Fletcher Rooney
English rugby league footballer
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Fletcher Rooney (born 12 January 2006) is an English professional rugby league footballer who plays as a fullback for the Castleford Tigers in the Super League.
Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Full name | Fletcher Rooney | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | 12 January 2006 West Yorkshire, England | |||||||||||||||||||||
Playing information | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Position | Fullback | |||||||||||||||||||||
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As of 7 March 2025 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Father | Jamie Rooney | |||||||||||||||||||||
Background
Rooney was born in West Yorkshire, England. He is the son of former England international rugby league footballer Jamie Rooney.[3]
Rooney played junior rugby league for Featherstone Lions and Lock Lane ARLFC. He joined the Castleford Tigers development system at scholarship level.[4] He overcame an ACL injury at the age of 14.[3]
In September 2022, Rooney progressed to Castleford's academy squad.[5] During the 2023 academy season, he made 11 appearances and scored 10 tries and 1 goal, as well as a further 5 appearances and 1 try at Reserves level, and was named Academy Player of the Year.[6]
Rooney represented Yorkshire in their Academy Origin fixture against Lancashire on 19 August 2023.[7] He played as a centre in the 44–16 defeat at Warrington's Halliwell Jones Stadium.[8][9]
Playing career
In September 2023, Rooney was introduced into first-team training with the Castleford senior squad, and was assigned squad number 47.[10] On 22 September, aged 17, he made his Super League debut for Castleford Tigers against Leeds Rhinos in the final round of the season.[11][12] His performance in defeat earned praise from head coaches Danny Ward and Rohan Smith,[13] as well as the travelling fans.[14] Rooney said of his debut, "All my life I've been working towards that moment, it was a big thing for me and my family."[15] He became the first 2006-born player to feature in the Super League.[16]
Ahead of the 2024 season, Rooney was included in Castleford's listed first-team squad in October 2023,[17][18] one of only two fullbacks alongside Luke Hooley.[19][20] He would be following a hybrid programme between the academy and first-team environments to support his development.[21] In December 2023, it was announced that Rooney had signed his first professional contract with Castleford, agreeing a three-year deal.[22][23] He required surgery for an ankle injury suffered in January,[24] which prevented him filling in for the injured Hooley before the Tigers signed Tex Hoy.[3] On 1 August, playing as a winger, Rooney made his second senior appearance and scored his first Super League try in Castleford's home loss to Leigh.[25][26] He scored a second try on 13 September against St Helens in his third appearance.[27]
Rooney began the 2025 season starting at fullback for Castleford, owing to Hoy covering halfback for the injured Rowan Milnes.[28] His strong performances, particularly against Hull Kingston Rovers in round 1, drew praise from head coach Danny McGuire who said, "He will be a superstar once we've finished with him."[29] He subsequently signed a new five-year contract with Castleford in February, and said, "I've worked hard at every level to be where I am today and I'm ambitious about the future."[30][31] In March, Rooney's impressive start to the season was cut short by a high-grade quadriceps injury suffered in training, expected to rule him out for around four months.[32][33]
Statistics
| Club | Season | Tier | App | T | G | DG | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Castleford Tigers |
2023 | Super League | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2024 | Super League | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 8 | |
| 2025 | Super League | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 8 | |
| Career total | 9 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 16 | ||