The rugby league community is in mourning after the death of former South Sydney Rabbitohs premiership winner Kyle Turner on Friday at the age of 31.
Turner played a crucial role off the bench in the Rabbitohs' 2014 grand final victory over the Bulldogs, ending the club's 43-year title drought. He made 91 first-grade appearances for Souths between 2011 and 2019, also representing the Indigenous All Stars twice and Country Origin once.
A proud Kamilaroi man, Turner's journey to the NRL began when Souths recruitment manager Mark Hughes spotted him and his family at a New South Wales Combined High Schools carnival. After signing from the Coonabarabran Unicorns in 2011, he won the club's under-20s Player of the Year award and debuted in first grade the following season.
Turner's career was marked by both triumph and adversity. He overcame a fractured neck suffered in 2015 and multiple concussions, returning to play 16 games in 2019 under coach Wayne Bennett before being released due to salary cap constraints. Rabbitohs CEO Blake Solly described him as "a gentle giant with an infectious smile" and a "tough, uncompromising player on the field, yet a lovely, generous man off it".
After retiring in 2020, Turner became a beloved physical education teacher at his old high school and made a surprise comeback with the Unicorns in 2021. He played his final game last month. The Rabbitohs will honour him with black armbands in Sunday's match against the Newcastle Knights, and his No 15 jersey has been retired.
