View source for Kerrod Walters

{{Short description|Former Australia international rugby league footballer}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2023}}
{{Use Australian English|date=May 2023}}
{{Infobox rugby league biography
|name           = Kerrod Walters
|fullname       = 
|image          = 
|caption        = 
|birth_date     = {{birth date and age|df=yes|1967|10|20}}
|birth_place    = [[Rockhampton]], [[Queensland]], [[Australia]]
|height         = {{convert|175|cm|ftin|abbr=on}}
|weight         = {{convert|80|kg|stlb|abbr=on}}
|retired        = yes
|position       = {{rlp|HK}}
|club1          = [[Booval, Queensland|Booval]] Swifts
|year1start     = 
|year1end       = 
|appearances1   = 
|tries1         = 
|goals1         = 
|fieldgoals1    = 
|points1        = 
|club2          = [[Ipswich Jets]]
|year2start     = 1986
|year2end       = 87
|appearances2   = 21
|tries2         = 10
|goals2         = 0
|fieldgoals2    = 0
|points2        = 40
|club3          = [[Brisbane Broncos]]
|year3start     = 1988
|year3end       = 96
|appearances3   = 181
|tries3         = 23
|goals3         = 0
|fieldgoals3    = 0
|points3        = 92
|club4          = [[Adelaide Rams]]
|year4start     = 1997
|year4end       = 98
|appearances4   = 41
|tries4         = 4
|goals4         = 0
|fieldgoals4    = 0
|points4        = 16
|club5          = [[Newcastle Thunder|Gateshead Thunder]]
|year5start     = 1999
|year5end       =  
|appearances5   = 22
|tries5         = 2
|goals5         = 1
|fieldgoals5    = 0
|points5        = 10
|club6          = [[Brisbane Broncos]]
|year6start     = 2000
|year6end       = 
|appearances6   = 1
|tries6         = 0
|goals6         = 0
|fieldgoals6    = 0
|points6        = 0
|teamA          = [[Queensland state rugby league team|Queensland]]
|yearAstart     = 1989
|yearAend       = 94
|appearancesA   = 7
|triesA         = 2
|goalsA         = 0
|fieldgoalsA    = 0
|pointsA        = 8
|teamB          = [[Australia national rugby league team|Australia]]
|yearBstart     = 1989
|yearBend       = 92
|appearancesB   = 8
|triesB         = 1 
|goalsB         = 0
|fieldgoalsB    = 0
|pointsB        = 4
|source         = [http://www.rugbyleagueproject.com/players/Kerrod-Walters/summary.html RLP] and [http://www.yesterdayshero.com.au/PlayerProfile_Kerrod-Walters_11228.aspx Yesterday's Hero]
| module       = {{infobox person
| embed        = yes
| father       = 
| mother       = 
| spouse       = 
| education    = [[Bremer State High School]]<br>[[Ipswich Grammar School]]
| alma_mater   = 
| relatives    = [[Steve Walters]] (brother)<br>[[Kevin Walters]] (brother)<br>[[Billy Walters (rugby league)|Billy Walters]] (nephew)
}}
}}

'''Kerrod Walters''' (born 20 October 1967) is an Australian former [[rugby league]] footballer. A [[Queensland rugby league team|Queensland]] [[State of Origin series|State of Origin]] and [[Australia national rugby league team|Australian international]] representative {{rlp|hk}}, he played most of his club football with the [[Brisbane Broncos]], with whom he won the [[1992 NSWRL season|1992]] and [[1993 NSWRL Premiership]]s.

Kerrod Walters was endorsed by the [[Glenn Lazarus Team]] as a candidate for the [[Australian Senate|Senate]] in Queensland at the [[2016 Australian federal election|2016 federal election]].<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-03-01/brisbane-broncos-kerrod-walters-glenn-lazarus-senate-election/7210034|title=Brisbane Broncos ex-player Kerrod Walters joins Glenn Lazarus on Senate ticket|work=[[ABC News (Australia)|ABC News]]|location=Australia|date=1 March 2016|access-date=4 June 2016 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/kerrod-walters-joins-former-broncos-teammate-glenn-lazarus-in-politics-20160301-gn71vd.html|title=Kerrod Walters joins former Broncos teammate Glenn Lazarus in politics|work=[[Sydney Morning Herald]]|date=1 March 2016|access-date=4 June 2016|author=Atfield, Cameron }}</ref>

==Playing career==

===Early years===
Born in [[Rockhampton]] and hailing from [[Ipswich, Queensland|Ipswich]], Kerrod Walters first showed his talent with the [[Ipswich Jets]] alongside his brothers [[Steve Walters|Steve]], [[Kevin Walters|Kevin]] and Brett. The combination of the Walters brothers and [[Allan Langer]] later became known as "the Ipswich connection". In 1988 he and Ipswich teammate Langer joined the newly formed Brisbane Broncos to compete in the [[Winfield Cup]] premiership. Along with [[Shane Duffy]] Walters was named the [[1988 Brisbane Broncos season]]'s rookie of the year.<ref>{{cite web|title=Honour Board |url=http://www.broncos.com.au/honour-board |work=broncos.com.au |publisher=[[Brisbane Broncos]] |access-date=22 December 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140126143426/http://www.broncos.com.au/honour-board |archive-date=26 January 2014 }}</ref>

===Brisbane Broncos===
In 1989, Walters displaced representative hooker [[Greg Conescu]] as the Broncos first choice rake and would go on to represent Queensland, being named man-of-the-match in the third game of [[1989 State of Origin series|that year's State of Origin series]]. After his standout performances for Queensland who won the series 3–0, Walters was selected for the mid-season [[1989 Kangaroo Tour of New Zealand|Kangaroo Tour of New Zealand]] where he made his test début in the first test against [[New Zealand national rugby league team|New Zealand]] at [[Queen Elizabeth II Park]] in [[Christchurch]], scoring a try on début as the [[Australian Kangaroos|Aussies]] won 26–6. He would retain his place in the side for the final two tests of the series as Australia swept the Kiwis 3–0.

In the [[1990 State of Origin series]] he out-pointed [[New South Wales rugby league team|New South Wales]] hooker [[Ben Elias]] (despite the Blues winning the series 2-1) and was selected to play in the mid-season Tests against New Zealand and [[France national rugby league team|France]]. The Broncos would go on to play in their first finals series in [[1990 NSWRL season|1990]] and Walters was considered an automatic selection for the [[1990 Kangaroo tour]]. History was created when Kerrod and brother Kevin were selected both to tour making them the first ever twins to make a [[Kangaroo Tour]]. After disappointing in the shock first Test loss to [[Great Britain Lions|Great Britain]] at [[London]]'s famous [[Wembley Stadium (1923)|Wembley Stadium]], he was lost his test spot to Elias for the remainder of the tour.{{citation needed|date=April 2023}}

The following year, Walters was sent off for punching [[Western Suburbs Magpies]] forward [[Graeme Wynn]] in a club match, and his resulting two-week suspension opened the way for brother Steve (at the time a two time premiership winner with the [[Canberra Raiders]]) to come into both the Queensland and Australian teams.{{citation needed|date=April 2023}} This connection continued when Steve Walters was injured on the 1991 tour of [[Papua New Guinea]] and Kerrod was called up to replace him. The two tests against the [[Papua New Guinea Kumuls|Kumuls]] in 1991 would prove to be the final tests of his career in which he would make it onto the field.{{citation needed|date=April 2023}}

While Kerrod did not appear in a Test match during 1992, he played his role in the Broncos maiden [[1992 NSWRL season#Grand final|Grand Final]] win over [[St George Dragons|St George]] and their [[1992 World Club Challenge|World Club Championship]] win over [[Rugby Football League|English]] [[1991-92 Rugby Football League season|champions]] [[Wigan Warriors|Wigan]]. That year he was awarded the Broncos' player of the year. The Walters brothers had already become the first trio to play for Queensland and Australia when, in 1992, they achieved another milestone when all three were selected to tour with the [[1992 Rugby League World Cup final]] squad, though while Steve and Kevin played in 10–6 win over Great Britain at Wembley, Kerrod was not selected in the final XVII.<ref>[http://www.yesterdayshero.com.au/PlayerProfile_Kerrod-Walters_11228.aspx Kerrod Walters at ''yesterdayshero.com.au'']</ref><ref>[http://www.rugbyleagueproject.org/matches/world-cup-1989/final/great-britain-vs-australia.html 1992 World Cup final at Rugby League Project]</ref>

Kerrod Walters was selected for what would be his final test in the first test of the mid-season [[1993 Trans-Tasman Test series|Trans-Tasman Test series]] against New Zealand in [[Auckland]]. Walters was selected on the bench (brother Steve was the starting hooker while Kevin played five-eighth), but did not take the field in the 14–all draw.{{citation needed|date=April 2023}} This game created history for Australia as it was the first (and so far only) test in which 3 brothers were selected. While his brothers would be selected for the final two tests of the series (both won by Australia), Kerrod would never again gain Australian selection.

After the Broncos' back-to-back grand final win in 1993, Walters made his final appearance for Queensland the following year. During the [[1994 NSWRL season]], Walters played at hooker for defending premiers Brisbane when they hosted British champions Wigan for the [[1994 World Club Challenge]]. Unfortunately for Walters and the Broncos, in front of a record [[World Club Challenge]] crowd of 54,220 at their home ground [[Queensland Sport and Athletics Centre|ANZ Stadium]], Wigan gained revenge for their 1992 loss by winning 20–14.<ref>[http://www.rugbyleagueproject.org/matches/world-club-challenge-1994/brisbane-broncos-vs-wigan-warriors.html 1994 World Club Challenge at Rugby League Project]</ref>

===Super League and England===
{{BLP unreferenced section|date=April 2023}}
In 1996, he was cut from the Broncos and signed with [[Super League (Australia)|Super League]] club, the [[Adelaide Rams]]. In his second season with the Rams, he was dropped from first grade (after a falling out with coach [[Rod Reddy]]) but returned to something resembling his best form late in the season after Reddy's sacking.

When the club folded at the end of 1998 Walters joined [[Newcastle Thunder|Gateshead Thunder]] in the [[Super League]] but returned to Australia midway through the 1999 season after he and his wife were injured in a car accident while on holiday in [[Thailand]].

===Retirement===
At the end of the 1999 season, Walters signed a one-year deal with the Broncos but played in just one match from the interchange bench during the 2000 season. That year he was awarded the [[Australian Sports Medal]] for his contribution to Australia's international standing in the sport of rugby league.

In 2004, Walters became the 5th former player inducted into the Broncos official Hall of Fame.<ref>{{cite web|title=Broncos Hall of Fame |url=http://www.broncos.com.au/broncos-hall-of-fame |work=broncos.com.au |publisher=[[Brisbane Broncos]] |access-date=31 December 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140126143431/http://www.broncos.com.au/broncos-hall-of-fame |archive-date=26 January 2014 }}</ref> During the 2007 season at the Broncos' 20-year anniversary celebration, Walters was included in a list of the Broncos 20 greatest players.<ref>{{cite news|last=Dekroo |first=Karl |title=Still the king |work=[[The Courier-Mail]] |place=Brisbane |date=9 May 2007 |url=http://www.news.com.au/couriermail/story/0,23739,21701434-10389,00.html |access-date=8 December 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070512101607/http://www.news.com.au/couriermail/story/0%2C23739%2C21701434-10389%2C00.html |archive-date=12 May 2007 }}</ref>

== Accolades ==
Dally M Hooker Of The Year: 1989, 1990<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.rugbyleagueproject.org/players/kerrod-walters/summary.html|title=Kerrod Walters - Career Stats & Summary - Rugby League Project|website=www.rugbyleagueproject.org|access-date=2019-05-30}}</ref>

==Political career==
Walters was part of [[Glenn Lazarus]]' team in the [[2016 Australian Senate election#Queensland|2016 Senate election]]. Both Lazarus and Walters were unsuccessful in gaining election.

==Personal life==
In May 2013, Walters suffered a [[heart attack]] and required treatment in hospital.<ref>{{cite news |author=Peter Badel |agency= |title=Maroons legend Kerrod Walters never thought he'd suffer a heart attack at 45 |url=https://www.couriermail.com.au/news/queensland/maroons-legend--kerrod-walters-never-thought-hed-suffer-a-heart-attack-at-45/news-story/befae8e384765e55f758d11244466105 |quote= |newspaper=[[The Courier Mail]] |date=2013-06-02 |access-date=2023-04-13 }}</ref>

==References==
{{reflist|2}}

==External links==
*{{FOGS player|kerrod-walters}}
*[http://www.rugbyleagueproject.com/players/Kerrod-Walters/summary.html Kerrod Walters stats at rugbyleagueproject.com]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20080807201937/http://www.nrlstats.com/archive/players.cfm?PlayerID=344 Kerrod Walters at nrlstats.com]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20090201082845/http://qrl.com.au/qrl_history/qld_rep_w.php Queensland representatives at qrl.com.au]

{{Brisbane Broncos squad 1992 NSWRL premiership}}
{{Brisbane Broncos - 1992 World Club Challenge Winners}}
{{Brisbane Broncos squad 1993 NSWRL premiership}}
{{1989 Kangaroo Tour of New Zealand squad}}
{{1990 Kangaroo Tour squad}}
{{1991 Kangaroo Tour of Papua New Guinea squad}}
{{1997 Adelaide}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Walters, Kerrod}}
[[Category:1967 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Adelaide Rams captains]]
[[Category:Adelaide Rams players]]
[[Category:20th-century Australian sportsmen]]
[[Category:Australia national rugby league team players]]
[[Category:Australian twins]]
[[Category:Brisbane Broncos players]]
[[Category:Ipswich Jets players]]
[[Category:Newcastle Thunder players]]
[[Category:Queensland Rugby League State of Origin players]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Australian Sports Medal]]
[[Category:Rugby league hookers]]
[[Category:Rugby league players from Rockhampton, Queensland]]
[[Category:Walters family|Kerrod]]