wigan until the end of 1999 when he moved to the London Broncos. Monie left London at the end of the 2000 season. Most recently he assisted
Brisbane BroncosThe 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...
coach
Wayne BennettWayne 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...
. In 2006 he was hired by the
Cronulla SharksThe Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks are Australian professional Rugby league team based in Cronulla, in the Sutherland Shire, Southern Sydney, New South Wales...
to review the club after a series of poor performances.
Between 2005 and 2008 Monie was the head coach of the French national rugby league team. Monies contract was not renewed after France performed poorly at the
2008 World CupThe 2008 Rugby League World Cup was the thirteenth staging of the Rugby League World Cup since the inauguration of the tournament in 1954, and the first since the 2000 event...
.
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