Andrew 'Joey' Johns

  • Playing Career

Playing Career

Vital Statistics

Full Name
Andrew Gary Johns
Nickname(s)
Joey
Born
Sunday, 19th May, 1974
Current Age
49 years and 305 days
Place Of Birth
Kurri Kurri, New South Wales, Australia

Awards & Accolades

Dally M Halfback Of The Year
1995, 1998, 1999, 2002
Dally M Player Of The Year
1998, 1999, 2002
Provan Summons Medal
1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002
RLW Player of the Year
1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002
Golden Boot Award
1999, 2001
Clive Churchill Medal
2001
Dally M Representative Player Of The Year
2005
Peter Frilingos Memorial - Headline Moment of the Year
2005
National Rugby League Hall Of Fame
2008
Immortal
2012
NSWRL Hall Of Fame
2017

Known Family Links

Brother
Matthew Johns
Nephew
Jack Johns
Cooper Johns

Biography

Andrew Johns’ incisive running, his ability to fire out long, bullet-like passes to his supports, his perfection of a pin-point kicking game and his resolute toughness and competitive instinct earned him unanimous recognition as the world’s best player in 2001. The Newcastle junior followed brother Matthew Johns into the Knights’ top grade in 1993 and quickly established his reputation as a match-winner at halfback. Johns’ effortless goal-kicking style also saw him set records for most points in a match, most points in a season and most career points with the club. In his initial full first-grade match, against Souths in 1994, he scored a club record 23pts (he has since broken that record, scoring 34pts in a match against Canberra in 2001). In 1994 he broke John Schuster’s record for most points in a season and has consistently bettered his own records in ensuing seasons. Johns made his State and Test debut in 1995 at the height of the Super League war (in his Test debut against South Africa in the World Cup, he scored a record-equalling 30 individual points). However, coach Bob Fulton quickly earmarked Johns for an international career as a hooker. This trend was set with Johns’ match-winning performance in the 1995 World Cup final in which he also landed 4 goals in Australia’s win against England. The following year, at a time when the ARL was isolated at international level, he broke his own world record for an international match when he scored 32pts (2t, 12g) in Australia’s 84-14 win over a second-rate Fiji team. (A charismatic player with a sharp sense of humour, his laconic comment after the match was, ‘Does that count?’) In the 1997 ARL grand final he provided one of the most thrilling finishes in rugby league history when he gave the final pass for winger Darren Albert’s try that defeated Manly, 22-16. The following year, in the absence of an injured Paul Harragon, Johns assumed the Newcastle captaincy – an early indication of his leadership qualities. Johns was selected at halfback in front of Allan Langer for the ANZac Test that year and his deeds at club, State and Test level during 1998 earned him the inaugural Provan-Summons Medal as the best and fairest player in the NRL competition. However, following Brisbane’s win in the 1998 grand final, Johns was shifted to hooker and then five-eighth in the remaining Tests of that series. Despite battling a crippling groin injury that handed rival Brett Kimmorley the Test halfback role in the Tri-series competition at the end of 1999, Johns won the international ‘Golden Boot’ award as the best player in the world. Two operations saw Johns return to the field injured in early part of the 2000 season in an effort to regain his Test position as a halfback. For the second year in succession he was chosen as hooker for the ANZac Test but withdrew at the team medical because he felt he couldn’t play a full match in the forwards. Johns made his return from an ankle injury on the bench in the final two matches of the State of Origin series. Towards the end of the season, he signed a four-year deal with the Knights after originally threatening to leave the club over its failure to sign his brother Matthew to a new deal. Overcoming the pain of losing the preliminary final to the Sydney Roosters in extraordinary circumstances (Newcastle led 16-2 before going down 20-16) Johns reverted to the hooker role in Australia’s successful World Cup campaign. After returning from an knee injury that kept him out of NSW’s State of Origin team in 2001, Johns scored a club record 279pts for the season, won a fourth consecutive Provan-Summons Medal (1998-01), captained the Knights to grand final glory against premiership favourites P’matta, won a second ‘Golden Boot’ Award as International Player of the Year and played halfback in Australia’s Ashes series win against Great Britain. The greatest point-scorer in the Knights’ history, ‘Joey’ Johns captained NSW from 2002-05 (winning three straight series after the 2002 series was drawn) and led Australia to a record 64-10 Test win against Great Britain (2002) and a crushing 48-6 defeat of NZ (2003). Career-threatening injuries ruined his 2003 finals campaign and his entire 2004 season but he turned his back on a move to RU to resume his incredible career in 2005. Newcastle finished last in 2005 after Johns was again injured in the early part of the year but after leading NSW and returning to the Test arena (Darren Lockyer retained the Australian captaincy) he announced his retirement from rep football after Australia’s 50-12 win over NZ in Brisbane in May 2006. That year, amid speculation that he may be the greatest player the game has seen, Andrew Johns set a new record for club games with the Newcastle club before surpassing Darryl Halligan’s League record for most career points.
- ALAN WHITICKER

Playing Career Statistics

All statistics shown in this section are based only on data available in the RLP database, and are not necessarily a complete and/or 100% accurate representation of a player's career. This information should be used as a guide only. If you see a question mark (?), it denotes that the figure is not available.

To view a list of corresponding matches, click on the List button.

Competitions

Competition   App T G   GK % FG Pts W L D Win %  
NRL 250 80 917   22 2176 154 90 6 61.60% List
City vs Country 3 1 7   - 18 1 2 0 33.33% List
State of Origin 23 4 37   4 94 13 8 2 56.52% List
NRL Finals 17 4 49   1 115 10 7 0 58.82% List
World Cup 9 5 27   - 74 9 0 0 100.00% List
Anzac Tests 3 - 8   - 16 2 1 0 66.67% List
Tour Matches Australia 1 - 1   - 2 1 0 0 100.00% List
Test Series 3 3 11   - - 2 1 0 66.67% List
The Ashes 3 3 11   - 68 2 1 0 66.67% List
World Club Challenge 1 2 3   - 14 0 1 0 0.00% List
Super League 3 1 12   1 29 2 1 0 66.67% List
Tri-Nations 2 1 1   - 6 1 1 0 50.00% List


International

Test Matches - By Team

Team Years App T G   GK % FG Pts W L D Win %  
Australia 1995-96, 1998-03, 2005-06 25 12 86   - 220 22 3 0 88.00% List

International Matches - By Team

Team Years App T G   GK % FG Pts W L D Win %  
Australia 1995-1997 1 - 3   - 6 1 0 0 100.00% List

World Cup Matches - By Team

Team Years App T G   GK % FG Pts W L D Win %  
Australia 1995, 2000 9 5 27   - 74 9 0 0 100.00% List


Representative

Australia - By Team

Team Years App T G   GK % FG Pts W L D Win %  
NSW 1995-00, 2002-03, 2005 23 4 37   4 94 13 8 2 56.52% List
NSW Country 1995-96, 2003 3 1 7   - 18 1 2 0 33.33% List
Overall1995-2005 26 5 44   4 112 14 10 2 53.85% List


Club Career

NRL/NSWRL - By Year

Team Season App T G   GK % FG Pts W L D Win %  
Newcastle NSWRL 1993 3 - -   - - 2 1 0 66.67% List
Newcastle NSWRL 1994 21 7 65 / 96 67.71% 4 162 8 13 0 38.10% List
Newcastle ARL 1995 23 6 85 / 109 77.98% - 194 16 7 0 69.57% List
Newcastle ARL 1996 19 3 64 / 90 71.11% 2 142 9 8 2 47.37% List
Newcastle ARL 1997 11 2 43 / 58 74.14% - 94 9 2 0 81.82% List
Newcastle NRL 1998 26 7 74 / 117 63.25% 5 181 18 7 1 69.23% List
Newcastle NRL 1999 22 7 76 / 105 72.38% 4 184 13 8 1 59.09% List
Newcastle NRL 2000 23 8 84 / 130 64.62% - 200 12 10 1 52.17% List
Newcastle NRL 2001 21 14 110 / 135 81.48% 3 279 17 3 1 80.95% List
Newcastle NRL 2002 22 10 102 / 125 81.60% 2 246 16 6 0 72.73% List
Newcastle NRL 2003 16 4 65 / 79 82.28% - 146 10 6 0 62.50% List
Newcastle NRL 2004 3 - 7 / 13 53.85% - 14 2 1 0 66.67% List
Newcastle NRL 2005 16 3 54 / 69 78.26% 1 121 8 8 0 50.00% List
Newcastle NRL 2006 22 9 85 / 106 80.19% 1 207 13 9 0 59.09% List
Newcastle NRL 2007 2 - 3 / 3 100.00% - 6 1 1 0 50.00% List

NRL/NSWRL - By Team

Team Years App T G   GK % FG Pts W L D Win %  
Newcastle 1993-07 250 80 917 / 1235 74.25% 22 2176 154 90 6 61.60% List

English Career - By Year

Team Season App T G   GK % FG Pts W L D Win %  
Warrington 2005 3 1 12   1 29 2 1 0 66.67% List

English Career - By Team

Team Years App T G   GK % FG Pts W L D Win %  
Warrington 2005 3 1 12   1 29 2 1 0 66.67% List

Your Say

  • Nick
    27/09/2009

    The greatest to ever put on a pair of boots.
    Brilliant general play kicker and goal kicker, an unparalled ballplayer and one of few halfbacks who could tackle and run like a back rower. Phil Gould's quote sums it up best: "It's unfair to compare players of past eras to Andrew Johns because he's better then they were".

  • Will
    11/04/2012

    Legend. Off-field should not tarnish the on-field dominance he had.

  • Cameron
    11/06/2012

    The greatest Rugby League player the world has ever seen and ever will see. Outstanding kicking game, wonderful goal kicker, perfect passing game, always knew when to run to the line and a brilliant defender as well. One word sums him up "Legend".

  • Chris
    18/09/2012

    Without doubt, and unequivocally, the greatest player I've seen in my time watching rugby league. Had it not been for injuries, his dominance would have been even greater. In his peak years, between around 1995 and 2003, the rest were playing rugby - but Johns was playing something else.

  • Greg
    03/10/2012

    Yes this guy had it all.....danger man and nearly impossible to contain...shame he had to play hooker but he was a round I guess when there were a lot of other great half backs

  • Phil
    05/10/2012

    What a player. The best ever in my opinion.

  • Lachlan Cole
    05/01/2014

    One of the greatest players to ever play the game. A massive figure for Newcastle winning those two premierships. Overall one of the greatest players I have ever seen.

  • Lachlan Cole
    11/01/2014

    An absolute superstar of the game and a huge figure for the knights winning those two premierships and it was very sad to see a champion like him retire from rugby league but overall an absolute superstar of the game.

  • Adrian Care
    31/12/2014

    He was the man who set the bar for NRL throughout an illustrious career. He is a true immortal for the game and club immortal for the Newcastle Knights.

  • Rob
    21/08/2015

    The most awe inspiring rugby league player in NRL history. The guy was simply a master and commander of the game who would weave his magic before your eyes as the entertainer that he was.

  • mark
    29/09/2015

    The main difference between johns and thurston is the defence. Johns could hit and belt backrowers but thurston can be a speedbump. Also johns was denied a couple of dally m medals due to being suspended during the year. The rules have changed now and you can be suspended and still win. Thurstons dominance at origin is due to his opponent. Mitchell pierce. Mullen etc. Johns had to play against qld legends langer lockyer etc. When johns and locky played we dominated test football. Now nz are favourites and the poms give us a run for our money

  • Anonymous
    04/04/2017

    Could pass, kick, tackle, charge at the line, the most complete player ever

  • karl bowers
    09/06/2017

    Wow what a player & most importantly a top bloke i read his book the two of me. Fantastic read & a great laugh. i live in leeds martyn gleeson who played with andrew at Warrington was asked on tv "who is the best player you have played with" martyn said instantly andrew johns & they only played 3 games together god bless.

  • Anonymous
    28/03/2020

    Andrew johns was a great player but he wasnt the best player in thw world. There are better players then andrew johns like brett kenny, brad fittler, laurie daley they were the best players in the rugby league

  • John Martin
    31/10/2022

    Andrew Johns is without doubt the greatest player I have ever seen,! Im a massive die hard balmain tigers fan, & my all time favourite player is the great fullback, Garry jack ( Jimmy). And I admired greatly the tough wholehearted former 1970s lock, Neil Pringle ( Bing) but Andrew Johns was a master on every aspect of the game, and had the best vision of any player I have clapped eyes on, absolute immortal, he did things that I've never seen a player do, the masters master in the rugby league world, greatest ever, without a shadow of a doubt, thankyou so much for the wonderful memories, for club state and country

  • Anonymous
    02/01/2023

    The undisputed GOAT

  • Nrl expert
    28/02/2023

    Most overrated player in the history of rugby league

  • Marisa
    02/07/2023

    Fantastic player, organiser, with an uncanny perception of where he should be to create opportunities for other team mates to convert
    Nowadays, I look a Nathan Cleary and I can see
    Andrew’s influence without taking away Nathan
    own creativity
    Perhaps soon will see if K Ponga dedication to the Knights produce better dividends having Andrew as a possible mentor

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Contributions: Rugby League Tables, Andrew Ferguson, Shawn Dollin, Alan Katzmann, Greg Fiveash, Paul Carter, AJ Lucantonio, Nick Jones, Max Turner

Sources: ARL Rugby League Yearbook 1996, NRL Rugby League Yearbook 2003, NRL Rugby League Yearbook 1999, NRL Rugby League Yearbook 2002, NRL Rugby League Yearbook 2004, ARL Rugby League Yearbook 1997, NRL Rugby League Yearbook 1998, NRL Rugby League Yearbook 2000, NRL Rugby League Yearbook 2001, NRL 2004 Official Rugby League Annual, 2006 Official Rugby League Annual, NSWRL Rugby League Yearbook 1994, ARL Rugby League Yearbook 1995