<P> Thompson made his first grade debut in Round 13, St George v Cronulla at Toyota Park, 24 June 1995 as a 17 - year - old . He played for the club until the end of 2006 . Thompson played at second - row forward for the St. George Dragons in the 1996 ARL Grand Final loss to Manly Sea Eagles and for St. George Illawarra Dragons in their 1999 NRL Grand Final loss to the Melbourne Storm . During his many years at the Dragons, Lance Thompson was a crowd favourite at Kogarah and Wollongong, and it caused some controversy amongst supporters when he departed at the end of the 2005 season . </P> <P> During 2006, Thompson's appearances for Cronulla against his former side, St George Illawarra, were highly anticipated . The first of these matches saw Thompson scoring two tries, and the second involved Dragon Dean Young being injured in a Thompson tackle, sidelining Young for most of the 2007 season . In 2007 Thompson was selected for the final time for the City side which won the annual City vs. Country match, the NSWRL's precursor to the State of Origin series . Thompson played his final NRL game in Round 6 against the Penrith Panthers after announcing his retirement from Rugby League on Wednesday, 16 April . In a press conference, Thompson explained that the reason for this decision was an ongoing knee injury sustained in 2007 and because he was diagnosed with type one diabetes and that he had "one last game left in him ." Cronulla Sharks coach Ricky Stuart gave Thompson his last game in Round 6 for his "last hurrah ." Thompson scored a try early in the match but Cronulla lost the game 20--21 in golden point . </P> <P> Thompson later became coach of the Cronulla side in the reserve - grade New South Wales Cup competition . At the time of his death he managed the bistro at the Woolooware Golf which was thriving at the time . </P> <P> Thompson died in Cronulla on 23 August 2018 . </P>

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