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| Full name | Jon David Wilkin[1] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | (1983-11-01)1 November 1983 (age 41)[2] Kingston upon Hull, Humberside, England | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Height | 5 ft 11 in (1.81 m)[2] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 14 st 13 lb (95 kg)[2] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Position | Second-row, Loose forward, Stand-off, Scrum-half | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Jon David Wilkin (born 1 November 1983), also known by thenicknames of"Wilko" or "Jean Jean", is an English former professionalrugby league footballer who last played as asecond-row, loose forward, scrum-half andstand-off forToronto Wolfpack in theChampionship andSuper League[3][4] He played forEngland andGreat Britain at international level.[6][5]
Wilkin was born inKingston upon Hull,East Yorkshire, England.
Wilkin started his career atHull Kingston Rovers.[7] He made his debut for the club in 2002 which was also his only season at his boyhood club as he signed forSuper League club St. Helens forSuper League VIII in 2003.
Wilkin soon broke into the first team and has been dubbed by some as one of the most promising running backs in the game. By the age of 24, Wilkin had impressed many and played in some high octane matches.
However, the 2006 season was a new high point in Jon's career. He was a key member of the treble-winning team as Saints won the2006 Challenge Cup where he played with a broken nose. St Helens reached the2006 Super League Grand final to be contested againstHull FC, and Wilkin played atsecond-row in Saints' 26–4 victory.
The icing on the cake for Wilkin and St Helens came when they won the BBC TV Sports Personality of the Year Team of the Year award, withDaniel Anderson taking the Best Coach honour.[8] Wilkin (L) was recognised for his good season by being named in the 2006Super League Dream Team.[9]
As 2006 Super League champions, St Helens faced 2006 NRL Premiers theBrisbane Broncos in the2007 World Club Challenge. Wilkin played atloose forward in the Saints' 18–14 victory.
Jon was awarded community volunteer of 2008 at a ceremony inManchester. Jon said of his achievement "All those hours of helping others is part of my job". Jon went on to thank, amongst others, authorRudyard Kipling whose poem 'If' is a prominent influence in his life.
He played in 2008'sSuper League XIII Grand Final defeat byLeeds.[10]
He played in the2009 Super League Grand Final defeat by theLeeds Rhinos atOld Trafford.[11][12][13][14]
He played in the2011 Super League Grand Final defeat by theLeeds Rhinos atOld Trafford.[15][16]
Wilkin ended his long association withSt Helens and signed for theToronto Wolfpack ahead of the 2019 season.
In July 2020 Wilkin announced that he would retire at the end of the 2020 season.[17]
Wilkin was called in to theTri Nations squad in 2005 but did not feature in the competition.
He was included in the 25-man squad for the2006 Tri-Nations Tour of Australia and New Zealand. Wilkin made his international début from the bench at theSydney Football Stadium, Sydney on 4 November 2006 against Australia. He came off the bench in two further games in that series, the first against New Zealand inWellington, and the second against Australia inBrisbane.
Wilkin was selected for theEngland squad to compete in the2008 Rugby League World Cup tournament in Australia.[18]
Group A's first match againstPapua New Guinea he played from the interchange bench in England's victory.
Wilkin wonThe Observer's first Community Champion Award.[19]
In January 2012, it was announced that Wilkin was to be the first chairman of the newly founded Players' Association; League 13.[20]
In 2015 Wilkin opened an independent coffee shop in partnership with former St Helens teammateMark Flanagan inManchester city centre.[21]
In 2018, Wilkin married British OlympianFran Halsall. In 2022, Wilkin joined Sky Sports to become one of the pundits for their Rugby League coverage.[22]
