About Willie Mason
William Marshall Mason, also nicknamed "Big Willie", is a former professional rugby league footballer who played in the 2000s and 2010s. An Australia and Tonga international and New South Wales State of Origin representative forward, he played in the National Rugby League for the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs, the Sydney Roosters, the North Queensland Cowboys, the Newcastle Knights and the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles. Mason also played in the Super League for English club Hull Kingston Rovers and French club, the Catalans Dragons. He also played rugby union in the Top 14 for French club RC Toulonnais. During his career Mason was involved in a number of controversial off-field incidents which have received media publicity due to his high profile in the NRL. Mason was awarded the Clive Churchill Medal for Man of the Match. Mason was out of action during the first half of the 2005 NRL season and only played the last nine games of the season. In Round 13 of the 2000 NRL season he made his NRL debut for Canterbury-Bankstown against the Penrith Panthers after first-grader Darren Britt suffered an injury. He became a regular first-grader for the rest of the season.
Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.