Paul Mellor

Paul Mellor (born 21 August 1974 in Sydney, New South Wales) is an Australian former professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1990s and 2000s. He played for four different Sydney NRL clubs and in Britain before retiring at the end of the 2007 season. He primarily played on the wing, or as a centre.

For the Anglican priest, see Paul Mellor (priest).

Paul Mellor
Personal information
Full namePaul Mellor
Born (1974-08-21) 21 August 1974
Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
Playing information
Height190 cm (6 ft 3 in)
Weight105 kg (16 st 7 lb)
PositionCentre, Wing
Club
Years Team Pld T G FG P
1991–96 South Sydney 71 30 0 0 120
1997–98 Canterbury Bulldogs 10 2 0 0 8
1999–02 Cronulla Sharks 89 34 0 0 136
2003–04 Castleford Tigers 40 18 0 0 72
2005 Cronulla Sharks 15 9 0 0 36
2006–07 South Sydney 36 15 0 0 60
Total 261 108 0 0 432
Source: [1]

Early career

A South Sydney junior from the Matraville Tigers Club, Mellor is the youngest Rabbitoh in history having made his first grade début at the age of 16 years and 10 months on 30 June 1991 against the Gold Coast Chargers.

Career

Mellor played 17 seasons at the highest level, spanning 221 NRL games and scoring 90 tries. He played for South Sydney, the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs, Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks and Castleford in the UK. Mellor finished as South Sydney's top try scorer in the 1994 and 1996 seasons.

Whilst at Cronulla, Mellor was part of the 1999 Cronulla side which won the minor premiership and were one of the favourites to take out the competition before losing to rivals St George in the preliminary final by a score of 24-8 at Stadium Australia. Mellor would go on to experience further preliminary final heartbreak with Cronulla in 2001 and 2002.[2]

Mellor signed for Castleford Tigers for the 2003 and 2004 season of Super League. Mellor was utilised in the centre and second row but in the 2004 season moved to the wing and improved his form.

Retirement

Mellor played his final game of Rugby League in the 2007 Qualifying Final against the Manly Sea Eagles on 8 September 2007 at Brookvale Oval, electing to retire from the game at the conclusion of the 2007 season.[3][4]

Refereeing

Since retirement from playing, Mellor took up refereeing. He regularly appears as the video referee in NRL matches.[5]

Personal life

Mellor does a lot of work with South Sydney Juniors, helping to bring through the next generation of young players. He also helps coach his sons’ teams in the Cronulla junior league.

Mellor was schooled at Marist Brothers in Pagewood, completing his Higher School Certificate before studying a Bachelor of Human Movement at the Australian Catholic University. He has also completed a level strength and conditioning course through the Rabbitohs.

In 2012, it was revealed that Mellor's former Cronulla teammate and best friend Andrew Ettingshausen had a 12 month affair with Mellor's wife Ali. Ettingshausen later spoke of his shame about the affair saying "I feel far beneath any level of humankind, Every day, I cry tears of shame and my mind aches with an intensity that no medicine can cure".[6]

Career highlights
  • Junior Club: Matraville Tigers
  • First Grade Debut: Round 14, Souths v Gold Coast at the Sydney Football Stadium, 30 June 1991
  • First Grade Record: 261 appearances scoring 108 tries
  • NRL Minor premiership winner with Cronulla in 1999

References
  1. "Paul Mellor - Career Stats & Summary - Rugby League Project". Rugbyleagueproject.org.
  2. "A history of heartbreak: Cronulla Sharks' tale of woe in NRL finals". www.smh.com.au. 17 September 2016.
  3. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 29 March 2012.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  4. "South Sydney Rabbitohs Rugby League Player Report - Paul Mellor". www.ssralmanac.com.
  5. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 7 September 2012. Retrieved 29 March 2012.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  6. "Andrew Ettingshausen reveals affair with team-mate Paul Mellor's wife Ali". Courier Mail. 29 May 2012.
  • [www.nrl.com/telstrapremiership/playerstats/playerprofile/tabid/10898/clubid/11/playerid/226/seasonid/3/default.aspx NRL profile]
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