He played junior rugby for Dundas Valley. He also played for the
Eastwood Rugby Club in Sydney, and made his debut for Queensland against Auckland in 1999. Cordingley made his Super 12 debut for the Queensland Reds that season in a match against the
Wellington Hurricanes. The following season he was called up to the Wallabies squad and made his debut against
Argentina. He went back at the Reds after three seasons in Europe with Welsh side Swansea and Grenoble of France. After playing for the Reds in
2006, he was selected for the Wallabies squad. For the European winter season 2008–09, he returned to
FC Grenoble, in the French
Pro D2. The
Melbourne Rebels signed Cordingley as a foundation member of their Super Rugby franchise 3 April 2010. However, he missed several games early in the
2011 Super Rugby season due to a hip injury. ==After retirement==