Introduction
Daniel Russell (born 5 December 1995) is an Australian professional rugby league footballer who plays as a centre for the North Queensland Cowboys in the NRL.
He played for the Papua New Guinea Prime Minister's XIII in 2018.
Background
Russell was born in Longreach, Queensland, Australia and is of Papua New Guinean descent through his father, Mark, who was born in Port Moresby and raised in Madang.
Russell played his junior football for Emerald Brothers and attended The Cathedral College, Rockhampton.
Playing career
In 2012 and 2013, Russell played for the Central Queensland Capras in the Mal Meninga Cup. In 2014, he joined the Brisbane Broncos NYC side, playing seven games for them in 2015.
In 2016, Russell joined the Souths Logan Magpies, playing for their Queensland Cup side for three seasons. On 6 October 2018, Russell started on the wing for the PNG PM's XIII in their loss to the Australian Prime Minister's XIII.
On 11 October 2018, Russell signed a two-year deal with the North Queensland Cowboys. He did not make his NRL debut in 2019, spending the entire season playing for the Cowboys' Queensland Cup feeder club, the Mackay Cutters. He was elevated into the Cowboy's top 30 squad for the 2020 season, after spending 2019 in the development squad.
On 2 October 2019, Russell was named for Papua New Guinea in the 2019 Rugby League World Cup 9s.