Trevor Gillmeister
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Full name | Trevor Gillmeister | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Born | Brisbane, Queensland, Australila | 13 March 1964||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Height | 178 cm (5 ft 10 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Weight | 89 kg (14 st 0 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Position | Second-row, Prop, Hooker, Lock | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Trevor Gillmeister (born 13 March 1964) is an Australian former professional
He played mostly in the second row, though he also spent time at prop, hooker and lock. Gillmeister was known as The Axe to fans of the game because of his punishing tackles. "The Axe" was also the name of the column he wrote for The Sunday Mail in Brisbane.[5]
Today, Gillmeister works as the Asbestos Awareness Ambassador for the Queensland Government and works alongside Accent Benchtops. He has also been the Queensland Maroons' defensive coach since 2006.
Background
Gillmeister was born in Brisbane, Queensland, Australila. Growing up, Gillmeister played football with the Gladstone club in central Queensland.
Playing career
Gillmeister's first-grade debut in the Brisbane Rugby League premiership came in Round 5 of the 1983 season for Northern Suburbs at nineteen years of age.
Eastern Suburbs
In 1986, Gillmeister moved to
Brisbane Broncos
In
In
Penrith Panthers
The Penrith Panthers, coached by Phil Gould, quickly signed Gillmeister after he was not offered a contract by the Broncos. His return to Sydney, however, was a brief one, only making 22 appearances for the club and scoring one try in 1994. He was released from the second year of his contract to sign for the newly formed second Brisbane-based team, the South Queensland Crushers.
South Queensland Crushers
To start the
Representative career
Queensland
Gillmeister made his
At State of Origin level, Gillmeister defied his stature by continually hurting the Blues' forwards with stinging defence throughout his career. In particular, he is remembered for his ongoing fiery attacking and defensive clashes with New South Wales hardman Paul Harragon.
Australia
In 1995, after nearly ten years in the New South Wales Rugby League, including two grand final victories with the Broncos, and 21 State of Origin games for Queensland, Gillmeister made his Australian debut when he was selected as a reserve forward for the first Trans-Tasman Test match against New Zealand at Suncorp Stadium. At 31 years of age, he became the oldest ever forward to make his international debut. Gillmeister played all three Tests against the Kiwis from the bench as the Australians, minus the Super League-aligned players, won the series 3–0. Despite good performances throughout the remainder of the 1995 season, Gillmeister missed out on a place in Australia's World Cup winning team at the end of the year, leaving his three Tests against New Zealand as the only time he was selected to represent his country.
In 2000, Gillmeister was awarded the Australian Sports Medal for his contribution to Australia's international standing in the sport of rugby league.
Coaching career
Gillmeister has worked as assistant coach for the
In 2008, Gillmeister was named at second-row in an all-time greatest Norths Devils team.[6]
Charity
Following the death of his father Ron from mesothelioma in 2009, which he contracted while working in Gladstone in the 1970s, Gillmeister became an ambassador for the Asbestos Related Disease Support Society Queensland.[7]
In 2014, Gillmeister held the "Taking an Axe to Asbestos" fundraising walk.[8] Beginning in Townsville on 26 September 2014, Gillmeister walked down the Queensland coast, reaching Brisbane on 27 October 2014.[9]
During the walk, Gillmeister collected donations for the organisation while raising awareness of asbestos-related diseases.[10][11][12][13]
References
- ^ NRL Stats[permanent dead link]
- ^ RLP
- ^ Yesterday's Hero Archived 7 August 2008 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Players card details
- ISBN 9780702235368.
- ^ Pramberg, Bernie (17 August 2008). "Cameron Smith and Greg Inglis in Norths Devis 'greatest' team". The Courier-Mail. Retrieved 17 August 2008.
- ^ Reynolds, John (14 December 2016). "Gilly opens up about his dad". Asbestos Disease Support Society. Retrieved 20 October 2020.
- ^ Dunn, Matthew (25 September 2014). "Trevor Gillmeister walking from Townsville to Brisbane to raise awareness for asbestos-related diseases". The Courier-Mail. Retrieved 20 October 2020.
- ^ Garry, Chris (28 October 2014). "Gillmeister pledges to do more for asbestos-related disease after epic fundraising walk". Gold Coast Bulletin. Retrieved 20 October 2020.
- The Daily Mercury. Retrieved 20 October 2020.
- ^ "Rugby league legend walks in fight against asbestos cancer". The Morning Bulletin. 10 October 2014. Retrieved 20 October 2020.
- ^ Pattison-Sowden, Mara (14 October 2014). "League great's walk to highlight asbestos risks". The Observer. Retrieved 20 October 2020.
- ^ Ditchburn, Emily (26 October 2014). "Trevor 'The Axe' Gillmeister's blistering place to Brisbane". Sunshine Coast Daily. Retrieved 20 October 2020.