Background and rugby league career
Lee was born on 17 February 1978, and grew up in Windsor, a lovely town to the north-west of Sydney, Australia. He played junior football for the Windsor Wolves.
He is a qualified greenkeeper (groundsman) by trade, and worked as such for four years.
In 1997 Lee joined the Penrith Panthers (NRL), where he played 70 times for the first grade team. He transferred to the Parramatta Eels for the 2003 season, and went on to play 37 games for the Eels in first grade. While generally considered a second rower (11 or 12), Lee also played at hooker (9) or lock (13) for the Eels.
Lee moved to England to take up an offer from the London Broncos (Super League) for the 2005 season. He was also 'courted' by Wigan in early 2005, but decided to stay in London. The Broncos became Harlequins RL in 2006, partnering up with the venerable Harlequins rugby union team at the Twickenham Stoop, and taking on their quartered technicolor jersey.
Lee played in the second row for the Quins, and his squad number was 12. He captained the team to good effect in the absence of regular captains Rob Purdham and Mark McLinden.
Unfortunately for Quins fans, Lee decided to retire from first grade rugby league after the 2007 season. His last game with QuinsRL was in Perpignan against the Catalans Dragons on 15 September 2007.
Lee and his wife Rochelle headed back home to Australia, and welcomed a beautiful baby girl into their family on 1 November. Her name is Lilli Joy Ellen Hopkins, and she weighed 7lb 11oz. When Lee announced this excellent news, he added, 'Its great to be a dad.'
Starting from the 2008 season, Lee played once more for the Windsor Wolves on a part-time basis, combining this with a career as a personal trainer.
Finally, on 14 June 2008, Lee played his last game of rugby league. He had long been having problems with his knees, and was facing operations on both. Rather than keep playing and thereby risking his health and the possibilities to be found in his new career, he decided to hang up his boots for good.
Statistics
The following are Lee's first grade career statistics, up to and including his final game on 15 September 2007.
Penrith Panthers |
1997-2002 |
70 appearances, 5 tries, |
Parramatta Eels |
2003-2004 |
37 appearances, 10 tries, |
London Broncos |
2005 |
32 appearances, 7 tries, |
| Harlequins RL |
2006 |
26 appearances, 10 tries, |
Harlequins RL |
2007 |
27 appearances, 3 tries, |
| total for career | 140 points |
Lee had a particularly good year for the Quins in 2005, topping the club statistics for most tackles, most offloads, most metres and most tackle busts. He was also voted the club's Player of the Year.
Testimonials
And I'm not the only person who admires Lee!
In the Harlequins RL official match day magazine for the last home game of 2007, Lee's team mate Jon Wells described him as, 'A consummate professional, one of the best at this club in recent years, and a thoroughly nice bloke to boot.'
In 2006, Brian Noble (GB coach at the time) named Lee as one of the Quins' most dangerous players, adding that 'Hopkins is a particularly good back row player ... he's got good footwork.'
When reviewing a 2004 game with the Eels, journalist Blake Wolfson wrote, 'Lee Hopkins, who has to be one of the best and most underrated buys that the Eels have ever made, put in a stirling performance including setting up two tries'.
And in 2005, Leeds captain Kevin Sinfield said, 'The half-backs of Luke Dorn, Thomas Leuluai and Mark McLinden have all caught the eye, but [second row] Lee Hopkins in the man who has really impressed me. He has been outstanding.'
