 | This article needs to beupdated. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information.(August 2018) |
 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | Lachlan David Turner (1987-05-11)11 May 1987 (age 38) Sydney,New South Wales, Australia | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Height | 1.89 m (6 ft 2 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 96 kg (15 st 2 lb; 212 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| School | Newington College | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rugby union career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Lachlan David Turner (born 11 May 1987) is an Australian former professionalrugby union player. His playing position waswing. He had a strong kicking game, which allowed him to also play atfullback.[1] Turner has representedAustralia in international Test rugby. He playedSuper Rugby for theNew South Wales Waratahs from 2007 to 2013, before joining theQueensland Reds in 2014.[2] Turner then joined the NSW Waratahs but tore his hamstring and had to have surgery.[3]
Born inSydney, Turner attendedNewington College and was selected for theAustralian Schoolboys rugby team in 2005.[4]
Turner played club rugby forEastwood, and was invited to join the Waratahs Academy in 2006 under coach Joe Barakat's guidance. He was selected for and played in the Australian Under 19 side which won the2006 Under 19 Rugby World Championship in Dubai.[4][5]
Turner made his debut for theWaratahs againstReds in the 2006Australian Provincial Championship,[1] and was awarded the inaugural Chris Whitaker Aspiring Waratah Award at the end of the 2006 season.[4]
In 2007, Turner earned his firstSuper 14 cap for the Waratahs in round seven against theStormers in Sydney.[4] The highlight for Turner came against theCrusaders atSydney Football Stadium, where he scored a solo try from his own half, beating several defenders for pace. He capped off the season by winning the 2007 Super Rugby Rookie of the Year award.[4]
From his debut in 2007 through to the end of the 2011 season, Turner did not miss a Super Rugby match for the Waratahs – a run of 67 consecutive appearances.[4]
Turner scored two tries in the2008 Super 14 final against theCrusaders in Christchurch, giving the Waratahs an early 12–3 lead, but they lost structure afterKurtley Beale went off injured and the Crusaders won the match 20–12 to claim the 2008 title.[6] In the 2010 season, he scored an intercept try against theBlues with eight minutes left, sealing the win for the Waratahs and keeping the team in top four finals contention.[7] During 2011, he switched position from wing to centre for the first time for the Waratahs, to cover for the injuredRob Horne.[8]
Turner sustained a hamstring tear in 2012 during a pre-season trial match for the Waratahs against Samoa,[9] and was forced to miss all but the last two matches of the2012 Super Rugby season.[10] In April 2013, he had his Super Rugby ambitions derailed for the second year in a row after suffering a season ending leg break while playing Sydney club rugby for Eastwood against Manly.[11] Turner had been in and out of the Waratahs side until then, and had earned only two Super caps for the 2013 season, in the selection battle for the Waratahs back three.[11]
In 2013, Turner signed a two-year deal to play for theQueensland Reds, starting from the2014 Super Rugby season.[2]
In 2015, Turner came over to Europe and joinedRC Toulon as cover during the2015 Rugby World Cup.[12] However, on 16 February 2016 it was announced that Turner had joinedAviva Premiership clubExeter Chiefs on a two-and-a-half-year deal.[13]
On 25 May 2007, Turner was selected forAustralia A againstTonga atSydney Football Stadium in Sydney. He scored three tries in a man-of-the-match performance.[1] Despite calls from some quarters for him to be included in the Wallabies squad for the2007 Rugby World Cup in France, the then 20-year-old winger was left at home.[14]
An injury toLote Tuqiri enabled Turner to make his Test debut on 5 July 2008, starting on the wing againstFrance inBrisbane.[15] He toured with the Wallabies on the2008 Spring tour, and played againstItaly inPadova.[16] Turner was selected for all three2009 June Tests and for all six matches of the2009 Tri Nations Series.[16] He toured with the Wallabies on the2009 Spring tour but did not play any Test matches.[16][17]
In August 2010, he was recalled to the Wallabies squad following injuries toPeter Hynes andCameron Shepherd,[18] and whenDrew Mitchell succumbed to a hamstring injury, Turner played on the wing against theAll Blacks atANZ Stadium in theBledisloe Cup match in Sydney on 11 September 2010.[19] Turner made two further Wallaby tours, in 2010 and 2011. He played in the wins overItaly andFrance in 2010, and in the win againstWales atMillennium Stadium in 2011.[16]
He was a member of the 2010 Rugby Sevens squad that won silver at theDelhi Commonwealth Games.[4]
On 15 September 2010, Turner won the "Gatorade Bolt", an invitational 100 metres race held atSydney Olympic Park, to earn himself the unofficial title of the fastest professional footballer in Australia.[16][20] The event was named for the presence of athletics sprint championUsain Bolt, who provided some coaching for the runners and also celebrated the 10th anniversary of the2000 Summer Olympics opening ceremony held in Sydney.[16][20]
The race featured Turner's rugby union club teammate John Grant,NRL playersJarryd Hayne,Greg Inglis,Josh Morris,Nathan Gardner, andBen Barba, plusMatt Lewis from theA-League, andCourtenay Dempsey from theAFL. Turner won the race with a time of 11.10s, in a close contest from Grant (11.15) and league's Jarryd Hayne (11.20).[20]
