Craig Young (rugby league)

Craig Young
Born	(1956-06-25) June 25, 1956 Wollongong, New South Wales, Australia
Occupation(s)	Rugby league player, coach, team manager, police officer
Years active	1977–1988 (player), 1989–1990 (coach), 2003–present (recruitment manager)
Known for	St. George Dragons player and captain, Australia national rugby league team representative, New South Wales Blues representative

Craig Young (born 25 June 1956) is a retired Australian rugby league player who represented both the Australia national rugby league team and the New South Wales Blues. Over an 11-year span from 1977 to 1988, he competed with the St. George Dragons in the NSWRL premiership, predominantly occupying the role of prop-forward. Nicknamed "Albert," a moniker inspired either by his middle name or the cartoon character Fat Albert, Young played a pivotal role in his teams' successes throughout his career.

Background

Born in Wollongong, New South Wales, Australia, Young completed his education at Corrimal High School.

Early sporting success

Initially excelling in soccer, Young followed in the footsteps of his father, Bob Young, who was an Australian soccer representative. His brother Warwick also competed at state league level for Wollongong Wolves and St George. At age 16, Craig balanced playing soccer with Bellambi and rugby league with the Corrimal Cougars, eventually choosing rugby league as his primary sport. This decision led to his selection for the Australian Schoolboys' tour of Great Britain in 1972.

Club career

Before signing with the St. George Dragons, Young attracted significant interest from various clubs. He became one of St. George’s most celebrated players. In his rookie season in 1977, coach Harry Bath forecasted a promising career ahead. That same year, Young contributed to securing the premiership by defeating the Parramatta Eels in the grand final.

At just 22 years old in 1979, Young was appointed captain and guided the Dragons to their 15th premiership title. He maintained captaincy through difficult seasons until retiring in 1988, including leading the team during the 1985 Grand Final defeat by the Canterbury Bulldogs. In his concluding year, he captained St. George to triumph in the midweek 1988 Panasonic Cup against the Balmain Tigers.

Representative career

Young earned selection for the prestigious 1978 Kangaroo Tour, participating in all five Tests and eleven additional tour matches, ultimately receiving "Player of the Tour" accolades.

His debut for New South Wales came in 1979, making five appearances under previous selection regulations. He took part in the inaugural State of Origin match in 1980 and appeared four more times through to 1984.

In 1982, Young was awarded man-of-the-match honors during Australia’s series-clinching second test versus New Zealand. During the 1982 Invincibles Kangaroo tour, he played in five out of six Tests along with six tour matches. His last appearance for Australia occurred at the Sydney Cricket Ground during the opening test of the 1984 Ashes series against Great Britain.

Post-playing career

Following retirement, Young took on coaching responsibilities for the Dragons from 1989 until 1990 before being succeeded by Brian Smith in 1991. He later returned to St. George as recruitment manager beginning in 2003.

Together with his sons Brad and Dean, Young owns two establishments: Unanderra Hotel, acquired in 1991, and Cabbage Tree Hotel, purchased in 2008.

Since 2005, he has held the position of team manager for New South Wales Blues squads.

His son Dean was part of the Dragons' premiership-winning squad in 2010 and went on to coach the club during the 2020 season. Craig Young’s wife Sharon passed away in 2016.

Awards and honors

In 1988, Young was granted Life Membership by the St. George Dragons club.

During his playing career, he concurrently worked with the New South Wales Police Force and was honored in 2008 by being selected as the prop in the NSW Police Team of the Century.

On 20 July 2022, Young earned a place in the St. George Dragons District Rugby League Clubs' team of the century.

External links

• Profile of Craig Young on eraofthebiff.com