John Elias (rugby league)

John Elias (Arabic: جون إلياس ; born 10 December 1963) is a Lebanese-born Australian former rugby league footballer and coach. During the 1980s, and 1990s he played for clubs in Sydney, Brisbane, England and France where he also coached. Elias also played and coached for the Lebanon national team.

Born in Beirut, Lebanon on 10 December 1963, as a child Elias, along with his two older brothers and sister, was taken by his mother to Sydney following the death of his father. There he became an Australian citizen.

After starting his first grade career with the Newtown Jets in their final season in 1983, Elias played for the South Sydney Rabbitohs in 1984. The following season he moved north, and in the 1985 Brisbane Rugby League grand final for the Wayne Bennett-coached Souths Magpies, Elias was named man-of-the-match for his performance in a shock 10-8 win over Wally Lewis' Wynnum-Manly Seagulls. Elias joined the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs in 1986 but departed the club midway through the season to join the Western Suburbs Magpies. Early in the 1987 Winfield Cup season, Elias was sent off for a high tackle in a match against North Sydney Bears. He joined the Eastern Suburbs Roosters in 1988. Early in the 1988 Winfield Cup season while playing for Easts, Elias' jaw was fractured in a tackle during the first minutes of a match against Balmain. Part-way through the 1989 NSWRL season, he left Eastern Suburbs to join the Balmain Tigers club, where he stayed until 1994.