- Great play for Manly, NSW and Australia.
- He rose to the top of the sport in a 274-game career.
- A colorful cult hero died in the Philippines
The football world is in shock and mourning after Manly, NSW and Kangaroos great Terry Hill died aged just 52.
The Sea Eagles legend suffered a heart attack in the Philippines, where he had spent more time in recent years while working with a charity. news corporation reported.
Hill was married to a woman from the Philippines and was living in Homebush, in Sydney’s west, at the time of his death, according to the publication.
Terry Hill (pictured playing for Manly in 2005) rose to the top of the game in a long and successful career.
Born in Newtown, Hill (pictured running the ball for Manly) was one of the best players in the world in his heyday and represented New South Wales and Australia on multiple occasions.
Hill played 246 games in a club career that saw him run for Souths, Easts, Wests, Manly and Wests Tigers, as well as playing 14 games for NSW and a further nine for his country.
Born in the inner western Sydney suburb of Newtown, he made his first grade debut for Souths in 1990, moved to Easts in 1991, then Western Suburbs in 1992 before finding his home in football with Manly in 1994.
He excelled in the Sea Eagles’ centers for six seasons, helping them to premiership glory in 1996, and then returned to the club to finish his career in 2005 after playing 49 games for the Wests Tigers over four years.
Known as one of the most colorful characters in the game, he was a regular on Channel Nine’s The Footy Show during its most successful years and will also be remembered by fans for his starring appearances in Lowes menswear adverts.
Nicknamed ‘Tezza’, Hill was one of football’s most colorful characters and became a regular on The Footy Show (pictured) at the peak of his popularity, as well as starring in well-known television commercials for the men’s clothing chain Lowes (below).
Hill was at the center of one of the modern game’s defining dramas when he was selected to play for Easts in 1991 despite having previously signed to join Wests.
He and other players took legal action against the game’s then governing body, the NSWRL, and won their High Court case after a long battle.
“Those players were very brave men because they had no financial support and they all put their names on the line, which meant they put their houses on the line, because if they had lost the League I would have pursued them with the costs,” said the footballer. said great lawyer Kevin Ryan of Hill and his fellow stars.
Hill, nicknamed ‘Tezza’, made his representative debut for City in 1993, the same year he first broke into the Blues State of Origin team.
Two years later he was selected by the Kangaroos for the first time and scored a try on his debut against New Zealand.
The Sea Eagles paid tribute to the great club in a statement issued shortly after news of his death was made public.
“Terry was a much-loved and respected figure not only at the Sea Eagles, but throughout rugby league, where he played for a number of clubs,” Manly chief executive Tony Mestrov said.
‘On behalf of everyone at Sea Eagles, we offer our deepest condolences to Terry’s family and friends during this difficult time.
“Terry will always be fondly remembered in Manly.”
Geoff Toovey, former Manly captain and coach, who played alongside Hill, remembered him as a “good friend” who “did a lot of good things for his team-mates”.