Matt Bowen
Encyclopedia
Matthew Jeremy "Matt" Bowen (born 8 March 1982 in Cairns, Queensland
Cairns, Queensland
Cairns is a regional city in Far North Queensland, Australia, founded 1876. The city was named after William Wellington Cairns, then-current Governor of Queensland. It was formed to serve miners heading for the Hodgkinson River goldfield, but experienced a decline when an easier route was...

) is an Australian rugby league
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...

 player. He has spent his whole professional career with the North Queensland Cowboys
North Queensland Cowboys
The North Queensland Cowboys are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in Townsville, Queensland. They compete in Australasia's elite rugby league competition, the National Rugby League premiership...

 in 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...

 (NRL), playing in over 200 matches and holding the club's record for the player with the most NRL appearances. He appeared in the club's only NRL Grand Final
2005 NRL Grand Final
The 2005 NRL Grand Final was the conclusive and premiership-deciding game of the 2005 National Rugby League season. It was played on the night of Sunday, 2 October at Sydney's Telstra Stadium between 4th-placed Wests Tigers and 5th-placed North Queensland Cowboys, the only two clubs in the...

 (2005). A dynamic fullback, he was twice the NRL's top try-scorer
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...

 for a season, in 2005 and 2007. He was named the NRL's best player in his position in the 2007 season.

Bowen played in one Test match
Test match (rugby league)
A Test match in rugby league football is a representative match between teams representing members of the Rugby League International Federation.The definition of a Test match differs from that of an international match...

 for Australia
Australian national rugby league team
The 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...

, against France
France national rugby league team
The France national rugby league team represent France in international rugby league tournaments. They are also sometimes referred to as "Les Tricolores" or more commonly "Les Chanticleers"...

 in 2004. He played in ten State of Origin
State of Origin
State of Origin is the name used in Australia for one existing sporting event which involves domestic representative teams. The term, when used in isolation, usually refers to rugby league football, and occassionally Australian Football matches, in which players are selected for the Australian...

 matches for Queensland
Queensland rugby league team
The Queensland rugby league team have represented the Australian state of Queensland in rugby league football since the sport's beginnings there in 1908...

, between 2004 and 2007.

Early days

Bowen grew up in the Cape York
Cape York Peninsula
Cape York Peninsula is a large remote peninsula located in Far North Queensland at the tip of the state of Queensland, Australia, the largest unspoilt wilderness in northern Australia and one of the last remaining wilderness areas on Earth...

 Aboriginal community of Hopevale
Hopevale, Queensland
Hopevale, , Queensland, Australia is an Aboriginal community on Cape York Peninsula about 46 km northwest of Cooktown by road, and about 10 km off the Battlecamp Road that leads to Lakefield National Park and Laura...

. He attended Abergowrie College near Ingham
Ingham, Queensland
Ingham is a town in the Great Green Way region of North Queensland, Australia. The town was founded in 1864, gazetted a shire in 1879, and is the service centre for many sugarcane plantations, pioneered in the 1870s by William Ingham, for whom the town is named...

 where he started playing rugby league at the age of 12. His school team won the Queensland
Queensland
Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...

 schoolboys' competition in 1999 and he was named player of the tournament. His schoolboy exploits attracted the attention of a number of NRL clubs in Sydney and Brisbane; however, he chose to pursue his professional career with his local team, the North Queensland Cowboys
North Queensland Cowboys
The North Queensland Cowboys are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in Townsville, Queensland. They compete in Australasia's elite rugby league competition, the National Rugby League premiership...

. In 2000, he was part of the Cowboys' reserve grade team that made the grand final of the reserve grade competition.

Professional career

Bowen made his first-grade debut on 17 February 2001 against Queensland rivals 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...

 at Dairy Farmers Stadium
Dairy Farmers Stadium
The Willows Sports Complex, currently known as Dairy Farmers Stadium due to sponsorship rights, is a grass football stadium situated in Townsville, Queensland, Australia. It has historically been used mainly for rugby league, and is the home ground of the National Rugby League club the North...

, Townsville
Townsville, Queensland
Townsville is a city on the north-eastern coast of Australia, in the state of Queensland. Adjacent to the central section of the Great Barrier Reef, it is in the dry tropics region of Queensland. Townsville is Australia's largest urban centre north of the Sunshine Coast, with a 2006 census...

.

In 2003, Bowen made his representative debut, being called up to the Queensland team
Queensland rugby league team
The Queensland rugby league team have represented the Australian state of Queensland in rugby league football since the sport's beginnings there in 1908...

 for the second match of the State of Origin series. He played 16 minutes as a substitute, as Queensland lost the series. The following season, Bowen was selected in the Australian Kangaroos
Australian national rugby league team
The 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...

 squad for a Tri-Nations series
2004 Rugby League Tri-Nations
-Tournament standings:-Final:-Non-series Tests:During the series, Australia and New Zealand played additional Tests against France.-----Additional Matches:...

 against New Zealand
New Zealand national rugby league team
The New Zealand national rugby league team has represented New Zealand in rugby league football since intercontinental competition began for the sport in 1907. Administered by the New Zealand Rugby League, they are commonly known as the Kiwis, after the native bird of that name...

 and Great Britain
Great Britain national rugby league team
The Great Britain national rugby league team represents the United Kingdom in rugby league football. Administered by the Rugby Football League , the team is nicknamed "The Lions" or "Great Britain Lions"....

. His selection followed a season in which the Cowboys finished one match away from qualifying for their first NRL Grand Final. He played as fullback in a tour match against Cumbria, scoring a try, although did not play in the Tri-Nations series, with Anthony Minichello preferred as the Kangaroos' fullback. However, after the Tri-Nations series, he made his Test debut in a one-off match against France
France national rugby league team
The France national rugby league team represent France in international rugby league tournaments. They are also sometimes referred to as "Les Tricolores" or more commonly "Les Chanticleers"...

 in Carcassonne
Carcassonne
Carcassonne is a fortified French town in the Aude department, of which it is the prefecture, in the former province of Languedoc.It is divided into the fortified Cité de Carcassonne and the more expansive lower city, the ville basse. Carcassone was founded by the Visigoths in the fifth century,...

, that Australia won 52–30. On the touring squad's return journey to Australia, he scored three tries in a non-Test exhibition match against the United States
United States national rugby league team
-2008 & 2013 Rugby League World Cup Qualifying:In October 2006, The Tomahawks were to participate in a four team Atlantic qualifying pool for the 2008 Rugby League World Cup, but South Africa and the West Indies withdrew. As a result, The Atlantic qualifying pool was reduced to a single game...

 in Philadelphia.

2005 was a breakthrough year for Bowen and the Cowboys. In the 2005 State of Origin series, Bowen proved to be the game-breaker in the first match. After coming off the bench in the second half, he intercepted a pass from New South Wales half-back Brett Kimmorley
Brett Kimmorley
Brett "Noddy" Kimmorley was an Australian professional rugby league footballer for the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs of the NRL. He has previously played for five other clubs and has also represented his country and state on several occasions...

 and ran 40m to score in extra time, thus winning the game for Queensland. Bowen would also score tries in the second and third games of the series, although Queensland lost both matches to lose the series. He was selected in Queensland's starting line-up in the third match for the first time in his career, displacing Billy Slater
Billy Slater
Billy Slater is an Australian professional rugby league footballer for the Melbourne Storm of the National Rugby League . An Australian international and Queensland State of Origin representative fullback, he has played his whole NRL career to date at Melbourne...

. Bowen's 21 tries for the 2005 NRL season made him the League's top try-scorer of the year. The Cowboys made it to the 2005 NRL Grand Final
2005 NRL Grand Final
The 2005 NRL Grand Final was the conclusive and premiership-deciding game of the 2005 National Rugby League season. It was played on the night of Sunday, 2 October at Sydney's Telstra Stadium between 4th-placed Wests Tigers and 5th-placed North Queensland Cowboys, the only two clubs in the...

, the club's first, where, despite Bowen scoring the opening try, they lost to the Wests Tigers
Wests Tigers
The Wests Tigers are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in Sydney's mid-western suburbs. They have competed in the National Rugby League since they were formed at the end of the 1999 season as a joint-venture club between the Balmain Tigers and the Western Suburbs...

, 30–16.

Bowen and the Cowboys failed to capitalise on their progress in 2005, finishing ninth on the 2006 NRL season ladder, outside the finals series. Bowen was left out of the Kangaroos' squad for the ANZAC Test
ANZAC Test
The Anzac Test is an annual rugby league football test match . The test match is played annually between Australia and New Zealand on or around Anzac Day for the Bill Kelly Memorial Trophy.-Origins:Australia and New Zealand had competed in Rugby League Tests since 1908...

 against New Zealand, was dropped from Queensland's side for the second match of the State of Origin series, and scored only five tries in 24 matches for the Cowboys.

In 2007, Bowen regained his top try-scorer's title, with 22 tries, and also made the most line breaks (32) and tackle breaks (220) in the NRL. He also returned to the Queensland squad for the final match of the State of Origin series, and the Cowboys returned to the NRL finals, finishing third on the ladder. He was voted by his peers as the Rugby League Player Association's player of the year, was named the Cowboys' player of the year for the first and only time in his career, and was given the award for the NRL's best fullback at the season-ending Dally M Awards. He also signed a new contract to remain at the Cowboys through the 2011 season, with his coach Graham Murray
Graham Murray
Graham Murray is an Australian rugby league player and coach. Murray is currently the High Performance Unit Director of Coaching at the Newcastle Knights.-Playing career:...

 claiming he was the "best fullback in the game". Despite the accolades for his performances during the year, Bowen was controversially omitted from the Kangaroos side to face New Zealand at the end of the season, as Brett Stewart
Brett Stewart
Brett Stewart is an Australian professional rugby league footballer who plays for the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles in the National Rugby League. He is an Australian international and New South Wales State of Origin representative fullback known for pace and his prolific try-scoring...

 and Kurt Gidley
Kurt Gidley
Kurt Gidley is a professional Australian rugby league player and captain of the Newcastle Knights in the NRL. An Australian international and New South Wales State of Origin representative fullback he has played his entire NRL career to date with the Knights. He is the younger brother of Matthew...

 were preferred at fullback. Kangaroos' coach Ricky Stuart
Ricky Stuart
Ricky Stuart is an Australian rugby league football coach and former player of the 1980s and 90s. He is currently the head coach of the New South Wales State of Origin team, having replaced Craig Bellamy following a fifth consecutive failure in the 2010 series...

 argued that Bowen's small stature was a factor against his selection. Former dual-code international Wendell Sailor
Wendell Sailor
Wendell Jermaine Sailor is an Australian former professional rugby football player who represented his country in both rugby league and rugby union – a dual code international. He is an Australian Torres Strait Islander.Sailor's large frame and bullocking style changed the way wingers played rugby...

 argued that selectors were correct to leave Bowen out of the national team, suggesting that his form in club football had not been replicated at State of Origin
State of Origin
State of Origin is the name used in Australia for one existing sporting event which involves domestic representative teams. The term, when used in isolation, usually refers to rugby league football, and occassionally Australian Football matches, in which players are selected for the Australian...

 level.

Bowen started the 2008 season slowly, missing Rounds Four and Five of the NRL due to a left knee injury. He returned in Round Six against the New Zealand Warriors
New Zealand Warriors
The New Zealand Warriors are a professional rugby league football club based in Auckland, New Zealand. They compete in the National Rugby League premiership and are the League's only team from outside Australia...

 and scored three tries. However, barely weeks later, Bowen injured his knee again and underwent surgery that ruled him out of action for the rest of the season. Without him, North Queensland finished 15th on the NRL ladder.

Bowen returned to football in the 2009 pre-season. However in August he injured his right knee in the same way that he had injured his left knee the previous season. Another round of surgery followed, ruling him out for the remainder of the season and the beginning of the next. The Cowboys had a disastrous 2010 campaign, finishing on the bottom of the ladder. Bowen played his 200th match for the Cowboys during the season, in a September defeat to 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...

.

Bowen reached another milestone early in the 2011 season, surpassing Paul Bowman
Paul Bowman
Paul Bowman-MacDonald is a fictional character in the BBC1 Scottish TV series Monarch of the Glen. Paul is played by Lloyd Owen.Paul is the son of Hector MacDonald and half-brother to Archie MacDonald. Paul arrived in Glenbogle thinking Glenbogle's ghillie Golly Mackenzie was his father. However,...

's record for the most number of NRL matches for a Cowboys player. The Cowboys had an improved season, finishing seventh on the ladder and returning to the finals series. Bowen returned to representative football, being selected for a Prime Minister's XIII that defeated Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea , officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea, is a country in Oceania, occupying the eastern half of the island of New Guinea and numerous offshore islands...

 in a post-season exhibition match. During the season, Bowen signed a new contract with the Cowboys through 2013, citing his "love" for the club and a desire to continue to be close to his extended family. He had considered competing offers to play in England. After the season, he was shortlisted for the Rugby League International Federation
Rugby League International Federation
The Rugby League International Federation is the world governing body of rugby league football. It was formed in 1998 in Sydney, Australia. Its purpose is to, "foster, develop, extend, govern and administer the game of Rugby League throughout the world". Its headquarters are in Sydney, Australia,...

's Fullback of the Year award.

Long-time Queensland and Australian captain Darren Lockyer
Darren Lockyer
Darren Lockyer is an Australian former professional rugby league footballer. He was the captain of the Australian national team, the Queensland State of Origin team and his National Rugby League club, the Brisbane Broncos. His professional career spanned between 1995 and 2011...

 has called Bowen a "little freak", citing his skills and dynamism. Respected coach and commentator Phil Gould
Phil Gould
Phil Gould is an Australian rugby league broadcaster, journalist, administrator and former player and coach. Since the 1990s he has had a prominent role in Channel 9's coverage of rugby league, as a commentator on their match-day coverage, and appears on The Sunday Footy Show and The Sunday Roast...

 remarked in 2005 that he was a "modern-day icon of the game", saying: "Bowen has unique football instincts. He performs the difficult with ease and some of his feats have redefined what we once believed to be impossible."

Bowen played with his cousin Brenton Bowen
Brenton Bowen
Brenton Bowen is an Australian professional rugby league footballer currently signed with the Gold Coast Titans club of the National Rugby League. Previously he played for the North Queensland Cowboys from 2003 to 2007...

 at the Cowboys from 2003 to 2007, before Brenton moved to the Gold Coast Titans
Gold Coast Titans
Gold Coast Titans are an Australian professional rugby league football club, based in the Gold Coast, Queensland. The club competes in Australasia's elite rugby league competition, the National Rugby League premiership. It is the newest of the sixteen clubs in the league, having commenced its...

.

Individual

2005: Leading tryscorer (21)

2007: Leading tryscorer (22)

2007: Dally M Fullback of the Year


2007: Rugby League Professionals Association's Player of the Year


2007: Cowboys' Player of the Year


2007: North Queensland Cowboys
North Queensland Cowboys
The North Queensland Cowboys are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in Townsville, Queensland. They compete in Australasia's elite rugby league competition, the National Rugby League premiership...

 Player's Player of the Year


2011: Most matches played for the North Queensland Cowboys (204).

Team

2005: NRL Grand Final
2005 NRL Grand Final
The 2005 NRL Grand Final was the conclusive and premiership-deciding game of the 2005 National Rugby League season. It was played on the night of Sunday, 2 October at Sydney's Telstra Stadium between 4th-placed Wests Tigers and 5th-placed North Queensland Cowboys, the only two clubs in the...

 – North Queensland Cowboys
North Queensland Cowboys
The North Queensland Cowboys are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in Townsville, Queensland. They compete in Australasia's elite rugby league competition, the National Rugby League premiership...

– Runners-up
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