Dale Kickett
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| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Birth | May 4, 1968 , |
| Recruited from | Claremont Football Club |
| Playing career¹ | |
| Debut | 1990, Fitzroy vs. , at |
| Team(s) | Fitzroy (1990)
15 games, 13 goals West Coast Eagles (1991) 2 games, 0 goals St Kilda (1992) 21 games, 20 goals Essendon (1994) 8 games, 7 goals Fremantle (1995-2001) 131 games, 22 goals |
| ¹ Statistics to end of 2005 season | |
| Career highlights | |
Fremantle Best and Fairest 1997 |
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Dale Kickett (born May 4, 1968) is a former Australian rules footballer. He is one of only three players, and the only living person to have played for five clubs in the Australian Football League. [1]
Contents |
[edit] Fitzroy career
He began his AFL career in the 1990 after Fitzroy used their first pick in the 1989 National draft (#9 overall) to select him, after he'd been a member of the 1989 Claremont WAFL premiership side. He managed 15 games in his debut season, but having grown up in the small country town of Tammin, living in the big city of Melbourne did not suit Kickett and he was traded to the West Coast Eagles in return for pick # 78 in the 1990 National Draft.
[edit] West Coast Eagles Career
The Eagles of 1991 were unbeaten for the first 12 rounds and eventually lost the Grand Final to Hawthorn. Being such a strong side, Kickett didn't manage to break into the side and only managed 2 games and was delisted at the end of the season. However, he had a very good year for Claremont, playing in his 2nd premiership for the club and winning the Simpson Medal for the best player in the grand final.
[edit] St Kilda Career
St Kilda then selected Kickett with pick 38 in the 1992 Pre-season Draft. He had a promising season in 1992, playing in 21 games, but again he returned to Claremont at the end of the year. This turned out to be a good thing as St Kilda dropped out of the finals in 1993, but Kickett played in his 3rd Claremont premiership side and won his second Simpson Medal. The also showed a switch of where's Kickett's best footy was going to be played. Unlike the 1989 and 1991 sides, where he was named as a half-forward, he played on the half back line in the 1993 premiership side.[2]
[edit] Essendon career
Essendon saw this potential and selected Dale in the 1993 mid-season draft, however Dale remained in WA until the beginning of the 1994 season. He played 8 games for the Bombers in 1994, kicking 7 goals. The introduction of the Fremantle Football Club, to be coached by his 3-time Claremont premiership coach Gerard Neesham was a huge lure and he returned to WA in a deal along with Tony Delaney and Todd Ridley. Essendon weren't short changed though, selecting Matthew Lloyd and Scott Lucas with the draft selections they received in return.
[edit] Fremantle career
Kickett became a mainstay of the Fremantle defence, and came runner up in the Best and Fairest award in both 1995 and 1996 before winning it in 1997. In Round 20, 1999 Kickett became the first player to play 100 games for Fremantle.
Round 21, 2000 was a low point in Dale's career. In what would end up being known as the Demolition Derby, the scene was set before the first bounce when the Eagle's ruckman Michael Gardiner began pushing and striking the Docker's first year player Matthew Pavlich, resulting in a free kick to Fremantle. The remainder of the first half would be a tinderbox with numerous spot fights erupting all over the ground. Kickett, Gardiner, Brad Dodd & Phil Read would be reported that day and Kickett took the brunt of the penalties, being suspended for 9 weeks for three separate striking charges.[3]
Many thought this would prompt the 33 year old to retire, but Kickett played on into 2001, which was a disappointing year for all at Freo with only 2 wins for the year. 2002 saw a new coach in Chris Connolly and Kickett's back and leg injuries started to slow down his dashes from defence. He only played the first three rounds before being dropped due to illness. He then struggled to break back into the side, before announcing his retirement in June. As a tribute to one of the club's favourite sons, he was given a farewell match against Port Adelaide in Round 14 at Subiaco. It was fitting that despite the team being well beaten, the entire crowd and the Port Adelaide team stayed on the ground at the end of the match to acknowledge Kickett's career. This game also earned Dale membership of the AFL 200 club, with 181 league games, 17 Pre-season games & 2 State of Origin games. Combined with his 81 games for Claremont, he is also a member of the WA Two Hundred Club.[4]
[edit] External links
[edit] References
| Preceded by Stephen O'Reilly (footballer) |
Fremantle Best and Fairest winner 1997 |
Succeeded by Jason Norrish |
