Clark made his first-class debut with the New South Wales Blues on 4 February 1998 against Tasmania at the Sydney Cricket Ground.

[7] He claimed four 5 wicket hauls and finished second behind Australian paceman Michael Kasprowicz in the leading wicket-takers list.

[15] In the next match he played for New South Wales, Clark exceeded these figures by taking 8/58 against Western Australia at the WACA Ground.

[17] Clark initially announced his retirement from state cricket in May 2011 but continued playing on a "part-time" basis in the IPL and domestic limited-overs matches while juggling his position as a manager of new Twenty20 franchise Sydney Sixers.

[19] He ended his playing career on a high by leading his club side Sydney University to Belvidere Cup triumph.

Australia Chairman of selectors Trevor Hohns said: We consider Stuart to be a similar style bowler to Glenn McGrath ... he is already in England and showing some good form, so we have selected him to provide some cover for the current injuries.

On 16 March 2006, Clark was included in the Australian Test squad, replacing Glenn McGrath (who was attending his sick wife Jane) for the tour of South Africa.

Clark had an immediate impact on the game, dismissing Graeme Smith early in South Africa's innings, on his way to five wickets.

Clark was "released from duty" for the second Test as the Australian selectors decided to replace him with budding spinner Dan Cullen in Chittagong.

[citation needed] However, by the end of the Bangladesh series, Clark maintained his spot above Jason Gillespie in the pecking order of Australian fast bowlers.

He ended the series with the most wickets (with 26 at an average of 17, which was twice as many as any English player managed) and the best strike rate of all bowlers, surpassing even retiring greats Glenn McGrath and Shane Warne.