1. Wade Graham was born in Blacktown, New South Wales, Australia and is of Indigenous Australian descent - from Bundjalung people.
38 Facts About Wade Graham
1. 2.
Wade Graham played his junior rugby league for Blacktown City and attended The Hills Sports High School before being signed by the Penrith Panthers.
3.
Wade Graham played for New South Wales under 16's and 18's, as well as the Panthers Harold Matthews and SG Ball teams.
4.
Wade Graham started the 2008 season in the NYC for the Penrith Panthers before being called up to the first-grade squad, still as a 17-year-old in high school.
5.
Wade Graham finished his debut year in the NRL with him playing in 8 matches for the Penrith club in the 2008 NRL season.
6.
Wade Graham finished the 2009 NRL season with him playing in 22 matches and scoring five tries for the Penrith club.
7.
On 24 June 2010, Wade Graham signed with Cronulla starting from 2011 with a desire to play regular first-grade football from the preference for the halves combinations of Travis Burns and Luke Walsh by the Penrith coach Matthew Elliot limited the number of games he could have played.
8.
Wade Graham finished the 2010 NRL season with him playing in 12 matches and scoring 4 tries for Penrith.
9.
Wade Graham finished the 2011 NRL season with him playing in all of Cronulla's 24 matches, scoring six tries and kicking two field goals.
10.
On 26 May 2012, Wade Graham extended his contract with the Cronulla club for a further two seasons to the end of the 2014 season.
11.
Wade Graham finished the 2012 NRL season having played in 15 matches and scoring six tries.
12.
Wade Graham was invited to represent the Portugal national rugby league team in the 2012 Cabramatta International Nines tournament.
13.
On 29 April 2013, Wade Graham was among the first of many Cronulla players to be interviewed by ASADA, where controversy ensued regarding his attending the interview in casual attire.
14.
Wade Graham finished the 2013 NRL season having played 23 matches and scoring two tries for Cronulla.
15.
In February 2014, Wade Graham was selected in the Sharks inaugural 2014 Auckland Nines squad.
16.
On 14 April 2014, Wade Graham extended his contract with Cronulla-Sutherland for another three years to the end of the 2017 season after knocking back a $500,000 a season offer from the South Sydney Rabbitohs.
17.
On 22 August 2014, Wade Graham became one of the Cronulla players to accept reduced bans from the Australian Sports Anti-Doping Authority for his role in the 2011 Sharks supplements scandal.
18.
Wade Graham finished off the 2014 NRL season having played 19 matches and scoring five tries.
19.
On 31 January and 1 February, Wade Graham captained the Sharks in the 2015 NRL Auckland Nines, after originally selected captain, Luke Lewis, was ruled out with injury.
20.
Wade Graham co-captained the Sharks alongside Michael Ennis for a period whilst Cronulla's regular captain Paul Gallen was sidelined due to injury.
21.
Wade Graham finished the 2015 season having played in all of the Sharks 26 matches, and scoring four tries.
22.
On 13 January 2016, Wade Graham was named in the emerging New South Wales Blues squad.
23.
Wade Graham made his debut for New South Wales in game 3 of the 2016 State of Origin series, after having originally been selected to debut in Game 2, however being ineligible due to a suspension resulting from a high tackle on Jonathan Thurston in Cronulla's Round 14 win over the North Queensland Cowboys.
24.
On 2 October, Wade Graham was part of the Cronulla side that won the 2016 grand final to claim the club's first ever premiership.
25.
In 2017, Wade Graham was selected for the 2017 State of Origin series.
26.
Wade Graham was part of the Cronulla side which finished 5th at the end of the season.
27.
In 2018, Wade Graham was not selected for NSW by coach Brad Fittler for the 2018 State of Origin series due to being out with injury for most of the first half of the 2018 season.
28.
In week one of the 2018 NRL finals, Wade Graham was taken from the field in the first half during Cronulla's match against Eastern Suburbs with subsequent scans revealing the player had torn his anterior cruciate ligament ruling him out for the rest of the season.
29.
Wade Graham was limited to ten appearances for Cronulla in the regular 2019 NRL season, where the club finished 7th.
30.
Wade Graham played in the elimination final loss to Manly at Brookvale Oval.
31.
On 7 October, Wade Graham was named in the Australian team for the 2019 Rugby League World Cup 9s, as well as the upcoming Oceania Cup fixtures.
32.
Wade Graham played 19 games for Cronulla in the 2020 NRL season as the club finished 8th and qualified for the finals.
33.
Wade Graham played in Cronulla's elimination final loss against Canberra.
34.
Wade Graham was limited to only 11 games for Cronulla in the 2021 NRL season which saw the club narrowly miss the finals by finishing 9th on the table.
35.
Wade Graham decided to end his season prematurely due to three head concussions he sustained including two in consecutive weeks.
36.
Wade Graham played a total of 18 games for Cronulla in the 2022 NRL season as the club finished second on the table and qualified for the finals.
37.
Wade Graham played in both finals matches which saw Cronulla eliminated in straight sets.
38.
On 8 August, Wade Graham announced his retirement at the end of the 2023 NRL season.