Nathan Hindmarsh

Nathan Hindmarsh was born in September of 1979. He played his junior rugby league for Robertson and Moss Vale alongside older brother Ian. Playing in a round robin competition as a teenager, Hindmarsh was scouted by Parramatta and was asked to attend a trial. He made it through and was accepted into the Eels' junior system.

Hindmarsh's unflappable work ethic earned him great standing amongst the junior coaches and he was mentored by coach Daniel Anderson. After plenty of hard work Hindmarsh was told by then First Grade coach Brian Smith he would make his debut in the 1998 season against the Adelaide Rams.

Hindmarsh was part of an era known as the Baby Eels. He progressed through the ranks alongside team-mates Michael Vella, Nathan Cayless, Luke Burt and brother Ian. Hindmarsh made an impact early on in his career, making his name as a wide-running second-rower who would tackle himself to a stand-still. In 2000 he was rewarded with selection in the Australian squad for the Rugby League World Cup. He played a number of matches against lower sides but was a surprise inclusion in the Final, where he scored his first try in Green and Gold. 

2001 saw Hindmarsh continue his successful First Grade career. He was selected for his first State of Origin Series and was part of the record breaking Eels team that won the Minor Premiership that year. Unfortunately the team fell at the final hurdle and went down in unbelievable circumstances to the Newcastle Knights. From 2004-07 he was a regular selection for NSW and Australia.

In 2009 Hindmarsh passed the 250 game mark for the club. In 2010 he became the most capped Eel when he passed Brett Kenny's record of 266 against the Rabbitohs. In the same year he was named co-captain alongside good friend Nathan Cayless. Upon Cayless' retirement at the end of 2010, Hindmarsh was installed as captain. In 2011 Hindmarsh became the only Eels player to pass 300 games for the club.

In early 2012 Hindmarsh announced that at the conclusion of the season he would retire from the NRL. He finished his career having played the most games for Parramatta and has played the second most amount of games for the one club, behind only Darren Lockyer. He was farewelled in front of a record 46,000 crowd at ANZ Stadium in Round 26 alongside good friend and team-mate Luke Burt. Hindmarsh and Burt were the last remaining members of the Baby Eels still playing in the NRL.

Hindmarsh is currently the holder of most hitups by a single player in their career, most tackles in a career and is third for most attacking metres made. He finished 2012 with 999 tackles for the season and averaged 49 tackles per game. 

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