Wayne Pearce is an Australian former rugby league footballer and coach. A lock for the Balmain Tigers, he was known as Junior Pearce. Pearce represented New South Wales in the State of Origin Series as well as the Australian national rugby league team. No Australian rugby league player had a greater influence on fitness in the era than Balmain lock forward Wayne Pearce. His strict adherence to exercise and diet helped to modernise the game as he became a role model for younger players and fans. Pearce's greatest assets were his athleticism and endurance. Not heavily framed at 88kg, his boundless enthusiasm was an inspiration to teammates. Unfortunately, his career was full of s series of disappointments where he never really overachieved.

Born and raised in the Sydney suburb of Balmain, he played 217 first grade games with the Tigers between 1980 and his retirement in 1990. Coming into grade from the Balmain juniors in 1978 a bout of hepatitis halted his immediate playing career. In 1980 he was named the club's ‘best and fairest’ player but a detached retina injury saw him miss the beginning of the 1981 season. After making his debut with the Tigers in 1980, Pearce quickly rose to the Balmain captaincy in 1982, a position he held until his retirement. It was no coincidence the Tigers reached the finals seven times (1983 and 1985–1990) during his reign, which included heart-wrenching grand-final losses in 1988 and 1989. Balmain front-rower Steve Roach said of his captain: ''Junior was the toughest bloke I ever saw. He had an inner strength of character and a never-say-die spirit that was indomitable''.

Pearce toured with the 1982 Kangaroos at a time when Ray Price had a monopoly on the Test lock position.

So he moved into the second row before succeeding Price on the Parramatta champion's international retirement in 1984. Pearce's form was acknowledged in 1985 when he won the Rothman's Medal as the best-and-fairest player in the NSWRL competition. In 1986, he captained NSW to its first-ever Origin series clean sweep against Queensland. He led the Blues in 10 of his 15 appearances between 1983 and 1988.

A knee injury in late 1986 made a second Kangaroo tour unlikely but Pearce underwent an operation before setting himself a gruelling fitness program in order to make the tour. He ultimately failed the fitness test, an unjust reward for his efforts, but resumed his Test career the following year against NZ. In 1988 Pearce was inexplicably left out of the Centenary Test against Great Britain but went on to play in every other rep fixture that year.

Awarded the OAM in 1988 he retired when the injury to his left knee limited him to just 7 games during the 1990 season. A respected figure in the game Pearce first pursued a career in the media with Channel 10 but, in 1994, with the Balmain club at the crossroads he took over from Alan Jones as first grade coach. After a promising start the Tigers finished with the wooden spoon but Pearce remained committed the club's survival during the late 1990s. In 1999 he was named the inaugural coach of the merged Wests Tigers club as well as being appointed NSW State of Origin coach.

After 1999’s interstate series finished in a historic draw (but with Queensland maintaining the trophy) he resigned from his club duties to spend more time with his family. In 2000 Pearce’s NSW team won the State of Origin series 3-0 – thereby becoming the only person to achieve such a feat as a player (1986) and a coach.