Matthew Whelan | Demonwiki (original) (raw)
DOB: 13 November <1979>
Debut: Round 4, 2000 against St. Kilda at
Last Game: Round 22, 2009 against St. Kilda at
From: Darwin/Woodville-West Torrens, selection #50, 1999 National Draft
Number: 45 (2000-2009)
Honours
Best First Year Player - 2000
Rising Star nominee - Round 15, 2000 vs Hawthorn
Life Member - <2009>
Games: 150
Goals: 15
Career Statistics
| Wins | Draws | Losses | Winning % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 65 | 1 | 84 | 43.33 |
Statistical categories led:
Most games in jumper 45
A junior rugby league player who didn't switch to Australian rules until he was 15, Whelan played three seasons for the Northern Territory's Teal Cup side, but was overlooked in both the <1997> and <1998> AFL drafts. He moved to the and played 19 games for Woodville-West Torrens in <1999>. After finishing second in the Darwin competition's best and fairest despite only playing nine games he finally arrived on the radar of AFL clubs. North Melbourne showed interest, but Melbourne got in three picks before them.
Surprising even himself with how well he took to the game's top competition, Whelan played 16 games in <2000>, before a neck injury in Round 19 cost him a chance to play finals. Whelan was picked for a Northern Territory side to play Port Adelaide in the <2001> pre-season, before achilles and quad injuries kept him out until Round 6. He only played nine games for the year and missed finals with injury again in <2002>. Whelan's first final didn't come until 2004.
Whelan battled injury again in <2005>, suffering hamstring, hand and calf problems throughout the year. In Round 10 he was on the other end of an injury when he infamously laid a tackle on Nathan Brown of that ended in a horrific break for Brown's leg. More injuries restricted him to just five games in <2007>, and Whelan retired at the end of <2009>. He joined Frankston club Pines for <2010>, before returning to Melbourne as an Indigenous Project Officer in <2020>.
A courageous player on the field, Whelan jokingly credited this trait to the time when as a child he had been walking across what he thought was a log, but which turned out to be a crocodile.
| Year | Games | Goals | Brownlow |
|---|---|---|---|
| <2000> | 16 | 0 | 0 |
| <2001> | 9 | 1 | 0 |
| <2002> | 21 | 3 | 0 |
| <2003> | 22 | 4 | 1 |
| <2004> | 20 | 1 | 0 |
| <2005> | 16 | 1 | 0 |
| <2006> | 19 | 3 | 0 |
| <2007> | 5 | 0 | 0 |
| <2008> | 12 | 1 | 0 |
| <2009> | 10 | 1 | 0 |
Tribunal Record
| Match | Charge | Sanction |
|---|---|---|
| Round 16, 2000 | Wrestling | $1200 fine |
| Round 16, 2003 | Unduly Rough Play | Not Guilty |
| Round 18, 2005 | Rough Conduct | 1 match |
| Round 16, 2006 | Melee | $1500 fine |
| Round 5, 2007 | Striking | 1 match |
Lists
Indigenous Players
Interstate recruits
Life Members
Media
Herald Sun - 04/07/2000, 30/01/2001, 27/05/2001
AFANA News - 2001
Hastings Leader - 27/10/2009
Links
Australian Rules Football profile
Australian Rules Football Wiki profile
Demonwiki image gallery
Draftguru profile
melbfc.com.au profile - 2001
Wikipedia profile