Trent Barrett

Barrett started his professional career in the 1996 ARL season with the Illawarra Steelers. Within two years he had been selected to play his first State of Origin match. Barrett was the stand-out player of the 1998 Illawarra Steelers season, top scoring with 18 tries and winning the BHP Medal as player of the year.

His first season at the new joint-venture of the St. George Illawarra Dragons was marred by controversy as the incessant media hype over an alleged feud with Anthony Mundine and whether by playing out of position at half-back was affecting his form. He played at halfback in the Dragons' 1999 NRL Grand Final loss to Melbourne.

With the shock departure of Mundine from the Dragons in 2000, Barrett was allowed to move back to his original position of five-eighth and he received the Dally M Medal in 2000. At the end of the 2001 NRL season, he went on the 2001 Kangaroo tour. In 2003, while Barrett was captain of St George, Nathan Brown who was the coach at the time famously slapped Barrett across the face in a tense sideline spray alongside Lance Thompson. Brown admitted many years later it was one of the biggest regrets in his coaching career but said he had moved on from the incident.[6]

Barrett made history during the 2005 Tri-Nations by becoming the first-ever Kangaroo to be sin-binned twice in one match He was sin-binned in the first half for what he claimed was a 'nothing' incident, and was dismissed in the 70th minute for illegally tackling a Great Britain player on his way to the tryline. The Kangaroos won the match 26–14.

Following a Round 12, 2006 game against the Newcastle Knights, Barrett received a grade-five striking charge on Newcastle Knights's Brian Carney. The incident initially went unnoticed throughout the entire weekend but it is understood a Channel Nine producer picked up the incident. Barrett was suspended for six matches, ruling him out of Dally M Medal contention.

Barrett playing for Wigan in 2008

Barrett had two years left on his St George Illawarra Dragons contract, but a get-out clause enabled him to quit the club for a move to England. He signed a three-year deal with the Wigan Warriors on 4 May 2006, despite their position at the bottom of the Super League and the threat of relegation to National League Division 1. Barrett made his Wigan Warriors début in a 16–10 defeat against Warrington at the JJB Stadium on 9 February 2007. In October 2007, Barrett was named as the Rugby League Players' Player of the Year but missed out on the "Man of Steel" although he had been tipped to be named.[7] James Roby of St. Helens received the award.

Barrett playing for the Sharks in 2010

Following a release from the final year of his three-year contract with Wigan, Barrett signed with the Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks in June 2008, on a two-year deal, commencing in 2009.[8] He earned the five-eighth spot for the New South Wales team in the 2nd State of Origin match that year. In his Origin comeback, Barrett was charged following a reckless tackle on Queensland's Greg Inglis, and as a result was suspended for two club matches. It did not, however, deter him from playing in the third and final Origin match in which he set up several tries as NSW defeated Queensland in the dead rubber, Queensland having won the series with victory three weeks prior. Barrett announced his retirement on 22 July 2010.

• "Club:" Played 199 games for the Illawarra Steelers and the St George Illawarra Dragons
• Country: Played for Country in City vs Country Origin
• State of Origin: Played 11 games in total for New South Wales
• International: Played 13 tests to date for Australia including the 2000 World Cup

• Dally M: Dally M Player of the Year in 2000
• Super League Players' Player of the Year 2007