Leigh Halfpenny
Encyclopedia
Stephen Leigh Halfpenny (born 22 December 1988) is a Welsh
international rugby union
footballer who plays for the Cardiff Blues
regional side.
, near Swansea
, and is an alumnus of Pontybrenin Primary School, as well as Penyrheol Comprehensive school.
A winger or alternate fullback, he was signed as a youth by the Neath Swansea Ospreys and played the 2005–2006 season with the Ospreys U18s. Halfpenny then trained with Neath RFC
during the 2006–2007 season, before signing for the Cardiff Blues and making his debut against Ulster
at the Ravenhill Stadium
in May 2008, scoring three conversions in the 17–26 victory.
A former Wales Under 20 international, in October 2008 he was selected for the Wales national rugby union team
squad for the 2008 Autumn internationals series.
He played his first cap for Wales in their first game of the autumn internationals against world champions, South Africa on 8 November 2008. He scored his first points for Wales from a penalty kick in the 15–20 loss. He went on to score his first two tries on his second cap against Canada on 14 November.
Halfpenny's international career is set to continue as he was chosen as a starting number 14 for Wales's 2009 Six Nations
game against Scotland
, on 8 February, and again on 14 February, against fierce rivals England
. He scored a try in each match and kicked a penalty against England to add to that. His points proved to be the difference between the two teams. He then played against France
in a match that Wales lost 21–16 in Saint-Denis
. Warren Gatland
then dropped Halfpenny for the 20–15 win over Italy
, as Warren Gatland experimented with Mark Jones and although he was expected to return for the game against Ireland
, surprisingly he was left out. Wales
lost the match 17–15 after Ronan O'Gara
knocked over a late drop goal to give Ireland a Grand Slam.
On 18 April 2009, he scored two tries for the Cardiff Blues in the final of the EDF Energy Cup
, a 50–12 win over Gloucester at Twickenham
.
On 22 April 2009, Halfpenny was included in the British & Irish Lions
squad for the tour to South Africa
in May 2009.
On the 20 May it was announced that he would miss the start of the Lions tour due to a thigh injury, requiring at least 10–14 days treatment, but he was scheduled once fully fit to rejoin Ian McGeechan's squad in South Africa. He was confirmed to have linked up with the Lions squad, fully recovered, in South Africa on 2 June However, on 10 June it was confirmed that Halfpenny had withdrawn from the Lions squad due to a recurrence of the thigh injury.
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
international rugby union
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
footballer who plays for the Cardiff Blues
Cardiff Blues
Cardiff Blues are one of the four professional Welsh regional rugby union teams. Based in Cardiff, the capital of Wales, the team have played at Cardiff City Stadium since the start of the 2009/2010 season and are owned by Cardiff Rugby Football Club....
regional side.
Biography
Halfpenny is from GorseinonGorseinon
Gorseinon is a town in southwest Wales, near the Loughor estuary. It was a small village until the late 19th century when it grew around the coal mining and tinplate industries. It is situated in the north west of Swansea, around north west of the city centre...
, near Swansea
Swansea
Swansea is a coastal city and county in Wales. Swansea is in the historic county boundaries of Glamorgan. Situated on the sandy South West Wales coast, the county area includes the Gower Peninsula and the Lliw uplands...
, and is an alumnus of Pontybrenin Primary School, as well as Penyrheol Comprehensive school.
A winger or alternate fullback, he was signed as a youth by the Neath Swansea Ospreys and played the 2005–2006 season with the Ospreys U18s. Halfpenny then trained with Neath RFC
Neath RFC
Neath Rugby Football Club is a Welsh rugby union club which plays in the Welsh Premier Division. The club's home ground is The Gnoll, Neath. The first team is known as the Welsh All Blacks because of the team colours: black with only a white cross pattée as an emblem...
during the 2006–2007 season, before signing for the Cardiff Blues and making his debut against Ulster
Ulster Rugby
Ulster Rugby, usually referred to simply as Ulster, is an Irish professional rugby union team based in Belfast, representing the Irish province of Ulster, that competes in the RaboDirect Pro12 and also competes in the Heineken Cup...
at the Ravenhill Stadium
Ravenhill Stadium
Ravenhill Stadium is located in Belfast, Northern Ireland. It is used by Ulster Rugby. It has a normal capacity of 12,300 and is owned by the Irish Rugby Football Union.-History:The grounds were opened in the 1923/24 season...
in May 2008, scoring three conversions in the 17–26 victory.
A former Wales Under 20 international, in October 2008 he was selected for the Wales national rugby union team
Wales national rugby union team
The Wales national rugby union team represent Wales in international rugby union tournaments. They compete annually in the Six Nations Championship with England, France, Ireland, Italy and Scotland. Wales have won the Six Nations and its predecessors 24 times outright, second only to England with...
squad for the 2008 Autumn internationals series.
He played his first cap for Wales in their first game of the autumn internationals against world champions, South Africa on 8 November 2008. He scored his first points for Wales from a penalty kick in the 15–20 loss. He went on to score his first two tries on his second cap against Canada on 14 November.
Halfpenny's international career is set to continue as he was chosen as a starting number 14 for Wales's 2009 Six Nations
2009 Six Nations Championship
The 2009 Six Nations Championship, known as the 2009 RBS 6 Nations because of the tournament's sponsorship by the Royal Bank of Scotland, was the tenth Six Nations Championship, an annual rugby union competition contested by the six major Northern Hemisphere rugby union national teams...
game against Scotland
Scotland national rugby union team
The Scotland national rugby union team represent Scotland in international rugby union. Rugby union in Scotland is administered by the Scottish Rugby Union. The Scotland rugby union team is currently ranked eighth in the IRB World Rankings as of 19 September 2011...
, on 8 February, and again on 14 February, against fierce rivals England
England national rugby union team
The England national rugby union team represents England in rugby union. They compete in the annual Six Nations Championship with France, Ireland, Scotland, Italy, and Wales. They have won this championship on 26 occasions, 12 times winning the Grand Slam, making them the most successful team in...
. He scored a try in each match and kicked a penalty against England to add to that. His points proved to be the difference between the two teams. He then played against France
France national rugby union team
The France national rugby union team represents France in rugby union. They compete annually against England, Ireland, Italy, Scotland and Wales in the Six Nations Championship. They have won the championship outright sixteen times, shared it a further eight times, and have completed nine grand slams...
in a match that Wales lost 21–16 in Saint-Denis
Saint-Denis
Saint-Denis is a commune in the northern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the centre of Paris. Saint-Denis is a sous-préfecture of the Seine-Saint-Denis département, being the seat of the Arrondissement of Saint-Denis....
. Warren Gatland
Warren Gatland
Warren David Gatland is a former New Zealand rugby footballer and the current head coach of the Wales national team.Gatland was born in Hamilton, New Zealand and educated at Hamilton Boys' High School and Waikato University...
then dropped Halfpenny for the 20–15 win over Italy
Italy national rugby union team
The Italy national rugby union team represent the nation of Italy in the sport of rugby union. The team is also known as the Azzurri . Italy have been playing international rugby since the late 1920s, and since 2000 compete annually in the Six Nations Championship with England, France, Ireland,...
, as Warren Gatland experimented with Mark Jones and although he was expected to return for the game against Ireland
Ireland national rugby union team
The Ireland national rugby union team represents the island of Ireland in rugby union. The team competes annually in the Six Nations Championship and every four years in the Rugby World Cup, where they reached the quarter-final stage in all but two competitions The Ireland national rugby union...
, surprisingly he was left out. Wales
Wales national rugby union team
The Wales national rugby union team represent Wales in international rugby union tournaments. They compete annually in the Six Nations Championship with England, France, Ireland, Italy and Scotland. Wales have won the Six Nations and its predecessors 24 times outright, second only to England with...
lost the match 17–15 after Ronan O'Gara
Ronan O'Gara
Ronan John Ross O'Gara is an Irish rugby union player, playing at fly-half for both Munster and Ireland. He is the all time highest point scorer for both Munster and Ireland. In addition to his prolific point-scoring, he has captained Munster, Ireland and the British and Irish Lions...
knocked over a late drop goal to give Ireland a Grand Slam.
On 18 April 2009, he scored two tries for the Cardiff Blues in the final of the EDF Energy Cup
EDF Energy Cup
The Anglo-Welsh Cup, currently known for sponsorship reasons as the LV Cup , is an English and Welsh rugby union knock-out cup competition featuring the twelve Aviva Premiership clubs and four Welsh Regions...
, a 50–12 win over Gloucester at Twickenham
Twickenham Stadium
Twickenham Stadium is a stadium located in Twickenham, in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. It is the largest rugby union stadium in the United Kingdom and has recently been enlarged to seat 82,000...
.
On 22 April 2009, Halfpenny was included in the British & Irish Lions
2009 British and Irish Lions tour to South Africa
The 2009 British and Irish Lions Tour to South Africa was an international rugby union tour which took place in South Africa from May to July 2009....
squad for the tour to South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
in May 2009.
On the 20 May it was announced that he would miss the start of the Lions tour due to a thigh injury, requiring at least 10–14 days treatment, but he was scheduled once fully fit to rejoin Ian McGeechan's squad in South Africa. He was confirmed to have linked up with the Lions squad, fully recovered, in South Africa on 2 June However, on 10 June it was confirmed that Halfpenny had withdrawn from the Lions squad due to a recurrence of the thigh injury.
External links
- Leigh Halfpenny bio at the Cardiff BluesCardiff BluesCardiff Blues are one of the four professional Welsh regional rugby union teams. Based in Cardiff, the capital of Wales, the team have played at Cardiff City Stadium since the start of the 2009/2010 season and are owned by Cardiff Rugby Football Club....
- Wales profile
- Profile on Official Lions Website