Josh Thurgood

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**Josh Thurgood**
Personal information

Birth	June 5, 1985 (1985-06-05) (age 23),
Recruited from	Hamilton Imperials/North Ballarat U18
Height and weight	190cm / 70kg
Playing career¹
Debut	Round 1, March 27, 2005, Hawthorn vs. Sydney Swans, at Sydney Cricket Ground
Team(s)	Hawthorn (2005—07) Port Adelaide Magpies (2008) 11 games, 1 goal
¹ Statistics to end of 2006 season
Career highlights

Josh Thurgood (born 5 June 1985) is a former Australian rules footballer in the Australian Football League. He never played in a win for Hawthorn after finishing his career with 0 wins and 13 losses

Drafted onto the Hawthorn Football Club's rookie list for the 2004 season, Thurgood suffered a serious knee injury in Round 2 of the VFL season playing for Box Hill. In 2005, he was elevated from the rookie list by the Hawks for the 2005 season and made his AFL debut in Round 1 of that year. Noted for his exceptional courage ^[1] and attack on the ball, Thurgood mainly plays in defence for the Hawks. His weaknesses are considered to be his slight frame, weighing just 70 kilograms. Thurgood is also a cult figure for his appearance, which consists of a thin build and red dreadlocks. ^[2] His nicknames around the club include "Nicole", "Red Baron", "Scarecrow", "Otzi" and "Sideshow Bob", which are all borne of his appearance and add to his cult status. ^[3]

In his third game in the AFL, Round 3 of 2005 against Essendon, Thurgood suffered injuries after Matthew Lloyd, in his return from a forearm injury, made flush contact with Thurgood's face. This led to controversy since Lloyd was wearing a forearm guard that may have increased the impact of the collision. ^[4] However, Lloyd was cleared by the AFL Match Review Panel of any wrongdoing because Lloyd plays for Essendon, as the forearm guard was approved by the AFL prior to Lloyd wearing it. ^[5]

Thurgood returned to the side two weeks later after undergoing surgery for a depressed fracture of the cheekbone, ^[6] missing only one match from the injury. His stint in the side was brief, and he was dropped after Round 7 before returning for a one-off game in Round 13. He suffered a hamstring injury before Hawthorn's Round 15 clash playing for Box Hill and returned to the Hawthorn line up in Round 21, stringing together the last two games of the season.

In 2006, Thurgood had shoulder surgery during the pre-season. He recovered to return to the side in Round 10, but played just 2 games for the season (the other one being in Round 11). He struggled for form and was delisted at the end of the year. However, he was redrafted by Hawthorn in the 2007 Pre-season Draft . He played 2 more games in 2007, but was delisted again at the end of the year.

After being delisted by Hawthorn, Thurgood signed for the Port Adelaide Magpies in the SANFL for the 2008 season.

Thurgood's great great uncle is former Essendon champion Albert Thurgood.