Knights included in Kangaroo tour of England - Newcastle Morning Herald,  1 October 2001 
Five Newcastle Knights players have been selected in the Australian team for the Kangaroo Tour commencing in England on October 20.  They were; Danny Buderus, Matthew Gidley,  Andrew Johns,  Ben Kennedy and  Adam MacDougall.

The new Australian hooker Danny Buderus -  Sportal
He spoke with Sportal’s Karen Leader of the pack, 
Sportal: How does it feel to make the Grand Final? 
Danny Buderus: It possibly might be the best thing I ever do and all the boys all year have been training for this day so to get in is a great achievement by everyone here.  It’s great for the players and for the city of Newcastle and the whole region. It has done so much for the town and the people who love their footy and love their sport. They get right behind the Knights, and it means everything to them, it brings the town together. 
Sportal: Has it sunk in yet? 
Danny Buderus: No not as yet. It probably will tomorrow (Thursday) morning at the Grand Final breakfast when you start to see the opposition team and all the heavyweights down there. We haven’t trained much this week as we are just all getting over last Saturday’s game against the Sharks which is the way we have been preparing for the last few semis, then we will start to do a few skills and take it from there. 
Sportal: What else is planned for the week? 
Danny Buderus: We will come back to Newcastle after the breakfast and then have a training session at 3pm where we will up the ante. It will be pretty intense no doubt. 
Sportal: Were you at any stage worried in the match against the Sharks last week? 
Danny Buderus: No you don’t want any negative thoughts to go through your head, it’s more a case of just hanging in there. I knew with the players we have if we defended well we could score points. I think we were always going to score points in the second half, and we just hung in there and I thought we stuck together very well. 
Sportal: Were you a bit concerned when you saw Joey (Johns) grimacing in pain against the Sharks? 
Danny Buderus: Not really because if he was really hurting he would have gone off. He’s just a competitor and loves to win and he picks up the odd knock, bump and bruise but he just keeps playing on so he won’t let anyone down in that regard.
Sportal: Parramatta have been the best team all year, but they looked a little vulnerable last week, so what does it take to beat them? 
Danny Buderus: I think we just have to try and unsettle them a bit I guess, also we must get in there and start well and if we get on top early it might drop their confidence a bit and we might surprise them in a few areas. 
Sportal: They have a very tough forward pack, along with the best defensive record, but many believe your forwards are the weakness? 
Danny Buderus: We probably get that question asked every week and I think we answered it more than most people would think, but we are in the Grand Final so we must have got over a lot of the forward packs. Our backs are that good it probably makes the names in our forwards not that good and maybe that’s why people keep saying it but we keep getting the job done. Parramatta are really well coached in the defensive regard and they do a lot of work on defence but we have a lot of players with strike power in our attacking game and once again we hold our own in the forwards we will go from there. 
Sportal: What do you think about those people who say you are a one-man team? 
Danny Buderus: Well statistics prove that, but you take a lot of the gun players out of most teams, the players that control the game like Brad Fittler out of the Roosters, and they would struggle. If you take a key player the team revolves around they would struggle. Joey is our kicker, he kicks off, he kicks goals, he kicks in general play, plus he’s a great competitor and loves to win, and with the ball in his hands he’s the best player in the world so any team would struggle. 
Sportal: There have been reports that your coach Michael Hagan is so confident Joey cannot be contained that he has challenged Parramatta to try and shut him down. Do you share his confidence? 
Danny Buderus: Well yes. The Sharks tried to shut him down and so has every other team this season and they haven’t succeeded yet but the more pressure that gets put on Joey the more it opens it up for other players, maybe for me at dummy-half or one of our other attacking players. You can’t just shut one man down we have a lot of good players on our team. 
Sportal: How has Michael been this week? 
Danny Buderus: Hags has been great. The best thing about him is he keeps everyone really calm and our game (at training and just around the place) has been pretty jovial. We like to muck around and that sort of thing but when the time comes everyone knows when to just switch on. In that way Hags has got the boys down pat. 
Sportal: Joey was having difficulty kicking last week so is their talk whether you will relieve him of some kicking duties 
Danny Buderus: We will see how it pans out. Joey will start off kicking and if it gets a bit sore we might pop the duties around but we will see how it goes. 
Sportal: You have had a great season making your international debut and now a Grand Final. Can you believe it’s happened 
Danny Buderus: It’s hard to believe it but you have to take it in your stride and not get too excited and all that kind of thing. It’s just a matter of working hard, focus on the simple things and not look too far ahead. 
Sportal: What kind of Grand Final would you like to see play out? 
Danny Buderus: A real close game with Newcastle on top and something like the 1997 final would be unreal. 

Buderus involved in head on collision -  10 Jan 2002
Newcastle hooker and Kangaroos representative Danny Buderus has only just resumed pre-season training this week after being involved in a life threatening car crash at Noosa in Queensland. Buderus was on the last day of holidays with girlfriend Kate Merrell when an oncoming car lost control and hurtled into the Knight's hire car.  The oncoming vehicle then rebounded off Buderus' and crashed into the car travelling behind him, which caused minor injuries and a concussion to the driver. Both Buderus and Merrell were treated for minor injuries at Noosa hospital, but were soon discharged and made their way back to Newcastle. It is believed that the accident was the result of fatigue.   Since the accident, a number of abrasions on the Buderus' face have gotten infected, which have led to a bout of food poisoning and his restriction from the resumption of training.   But the Knights star returned to the weight room today, and expects to be involved in his first run of the year tomorrow, as Newcastle gears up for their 2002 World Club Challenge clash against English Super League champions the Bradford Bulls. The match will played on February 1 at McAlpine Stadium in Huddersfield. 

We'll be rusty - BUDERUS
Newcastle Knights hooker Danny Buderus has admitted that his side will be a little rusty when they come up against Bradford Bulls on Friday, but they are still confident of winning the World Club Challenge. The Knight had a game of 'opposed rugby' against London Broncos last week as their only match practice ahead of the World Club Challenge at Huddersfield, while the Bulls played a full-scale friendly against Castleford Tigers. 
However, Buderus is confident that the Knights will still be fully prepared to face Bradford this week as their preparations step up at their Leeds training base. Click here to listen to Danny Buderus "Bradford are well into their pre-season the same as us but we haven't had much," he told Sky Sports. "We played London Broncos in a friendly over in Australia last week, just a game of grab. We'll be a bit rusty but hopefully it will come together." 
Buderus was a member of the Australian team which was defeated at Huddersfield last November, but he is looking forward to returning to The McAlpine Stadium. "We'll go over there on Wednesday and have a training session," he added. "We played the First Test at Huddersfield and have got used to that stadium so I'm looking forward to getting out there on Friday." With much of the pre-match focus on how Newcastle will handle the big Bulls pack, Buderus admitted that it will be a challenge, but is confident in his Knights colleagues. "Anderson coming off the bench and Joe Vagana and Stuart Fielden are strong players so we're going to have to match them in the forwards and see how we go out wide," he said. However, he is determined to leave Britain on Saturday having avenged St Helens' win over Brisbane in the competition last year, with Australian pride at stake as well as club glory. "It was great for the game over here and they want to do it again," he admitted. "But it's big for our team as well, we want to be crowned World Club Champions." 

Starry Knight stays away from the light -  January 31, 2002 
What if had you came from nowhere in the space of six months and suddenly found yourself a sporting superstar? And what if - as you finally got to enjoy the fruits of a lifetime's hard work - you were driving along one day and suddenly came within an ace of losing your life?
Danny Buderus started 2001 as one of the Newcastle Knights' lesser known rugby league players. There was a school of thought that his position - hooker - would soon become obsolete, justt another place where you could put an extra halfback or five-eighth or second-rower.  When the lad from Forster missed out on selection for NSW in the State of Origin series, nary an eyebrow was raised. He got a consolation prize - a Country Origin shirt - and played well.  But Buderus star really began its ascent when selectors called him up to play for Australia against New Zealand last July, a selection which no-one really disputed but no-one really expected, either.
Things were about to get interesting. With his value on the open market having multiplied and his face becoming more recognisable, Buderus had won a premiership with the Knights by the time September was out. There were riotous celebrations, followed by selection on the first Kangaroo Tour in seven years. Then, with bombs raining on Afghanistan, that particular milestone was snatched from him - the tour controversially canned ... and then given back, in reduced form, when it was reorganised.  And by the end of November, the rags-to-riches tale seemed complete. Danny Buderus was playing and training and partying with the finest rugby team of either code in the world on the other side of that world. The previous February, he had been just another face at the Knights' pre-season training.
"After we came back from England, Hages (coach Michael Hagan) gave us six weeks off, which was great," Buderus said this week at McAlpine Stadium where the Knights play Bradford tomorrow night (English time) for the World Club Championship.  "Did a bit of travelling. I went to Noosa, spent a lot of time up at Forster with the family and went around there a few times and did a few weekend trips.  "We just used it as a way to get away from things and freshen up."
On January 2, Buderus and girlfriend Kate Merrell were driving their hire car when - according to reports at the time - a car appeared directly in front of them, travelling in the opposite direction.  The result was a head-on collision. Not to put too fine a point on it, police said the couple were lucky to survive. 
Anyone cheating death arouses curiousity in us. When it is a young sports star who has enjoyed such a rapid ascent, we all think we have something to learn from the story and therefore a right hear it.  Buderus doesn't deny it happened - but he's not about to share any cosmic truths he gleaned from the experience just yet.  "I had a bit of a prang in the off-season; that was all sorted out" is his only real voluntary offering on the subject.  Asked if it had shaken him up emotionally, he replies: "It did, yeah. It was pretty heavy actually. It was one of those things that flash before your eyes.  "But that's all forgotten. When I got back to training ... I had a couple of weeks off. The body's a bit sore, you get shaken up a bit."
Did it give you some perspective on how fortunate you are?
"Yeah, it's just one of those things ... I'll just leave it at that. I don't want to talk too much about it." 
And with that, the subject is dropped.  Co-incidence or not, Buderus has been thinking about things as he digests a heady 2001. He got the Australian No9 jersey so quickly that he has to figure out how to hold onto it now.  "You look back on what you did that was right during the year and think how you can repeat those things the following year," he nods. "There's always things you can do to improve your game."  Hooking, he says, is far from a dead art.  "I don't know who was saying that (it's dying). If you play that position ... ask Andrew (Johns), I don't think he likes to play there. It's a pretty tough position. Joey's the best halfback in the world and that's where he should play."
Aims this year include a State of Origin debut and back-to-back premierships. He's aware that some will say Newcastle pinched the title from Parramatta's grasp last year, just as Anthony Mundine reckoned St George Illawarra were the "real" premiers in 1999, not Melbourne.  "You read people saying that Parramatta were the best team all year and that first past the post (reflects) the stats that they had," he says. "They had an exceptional year.  "But it all comes down to games. We played the best we have played in that finals series and we were probably the best team - obviously we were, because we won."
Tomorrow night the bubbly rake shapes up to Bradford's British international James Lowes. Bizarrely, Lowes once played for Toronto in the Newcastle competition and his former flatmate has asked Buderus to say hello.  "Maybe after the game," he laughs, ready to take on whatever another year throws up for him.

Knights signings keep a winning team intact -  April 6 2002,  SMH.
Newcastle will step up negotiations with NSW Origin fullback Mark Hughes after yesterday announcing the re-signing of Test pair Danny Buderus and Matt Gidley. Both 24, Buderus and Gidley said they hoped to play out their careers with the Knights after finalising respective three- and four-year deals believed to worth about $250,000 per season each. "Over the years, we have seen premiership-winning teams shed much of their playing staff as their market value grows in the wake of that success," said Knights coach Michael Hagan, who also recently extended his contract by two more seasons. "Here in Newcastle, however, we are able to retain outstanding players such as Gidley, Buderus and [Andrew] Johns, whilst also bringing through youngsters such as Timana Tahu, Josh Perry and Steve Simpson. What we now have is a very strong and very positive culture in our club that will, hopefully, continue to breed success." 
 

Knights reward loyalty - Lucrative deals for Buderus and Gidley; The Daily Telegraph. Apr 6, 2002.
DANNY Buderus put his faith in the Knights two years ago when he could have defected to Parramatta on a much fatter pay packet.
Yesterday, it was payback time for the Kangaroo hooker when he and fellow international Matthew Gidley re-signed with the club on long-term deals.
The Knights agreed to part with around $1.75 million to ensure Gidley remained at the club for another four seasons and Buderus for the next three.
"It is great to have it settled,"  Buderus said. "I never wanted to go anywhere else and the Knights have been really good about the whole thing.
"I probably wasn't all that happy with the last contract I signed when things were a bit tight here.
"But I put some faith in the club because I wanted to stay and they have looked after me."
Gidley said he is hopeful of finishing his career in Newcastle.
"I'll be 29 when I come off contract again and it would be great to finish here," he said.
"It is such a good club and a great bunch of blokes and I never really contemplated leaving.
"I think our manager Darryl Mather only met a couple of times with Sarge (Knights football manager Mark Sargent) to sort things out so it all went pretty smoothly."
Sargent said he has no doubts both players could have received bigger offers elsewhere if they had waited.
"I would say considerably more but I think we have looked after them fairly well under the circumstances," he said.
"Both are arguably the best players in the game in their positions and they have been rewarded for that.
"Bedsy (Buderus) accepted a lot less last time and since then he has played for Australia and won a premiership so I think he is probably pretty happy with his decision."
In re-signing both players, the Knights now have the nucleus of their premiership-winning side tied up.
Captain Andrew Johns and Kangaroo forward Ben Kennedy still have a further two years to go on existing contracts at the end of this season while centre Mark Hughes is very close to agreeing to an extension of his deal with the club as well.
"The foundation is there for the club to go ahead over the next few years," Sargent said. "We are fairly flush for talent in the key positions.'

Planning their weekly grocery shopping -  Newcastle Herald, April 13, 2002
Mark Hughes and Danny buderus co tenants of the 'Myamblah Marriot' at Merewether, plan their weekly grocery shopping expedition around the teams results.  Hughes said he and Buderus enjoyed talking to the teams supporters as they strolled up and down the aisles of their local supermarket - especially after a win. "Mind you, if we lose we usually go late night shopping because there's not as many people around."  Hughes said.

Danny Buderus - Sun Herald, 14 April 2002
Is it a weird feeling to be the test hooker but not know what its like to play origin?
It is, for sure.  it would be great to get a taste of it this year.  You hear everyone who's played origin talk about the intensity and i'm dying to experience that.
Do you like Kylie Minoque for a, her singing, b, her film clips, or c, her lack of clothes or can you not stand her?
She's easy on the eye.  I like that song..  whats it called..  Can't get you out of my mind.
Andrew Johns was filthy when you threw a crummy ball from dummy half that he knocked on last weekend.  What did he say?
Joey doesn't have to say anything. he just gives you the evil eye and you get disappointed because you know you've let him down.  It was just fatigue. It was nearly half time and I lost concentration for a moment.
You've just re signed with the Knights.  Was that an easy decision?
Very easy.  That professionalism of the club on and off the field is great. 
They say the house you share with team mate mark hughes is the bachelor pad for the unattached Knights.  Any fun in the spa there lately?
No.  Its been broken.  but we've just had it fixed and we've got a few free weekends coming up after Friday night games.
Is Elle macpherson old hat at 39 or would she still be welcome at your place?
There's nothing wrong with her at 39. She definately still does it for me.

Century caps off Dannys big week 
In form Knights hooker Danny Buderus hopes to complete one of the best weeks of his career when he plays his 100th first grade game against South Sydney at EnergyAustralia Stadium tomorrow.  The NSW and Australian No.9 made a stunning debut in the Blues' 32-4 victory over Queensland at Stadium Australia last Wednesday.  And he is confident there will be no letdown against the Rabbitohs.  Buderus would have reached 100 games against Warriors eight days ago but was stood down because of his selection for NSW. 'To play them at one club is very special, and I'm signed up for another three years so hopefully I can pass a few more milestones in that time,' Buderus said.  'At the start of the year, I checked to see what game I'd be playing for my 100th and I thought it might have been last week. "I'm really looking forward to it and after the Origin, hopefully we can get a win and cap off what's been a great week.'
Buderus joined the Knights from Taree in 1994 and made his senior debut in 1997. He will become the 16th player to reach the 100-game milestone for the Knights, and is one of six Newcastle players backing up after Origin I.  'Among the boys who played on Wednesday night, I don't think there will be any lapse in concentration at all,' he said.  'Your coaching staff will do what they have to do to get you up for the game but the rest is pretty much up to yourself.  'The boys who played on Wednesday night are pretty strong mentally so we'll definately come out ready to play on Sunday.'
Buderus joins Robbie O'Davis (185), Andrew Johns (176), Bill Peden (173), Matt Gidley (124) and Mark Hughes (122) as current Knights players in triple figures.  Johns will pass older brother Matthew (176) into outright fourth on the Knights'
list of most games played behind Tony Butterfield (229), Marc Glanville (188) and O'Davis.

June 18 2002  -  Hooker Danny Buderus has offered his help to David Vaealiki after a striking charge against the Parramatta centre was referred directly to the judiciary yesterday without a grading. Buderus said he was shocked when Vaealiki charged at him with a raised elbow in Friday night's game at Parramatta Stadium but does not believe the Kiwi international deserves a lengthy ban. "If they come forward and want me to say something, I would," Buderus said. "You don't want that sort of stuff in the game but that's not his go ... he apologised to me after the game." It is believed NRL judiciary commissioner Jim Hall will ask for a minimum five-match ban to be imposed on Vaealiki at tomorrow night's hearing.

Buderus likely to miss NRL finals  -  Sports Watch,  18 August 2002 
Test Hooker Danny Buderus is likely to miss Newcastle's run to the National Rugby League finals after suffering a suspected broken wrist in the 28-14 victory over the Northern Eagles at EnergyAustralia stadium.  Buderus sustained the injury in the first half, but briefly returned to the field - clearly in discomfort - after the Newcastle camp initially diagnosed the problem as a burst blood vessel. But after a second check during the interval Buderus was sent to hospital for x-rays. NSW and Test hooker Buderus left the field after damaging his wrist in the 23rd minute. It was originally thought he may not have suffered anything more than a heavy knock and a burst blood vessel and he came back on before half-time, but he was never comfortable and did not appear again after the break. Knights doctor Peter McGeoch said the skillful rake would probably need a screw inserted if a break was confirmed, ruling him out until at least the first week of the finals. He, and rookie winger Neil Sweeney, who suffered a grade two tear of his AC joint, are no chance of playing in the Knight's crucial game against fellow top-two aspirant Brisbane in Newcastle on Friday night. Newcastle coach Michael Hagan is desperately hoping that's all Buderus misses. "It would be a real sad state if (a break) was confirmed," Hagan said.

Buderus to undergo wrist surgery -  Sports Watch,  08 November 2002 
Danny Buderus is the latest Knight to enter the National Rugby League club's casualty ward, with the Test hooker likely to undergo minor surgery on a wrist injury next week. Buderus carried the injury through the latter part of this season, including Australia's Test win over New Zealand last month, and hoped rest would be enough fix it. "It's just not healing," Buderus said. "I just can't do any pushing. It is getting better from not playing but not to the extent I want it to be." 

Wristy business Surgery rules Buderus out until January;  Herald. Nov 26, 2002. 
NEWCASTLE, NSW and Australian dummy-half Danny Buderus is out of pre-season training until early next year after surgery to repair his damaged left wrist. 
But the Dally M hooker of the year is in no doubt for the Knights' 2003 NRL season-opener against the Warriors in Auckland on the weekend of March 14-16. 
Buderus went under the knife in Sydney last Wednesday to have two pins inserted to reattach a torn ligament and tendon, ending a frustrating three months since he sustained the injury. The 24-year-old rake has joined the likes of Steve Simpson (knee), Timana Tahu (calves), Mark Hughes (knee), Matt Parsons (shoulders and ankle), Josh Perry (ankle) and Clint Newton (shoulder) in the Knights' rehab group. Buderus initially suffered the injury when his hand was trapped under a gang tackle on Eagles winger John Hopoate at EnergyAustralia Stadium on August 17. He sat out the last three games of the regular season then played with the aid of pain-killing injections in the Knights finals losses to the Dragons and Roosters, and Australia's 32-24 Test win over New Zealand in Wellington a week after the grand final. Buderus sought the advice of two hand surgeons and had a battery of tests, including CT, MRI and bone scans and multiple X-rays, but the extent of the damage was not clear until he had exploratory surgery. That revealed a ruptured ligament and tendon on either side of his wrist and some cartilage and bone damage, some of which could have occurred after he suffered the original injury. Buderus, who was also judged the 2002 Dally M representative player of the year, said he was relieved to finally be able to put his finger on the problem in his wrist. `I'm going to miss a slab of the pre-season but it might be a good thing, actually,' Buderus said. `The rest will probably do me some good but I'll be champing at the bit by January. It might hamper a bit of movement in my wrist but at least it's been fixed now and has started healing.' 
He will have stitches removed next Monday and a temporary cast replaced with a fibreglass cast, allowing him to begin light running and swimming. The cast and pins will be removed in early January and he should be able to do weights and ballwork before the end of that month. Meanwhile, Simpson had a bursa removed from his knee in the past fortnight and, like Parsons and Perry, has only just resumed light weights, swimming and pool running. Kurt Gidley, who had his appendix removed two weeks ago, began lifting weights last Saturday and rejoined the main squad yesterday. Adam MacDougall appears to have overcome a minor setback to his recovery from a knee reconstruction and completed the full training program last week. The Knights will play a trial against Penrith at St John Oval on February 22 and will go into camp in Cairns before playing the North Queensland Cowboys on March 1.

I'm ready to take on a senior role By Danny Buderus - Big League, Season Preview
With the off season almost over, I'm ready to take another step up for the Knights this year.  I class myself as a senior player now and its up to the senior players to take responsibility.  Then again, if you look through the Knights squad there's about eight or nine guys that have played 100 games or more, so although we have a lot of young kids coming through this year there's alot of experience in the side still.  Its up to everyone to do their best to take some of the weight off our No. 7.  I've found that as an Origin and Test player you have to work alot harder in the pre season.  Its not so much that you approach the season any differently but you work on different things in your game that you can change up.  You've always got to vary your game.
Thats been difficult for me this year because I had an operation on my wrist, so my off season's been spent doing mostly running.  The problem is that this time of year is the only chance you have to get some work done, to put on some weight or build the strength up because during the year you have niggling injuries. So I've been a bit restricted in that sense.  I'm still recovering at the moment but I'm slowly getting there.  Its been a slow process and hopefully I'm getting on top of it now. The wrist feels alright but its definately not 100 per cent yet. It was difficult to play with last year though because your wrist plays an important part in your game and you land on it a lot.  It was something I needed to have fixed.  I've also spent some of the off season doing a bit of work at JSA Finance in Charlestown.  Its financial advising and I've been learning all about it.  I do about 16 hours a week and its been enjoyable meeting a few different people. It keeps your brain ticking over and gives you an interest outside of football. Still, I'm looking forward to playing again and you can see the intensity has started to pick up over the past few weeks at training with the boys really firing up. We've lost a few players so I think you'll see a few young players come through again this year.  At Newcastle we tend to work on retaining players and we had a few names last year come to the fore.  I think we can expect a lot more from your Adam Woolnoughs, Clint Newton and Kurt Gidleys this season.  I guess that was one of the benefits of our injury problems last year.
We've set ourselves a few goals this year as a team and broken the year down into little periods.  We've had our camp so we just want to take each block of games as they come and meet our goals that we've set.  Theyre realistic goals but they're quiet difficult.  If we meet those goals I think we'll be just about leading the race.  We've actually got a very tough start to the year, which is why we decided to break everything down.  We've got nine games that are really intense for us so we've really got to jump out of the blocks.  But on a personal note I just want to keep playing with confidence and consistency and hopefully stay injury free this year.

Bedsy's not just working Knights - NRL 2003: Sunday Telegraph. Mar 16, 2003.
HE is an elite rugby league player, one of the code's most highly paid performers. Yet the 2002 Representative Player of the Year, Danny Buderus, has decided to go out and get a real job. Instead of catching a wave with Andrew Johns after training or joining some other Knights for a game of golf, the Test hooker dons collar and tie and heads to JSA Financial Planning Group in Newcastle, where he has worked 20-hour weeks since January. Buderus is part of the changing face of league, with professional footballers looking warily to what lies ahead when their time in the NRL limelight ends. The 25-year-old rejects the notion he should sit back and enjoy his league earnings. "You are in the game for about 10 years and you earn good money for maybe eight of them," Buderus said. "After that you have to know where to put it and what you want to do with it. I've seen a few players retire over the years and you wonder what they are going to do, so hopefully when I retire I know what I want to do and go full steam into a new career. I have no qualifications, so I'm learning the ropes, but hopefully in five years or so I'll know all about it. I'll do a few courses to get qualified and once I've done that I'll have a few things behind me."
Buderus picked up his new job after meeting JSA boss Jeff Shakespeare at a luncheon. He showed interest in working in the financial sector, was invited for an interview and landed the job. At this early stage he is involved in the clerical side. Buderus is one of several high-profile Knights to have moved into outside employment. Matt Parsons is working as a sales rep for Carlton and United Breweries, Kurt Gidley is a barman and Ben Kennedy has secured his maritime certificate and works one day a week on the waterways of Newcastle. Buderus said having a job won't distract him from his work with the Knights.
"Obviously football is my main thing at this time in my life and JSA knows that and is very flexible with the hours, but I'm giving this my best shot," he said.
"There is no way having a job will distract me from footy, in fact it probably works for you. It makes you train harder, because you know that every day you can't go out and practise all the time. So when you are at training you really put in and make the most of it."
Knights coach Michael Hagan, a qualified journalist, fully supports his players entering the workforce. "Most certainly," he said. "We expect a fair bit from them each week but we can spare 10-12 hours for them to do this."
On the football front, Hagan has spoken with Buderus about coping better with the demands of the representative season. "Last year his first 10 weeks were outstanding. He carried that through the rep season, then his second half of the year dropped off a bit," he said. "He didn't know what to expect after Origin and he'll be better physically and mentally now he knows what to expect."

Bouyant Buderus shakes wrist woes - The Herald, 8/03/2003
Dynamic Knights dummy half Danny Buderus feared he would never fully recover from the debilitating wrist injury he suffered last season.  The Newcastle, NSW and Australian hooker was no certainty to play in last Fridays pre season trail against North Queensland in Cairns, or in the Knights NRL season opener against the New Zealand Warriors in Auckland on March 16.  Leading into the trial against the Cowboys, Buderus felt like his left wrist had not totally recovered from the surgery he had last December.  He had two pins inserted to reattach torn ligaments and tendons.  He suffered the injury in Newcastles game against the Norther Eagles at Energy Australia Stadium last August and was hampered by it for the rest of the season.  Newcastles medical staff assured Buderus that his painstakingly slow recovery was normal for the type of injury he suffered.  But he said the lack of strength has sapped his confidence.  "It dragged on that long and was that frustrating, I doubted whether it was fixed."  Buderus said.  "I was very nervous going into the game up in Cairns last Friday, just laying around all day waiting for the game to come around.  But I got through it and thats given me a massive shot in the arm."
The 25 year old Taree junior played all but 10 minutes of Newcastles 30 - 24 win over the Cowboys and likened the trial game to getting back on the horse.  "It took a few knocks on it and it was fine, so now I'm just really looking forward to Auckland.  Buderus said. Buderus was one of the NRL's standout players last season, being judged the Dally M representative player and hooker of the year.  he played all three state of origin games for NSW, the test matches against Great Brittain and New Zealand.

Friendly foes are hooked on battle - The Sun Herald,  22 June 2003
The contest between Danny Buderus and Craig Wing won't end just because they have proved they can get into NSW and Australian teams together.  It will only get more intense.  Wing, will keep trying to push Buderus, the Newcastle and NSW hooker, will keep pushing himself to stay there.  It is going to make them better players and the Blues and Aussies better teams.  "I was motivated by it,  even if you think you're going well,  you start looking for ways you can play better."  "I thought to myself,  Am I doing enough?  Why is there a push for someone else?"
"I was playing for Country against Craig in the City-country game on a Friday and again in a club game on the Sunday and people were making out it was a do or die weekend for me.  A reporter came up to me after the Sunday game and asked me about it.  I'd been injured in the game and I wasnt happy and I said something like,  "I'm over it.,  I dont care."  I was just frustrated by the whole thing when I thought I'd done well for NSW the previous year."
"But then I spoke to a few people whose opinions I respect,  like Hages, and they assured me that I was going well and that I should trust my game.  The result was that Buderus, 25, held his position as starting hooker for NSW and produced a fabulous performance in their 25 - 12  win.  Typically, he played well above his weight of 91 kilograms to consistently take out monsters Queensland forwards in defence and offered skill with the ball in his hands.

Buderus winged - Hooker says Origin pressure got to him - The Sunday Telegraph,  22 Junne 2003
Danny Buderus admits the constant speculation surrounding his origin position did affect him  until a meeting with his Newcastle Coach Michale Hagan put his season back on track.  Under threat from Craig Wing, Buderus admits he was frustrated and worried about what he was doing wrong and his form suffered as a consequence.  But the 25 year old is back to the form that has him labelled by many as the worlds best hooker following a remarkable Origin 1 and a match turning performance in his last club game against the Dragons.  "I don't think I was playing all that badly, its just that Craig was playing well and getting a lot of wraps.  Mentally it can get to you a bit."  buderus said, "Everyone was asking me if I was going to be playing Orgin."
"But all you have to do in that situation is listen to your coach and Hages has really helped me through.  He has been great.  He obviously wanted to know if everything was affecting me.  He wanted what was best for the club and best for me.  I was getting a bit frustrated about things and worried about what was going on.  In the end, you are only human, arnt you?"
Hagan, who doubles as Maroons assistant coach and is charged with trying to stop the Buderus-Andrew Johns ruck partnership in Origin 2, says he noticed Buderus was suffering because of the Wing speculation.  "We just needed to get Bedsy back to what he does well and thats enjoying his footy.  Hagan said, "He was going through a bit of a phase at the time and has to get a couple of things off his mind.  And I certainly think he has done that in the past three weeks.  At that stage, we were struggling a bit as a team and, really, I don't think his form was down that far. I also thought, based on what he did last year and how well he played in rep footy, he was always entitled to have first crack at it. I think he has confirmed, without doubt, he is certainly one of the better hookers in our game."
Buderus admits his frank talk with Hagan helped him re-focus and not worry about a push in some quarters for Wing to claim his spot.  "I just had to get a few things sorted out off the field.. its just confidence and I'm able to go out now and play with confidence."  Buderus said.
He said Blues Coach Phil Gould has not pulled him and Wing aside in either Origin camp to explain how they would be used.  Buderus see's that as a positive, allowing him to do what he does best - reading the numbers from dummy half and plugging up the middle with his robust defence. 

Whole new ball game -  22 August, 2003,  The Daily Telegraph
DANNY Buderus calls them subtle changes. The type you make out of necessity rather than desire with only a few games to go before the playoffs.  Losing the overpowering presence of a player such as Andrew Johns can have that effect no matter how critical the stage of the season. "I think we recognised straight away we couldn't play the same style with Joey not there," Buderus says of the Knights. Maybe that is a mistake we have made in the past. We realised that we had to make a few subtle changes and try to compensate in other areas. 'You always play to your strengths and ours have probably shifted a bit to the middle of the park over the past week. "In some ways, it's the start of a whole new season for us. The best thing is all the boys recognise we can still improve a lot on what we came up with against the Warriors last week." 
What Newcastle came up with was a performance which defied quite a few of the critics. A little more than 24 hours before the game, Johns announced he would not play again this season. The Knights immediately blew stronger than a nor-easterly off Nobbys.  Out came the red felt pen. In the time it took the captain to mouth the words he would not be back in 2003, the Knights went from smokies to smoked. But a near-faultless second half against the Warriors at least restored some faith, which had largely been eroded by some pretty ugly statistics in the past few seasons when Johns hadn't been around. But stats don't always present the full picture. The Knights may have lost 11 of their previous 13 games without Johns in the No.7 jumper leading into the Warriors game, but those figures hid another big factor. Who else had been missing at the same time? Buderus, Ben Kennedy, Matt Parsons, Robbie O'Davis, Adam MacDougall, Steve Simpson - they have all spent time in the grandstannd at various stages alongside Johns when the captain hasn't been on the field weaving his magic. "I think that is something that is pretty much overlooked," Knights coach Michael Hagan says. "Plenty is made of the Joey factor and fair enough too, because he is the player he is. But I think if you had a close look at many of the games we have lost when he has been missing, you'll find a few of our other experienced guys haven't been there also." 
Last Friday night at least proved that, with most hands on deck, the Knights aren't going to be the pushovers some expected. "We still have enough good players in this side to win matches," Buderus says. "Half the battle has been realising that ourselves. It's why the Warriors game was so important for the team. A lot of it is mental without Joey and we needed to prove something to ourselves. It was a great opportunity for all the boys to really put their hands up. We can't be looking over our shoulders now for Joey to bail us out because we know he is not coming back." 
While Buderus plays down his own role in the big games to come, the Test hooker is a focal point for the Knights with Johns not there.  Many of the subtle changes in the style Newcastle adopt from here on in are based around his work out of dummy-half and the inspiration provided off the back of him by the likes of Kennedy. The Knights' expansive game plan under Johns has been reined in. In its place is a more conservative attacking approach which is more forward-oriented. "Most of our experience is in the middle of the park and it is up to guys like me, BK and Parso to take on a bit more responsibility now," Buderus says. "To a certain degree, I suppose we were all spoon fed a bit by Joey and the way he plays. "But we can't put everything on to Kurt Gidley's shoulders in attack. I think all the senior players have to contribute and take the pressure off Kurt. Everyone saw how well he played against the Warriors on the back of some pretty good go-forward. "Up the middle is where we have to lay the foundation but, in saying that, we can still be pretty dangerous out wide." 
Hagan admits that playing more conservatively does potentially have its advantages if his side gets it right. "I guess if you are a little more conservative, you tend to come up with fewer mistakes," he says. "You then don't put yourself under as much pressure defensively. I think quite a few of the teams who are winning games regularly are teams who aren't giving their opposition too much to work with. It is one of the secrets, if you like, of the success of a team like Canberra and is something we are going to have to combat down there on Sunday. The fact that they won't give us much. We have to make sure we reciprocate in that regard." 
The mood among the players in a winning dressing room can generally tell you a great deal. After the Warriors clash there was an air of relief and also resolve among the Knights. No one was getting carried away or making bold statements. It was more a realisation that the first step had been taken. We sang the team song with a shitload of passion but that was about it," Buderus says. "One win was never going to change too many perceptions, other than give our own confidence a boost. "We just have to keep it going, keep improving and build some momentum."

Buderus says Kangaroos ready for Poms -  6 November 2003
Danny Buderus can feel something special brewing in the north of England. And the Newcastle and Australian hooker isn't talking about the local drop in Leeds where the Kangaroos are fine-tuning their preparations for the opening match of the Ashes rugby league series against Great Britain on Saturday. "The team, I think we're building towards something which is great to see and great to be part of," Buderus said.  "I think the team has so much improvement in it. Physically I don't think we can be in better shape. The boys know what's coming and so does the coach and he's got the boys ready for Saturday night."
"I think it's a big challenge ahead of us," Buderus said. "Obviously they have Andy Farrell on one side and Paul Sculthorpe on the other. They have a lot of skilful players. People don't think we can win but it's such a prestigious jersey we're wearing....we don't want to go out there and let anyone down. You just feel you can be a part of something special."
All the more special because of who's not in England.  The fact that 17 players, including captain Andrew Johns, were unavailable through injury has been well documented. That in itself has provided Buderus with another challenge.
The 25-year-old has played nearly all his senior career, at both club and representative level, alongside Johns. Now he's adjusting to life in tandem with Brett Kimmorley. "It's different definitely because Joey is such a dominant figure out on the field," he said.  "I have played a lot of years with Joey and you do work up combinations. Personally, the combination with Brett, it's going to be a challenge for us to improve over the next few weeks. Hopefully we can get something started. We started a few things against Wales and England A."
The Newcastle hooker is one of the few survivors from the side which lost the opening Test to Great Britain two years ago.
"Confidence I guess comes in how you start the game and start the series," Buderus said. "The Poms are going to be full of confidence so it's up to us to go out there and better them."