Born: 8 November, 1980 Test record: 17 Tests (2004-06) – 9 tries, 10 goals (56 points) Tours: 2004 Tri Nations, 2005 Tri Nations, 2006 Tri Nations
Cairns product Brent Webb came to prominence as a utility with the Warriors in 2002, before becoming a strike weapon for the New Zealand Test side at fullback after qualifying for selection on residency grounds.
A Queensland under-19s and Junior Kangaroos representative in 1998, the unheralded Webb debuted for the Warriors in their grand final season. He was recruited after an impressive season for Brisbane Wests in 2001, where he was the Queensland Cup’s leading tryscorer. His raw talent was obvious but there were still some rough edges to his game, nevertheless his versatility was used to good effect. An injury to Ivan Cleary saw Webb grab the fullback spot for several weeks at the end of the regular season, but Cleary’s return meant Webb missed out on the Warriors’ sides for the finals.
Undeterred, Webb cemented the fullback spot for himself in 2003 following Cleary’s retirement and he proved to be a quality goalkicker in the process. His deceptive pace, playmaking ability and brilliant kick-returns made the Indigenous livewire a crowd favourite at Ericsson Stadium. Webb starred in the Warriors’ 48-22 finals ambush of the Bulldogs, crossing for two tries and adding five goals. Earlier in the season Webb had come under fire for taking an inordinate amount of time with his goal kicks, and was surely one of the kickers for whom the time penalty rule was instigated.
The 23-year-old was a consistent performer for a club in turmoil in 2004 and consequently earned a surprise call-up to the New Zealand side for the Tri Nations campaign. Webb became the first Australian-born player to represent the Kiwis for 65 years, qualifying courtesy of the three-year residency rule. He was the Kiwis’ top pointscorer in the tournament, contributing a try and eight goals while wearing the No.1 jersey in all four matches.
Webb missed the 2005 Anzac Test with injury but was in superb form during the Kiwis’ stunning Tri Nations triumph. He scored four tries, including a four-pointer in the tournament-opening upset of Australia in Sydney, a double against Great Britain in London and a decisive try in the 24-0 final demolition of the Kangaroos in Leeds. He also dotted down in a one-off clash with France.
It was announced during the 2006 season that Webb would not be retained for the following NRL campaign due to salary cap restrictions, sparking an uproar from Warriors fans. The instinctive custodian was easily the club’s best player in 2006 – he was their top tryscorer with 11 and finished ninth in Dally M Medal voting.
Webb retained the Kiwis’ fullback role for the Anzac Test, and his electrifying attack and courageous defence at the back saw him become arguably his adopted country’s key player in the Tri Nations. A scintillating individual long-range try in the first match against Great Britain was followed by a vital double against the Lions two weeks later. He set up a wonderful try in the final for Frank Pritchard after taking a Stacey Jones chip kick on the full, but the Kiwis ultimately went down to the Kangaroos in an extra-time epic.
Webb signed with Leeds for 2007, where he tasted Super League grand final success under Brian McLennan, his former Kiwi coach. The star fullback was flown in to play for New Zealand in the Centenary Test in 2008 but had a quiet game after a short preparation and missed the World Cup with injury.
His Kiwis tenure over, Webb stayed with Leeds until 2014 and featured in two more grand final triumphs for the Rhinos (2009 and 2011), along with two Challenge Cup final losses at Wembley (2010 and 2011).
