Early career Carney played his junior
rugby league for the
Goulburn Stockmen, before being recruited to the
Canberra Raiders' junior academy at the age of just twelve. Playing in the
S.G. Ball Cup, Carney's team won the premiership in 2003.
Senior career Canberra Raiders (2004–2009) Carney made his
National Rugby League Premiership début during the
2004 NRL season at the age of 17. After a handful of appearances, he was named the
Canberra Raiders' ''
'Rookie of the Year.'''
Canberra Raiders had signed
Jason Smith and Sam Peez, who in 2005, helped shape Carney's game. Despite only playing 11 games and scoring a single try. Carney was rewarded with a starting position in the
Junior Kangaroos' annual fixture against
Papua New Guinea, where he tallied a record 20 points. 2006 was Carney's breakthrough year, where he cemented his position in the first-grade team, scoring 12 tries in 18 games. Alongside
Adam Mogg, he was the
Raiders' leading try-scorer for 2006. His long-range kicking game also became a feature of his play, going onto record numerous 40-20's. Carney won three games in extra-time off 40-metre drop-goals, as
Canberra finished in the top 8 of the
National Rugby League (NRL) competition ladder. He was again selected in the
Junior Kangaroos' squad, where he was appointed as captain. On 12 June 2007, Carney appeared at the
ACT Magistrates Court. Carney pleaded guilty to the charges of failing to stop when directed by police, negligent driving and driving while disqualified. He was spared jail, but the Court placed Carney on a 12-month good behaviour order and banned him from driving until 2012. He was also sentenced to 200 hours of
community service. The Magistrate warned Carney that if he were to commit another offence he would, "undoubtedly go to jail". Carney was the Raiders' top try-scorer for the
2007 NRL season. His 2008 pre-season was eventful, as he became the subject of a three-way battle between
Canberra,
Manly and
Penrith. Eventually he re-signed with the
Raiders until 2010, with an option for a further two-years. Though off-field misbehaviour continued to plague Carney's playing career and on 20 July 2008, it was "alleged" that he had urinated on a man in a
Canberra nightclub, the man had to undertake counseling to overcome the trauma of the incident. Carney was suspended from participating in league matches and training while the allegations were investigated. The complaint was withdrawn two-days later, but Carney remained suspended for the round 21 match against the
Gold Coast Titans. The nightclub allegations sparked renewed interest in Carney's 2007 negligent driving charges, when
Steve Irwin "claimed" that Carney was intoxicated whilst driving at the time of the 2007 incident. But
Irwin had been pressured by the club (
Canberra Raiders) to remain quiet, in an attempt to avoid a jail sentence for Carney. The incident led to the club imposing an ultimatum on Carney which included a five-point plan. Whereby Carney would have to: • Stand-down from training and matches for the rest of the season. • To go on an alcohol ban until the end of 2012. • Undergo counselling. • Complete a
community service programme. • To also pay a $20,000 fine. The
NRL threatened to de-register his contract for two-years, if Carney did not accept this plan in order to protect the
Raiders from losing him to another club. Carney asked for a variation of the plan where he could avoid points one and two. This was unacceptable to the club's board and on 7 August 2008, the
Canberra club sacked Carney and terminated his $400,000 a season contract. Carney was de-registered by the NRL and he would not be eligible to compete in the competition until 2010. Carney attempted to follow
ex-Dragon's coach
Nathan Brown to the
Huddersfield Giants on a one-year deal, but was unable to obtain a
Visa in late 2008, due to his previous
drink driving offences. Carney applied to the NRL in an effort to play for an Australian club in the
2009 NRL season, but the NRL stated that, "they would not accept registration of a contract for Todd Carney for that season". In March 2009, the
Canberra Raiders agreed to release Carney to play for the
Atherton Roosters in the
Cairns competition in
Far North Queensland. Carney was assaulted by four-men in
Atherton on 10 May 2009, with one of those men former
Cowboys,
Broncos and current (at the time of the incident)
London Broncos' player,
Nick Slyney.
Sydney Roosters (2010–2011) After his season-long ban from the NRL expired, Carney joined the
Sydney Roosters for the
2010 NRL season. . In preparation for his comeback season, Carney bought a punching bag to exercise with. He played his first game for the club against his old team the
Atherton Roosters, in a pre-season trial in
Atherton. After playing a lot of his football at
Canberra as a , he was shifted to by
Roosters' coach,
Brian Smith. After his début against the
South Sydney Rabbitohs in a 36-10 victory, Carney was kept at , only shifting back into the position to cover for
Mitchell Pearce. In round 14 against the
Melbourne Storm he was permanently switched into the halves, displacing captain
Braith Anasta to . His return to the halves was very successful, with the
Roosters undertaking a five-game winning streak soon after the move. Carney as formed an incisive attacking combination with
Mitchell Pearce. He was also a facilitator to his outside backs with
Anthony Minichiello and
Shaun Kenny-Dowall in particular showing increased productivity. In addition, he had taken on the goal kicking duties for the
Roosters scoring over 200 points. In the regular season Carney finished second on the top-point scorers and goal-kickers lists. He was named as the season's ''
'Dally M Medallist''' for the NRL's best player. Carney also won the
Dally M 'Five-Eight of the Year' and the ''
Provan-Summons Medal ('People's Choice') Award. He played at Five-Eighth for the Roosters in their 2010 NRL Grand Final loss to the St. George IIIawarra Dragons.'' He also received the
Rugby League International Federation's 'International Player of the Year Award' for 2010. In December 2010, it was reported that Carney had injured himself, after falling from his balcony while trying to gain entry to the building after locking himself out. He suffered no serious injuries. Carney dated
Seven Network television presenter,
Liz Cantor. Their relationship didn't last very long and they soon went their separate ways. At the end of his
2011 NRL season, he had played a total of 118 games, 115 at club level and 3 at representative level. On 26 February 2011, it was reported that Carney would face a low-range
drink driving charge. The
Sydney Roosters confirmed that they would stand-by him through this indiscretion. Just over a month later, Carney was found to be involved with
Anthony Watts, when he was drinking on 16 April 2011. Following the second incident in three-months, NRL management stood Carney down from the
Sydney Roosters indefinitely. He was subsequently required to receive treatment for his behavioural issues. Carney returned to the NRL in a round 10 clash against the
Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks at Toyota Park. In early August 2011, Carney, together with
Nate Myles and
Frank-Paul Nuuausala, broke a team agreement to not touch alcohol for two-weeks. All three players were subject to disciplinary hearings. On 8 September 2011, it was announced that the
Sydney Roosters would release Carney from the final year of his contract, following a request from Carney's management. . Denied a visa to gain access into the
United Kingdom due to his criminal convictions, Carney's management were reportedly considering a contract with
French-based Super League team, the
Catalans Dragons. By mid-October 2011, there was further media speculation that Carney would be signed by the
Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks or the
St. George Illawarra Dragons. On 26 October 2011, it was announced that Carney had accepted a two-year contract with the
Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks, estimated to be worth $700,000.
Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks (2012–2014) Carney's first year at
Cronulla was very good, as he helped the side into the finals. However, they were defeated by the
Raiders in the Qualifying Finals. He was also selected to represent
New South Wales in the annual
State of Origin series playing at the position. Carney spent the off-season recovering from an
achilles tendon tear, but despite an offer from the
New Zealand Warriors in January 2013, Carney signed-up with the
Sharks for an additional five-years from 2013. Carney for the second time in his career, he won the
Dally M 'Five-Eighth of the Year' Award in the
2013 NRL season. On 29 June 2014, Carney was sacked by the
Sharks, due to a photograph leaked on
social media in which he appears to urinate into his own mouth. As he was on his last warning for behavioural issues, the NRL's Chief Operating Officer Jim Doyle, said, "I would be surprised if any club would show interest in signing him. Considering his chequered history and even if they did it was 'unlikely' the NRL would agree to register him". On 18 January 2019, Carney appeared on the NRL podcast titled "Bloke in a bar". Carney was asked by host
Denan Kemp about the incident which saw his contract terminated by Cronulla. Carney said that his "Bubbler" act had been performed by another teammate
Bryce Gibbs. Carney claimed the "Bubbler" became part of celebrations after each win. Carney also claimed that former Cronulla boss Steve Noyce was among the club officials to witness Gibbs do the '"Bubbler" and says he did not balk at it before the publicly circulated photo of Carney stole headlines and ultimately led to his exile from the NRL. Carney stated that Noyce only made an issue of the act because of the photograph becoming public. during his time at the club.
Catalans Dragons (2015–2016) At the end of 2014, Carney moved to
France, after signing with
Super League club the
Catalans Dragons, to play for them in the 2015 and 2016
rugby league seasons. In just his second game for the
Dragons, Carney suffered broken ribs during a tackle by former
Roosters' teammate,
Lama Tasi. The game ended in a 40-40 draw. in 2015.
Salford Red Devils (2017) Carney played for the
Salford Red Devils in 2017's
Super League XXII. At the end of 2017, Carney signed a contract to play with
Queensland Cup side, the
Northern Pride in a bid to revive his career in Australia.
Northern Pride (2018) On 14 February 2018, Carney played his first game in Australia for nearly 4-years, in a trial-match for the
Northern Pride against the
Mackay Cutters. On 2 March 2018, Carney's bid to return to the NRL suffered a setback, as
Manly Sea Eagles announced they would not be signing him for the
2018 NRL season.
North Queensland Cowboys (2018) On 12 April 2018, Carney was reportedly training with the
North Queensland Cowboys, although not yet cleared to play by the NRL. On 2 May 2018, Carney left the
Cowboys to return to
Sydney due to family reasons.
North Sydney Bears (2018) On 21 May 2018, Carney signed a deal to join
Intrust Super Premiership New South Wales side, the
North Sydney Bears. On 22 May 2018, Carney's former side the
Northern Pride were demanding $15,000 in compensation for relocation costs. Northern Pride Chief Executive Officer Greg Dowling, said, "He (Carney) doesn't owe us money, but we want compensation. We paid him an amount to relocate here and we want that refunded. Once they pay we'll clear him. Naturally, we were chasing a number of people and when Todd agreed, we concentrated on him thinking he would be here long-term. I've spoken to his manager and to
Greg Florimo, so that's where things are at now". On 1 July 2018, Carney's move to the North Sydney Bears was blocked, after Carney refused to pay the Northern Pride a $15,000 release fee. Northern Pride had demanded the North Sydney Bear to pay the release fee, but they refused to do so, hoping that a deal could be arranged between Carney's management team and the
North Queensland Cowboys side before the transfer window closed.
Hull Kingston Rovers (2018) It was revealed on 7 July 2018, that Carney had signed a short-term contract at
Hull Kingston Rovers, to play for the east
Hull outfit until at least the end of the 2018 rugby league season. Just 24 hours after landing in Australia, Carney participated in his first training session with his new club on 23 July 2018. On 27 July 2018, Carney made his Hull Kingston Rovers' début in the '
Hull Derby' against cross-city rivals,
Hull F.C. On a rain-swept evening at the
KCOM Stadium, Todd's contribution to the game was a positive one, coming off the interchange bench and kicking a 40-20. Carney made a short cameo appearance on his Hull Kingston Rovers bow, considering he had only just arrived at his new club just five-days previous. Head Coach
Tim Sheens took the decision not to throw Carney into the deep end on his début, (due to his lack of game-time over the previous months), to allow him time to adjust and to get himself well adapt to his new surroundings. His efforts in his first match were held in good stead, as Hull Kingston Rovers claimed a thrilling 16-20 victory in the final game of the regular
Super League season.
Warrington Wolves (2020) On 26 January, Carney agreed to join Warrington Wolves on a one-year deal.
Representative career • 2008–2012
NSW Country • 2010
Australia • 2012
New South Wales ==Boxing==