Young prop Matt Gibbon has capped off a remarkable first season of Super Rugby by securing a two-year contract extension with the Melbourne Rebels.
Gibbon was drafted into trial with the Rebels amongst local and interstate club players in late 2018 and did not let the opportunity slip.
He trained and competed relentlessly to secure one of the last contracts available on the 2019 Rebels roster.
That same attitude and determination saw Gibbon go on to play all 16 Super Rugby matches and earn the recognition of his peers and coaches, being voted the winner of the Rebels 2019 “Spirit of Weary Dunlop Award” as the player adjudged to have best represented the values and ethos the Club.
He was also more recently recognised by national selectors who drafted Gibbon into the last fortnight of Wallaby training camps in advance of The Rugby Championship.
While admitting it’s been a surprising start to his professional rugby career, the 24-year-old says he couldn’t be happier to commit to Melbourne and the Rebels.
“I’m thrilled to able to call Melbourne home for at least another two years,” Gibbon said.
“This year has been a pretty big whirlwind for me, but I’ve loved every moment I’ve had at the Club and I’m so keen to keep taking the opportunities I am given.’
“To be part of the training squad with the Wallabies for the last couple of weeks was probably the last place I thought I would be at the start of the year. It was an awesome experience and it’s only motivated me more to know that if I can keep developing my game that there might be more dreams to be made.’
“I’m pretty humbled by the recognition that I have had and I’m really keen to repay the faith that the Club has shown in me this year. I can’t wait to launch into another year of repping the Rebels jersey.”
Melbourne Rebels Head Coach, David Wessels, says Gibbon’s two-year contract renewal is a well-deserved reward for performance on the park.
“Matt’s a good story of how persistence and hard work pays off,” Wessels said.
“He came through our talent identification network and we were immediately impressed by his competitiveness and work ethic during the 2019 pre-season.’
“Matt has had a good start in his first year. We look forward to seeing his growth continue over the next two.”
