Burns to finish his career at Wattles

Allora footballer Travis Burns has retired from big time footy but plans to finish his career with one season back where it all began – the Wattles Warriors.

While he played his first rugby league at Texas, Burns rose to prominence at Wattles before a professional career which included 127 NRL games, 75 games in Super League and 447 points at the highest level.

After returning from playing in England, Burns joined Wynnum Seagulls for the 2017 season at Intrust Super Cup level.

“It was a chance to play in a team coached by Adam Brideson; we played against each other in Sydney,’’ Burns said.

“Wynnum is a great club and we just missed the finals but now I want to settle down into a new chapter of my career.”

He will play for Wattles in 2018 and is in negotiations about coaching A-grade but a decision won’t be made until a new committee is in place next month.

“I want to play one more season and then follow a coaching path,” he said.

“I have a level 2 coaching certificate and coached my son’s under-7 team at Wattles this season with my brother-in-law Scott Keogh as my assistant.”

Looking back on his career at the top level, Burns said one of his greatest memories was making his NRL debut with Manly in 2005.

He fondly remembers playing finals footy with Manly and Penrith.

“One of my best seasons was with Penrith in 2010 when we were tipped for the wooden spoon but finished second in the fixture season before injuries hit us at the end of the season,” he said.

After 12 years as a professional footballer, Burns has started his first job out of footy since 2005.

“I am selling new and used cars with a great company Black Toyota in Warwick and getting a buzz out of it.”