Sanford Wheeler
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| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Birth | April 6, 1970 , California, United States of America |
| Recruited from | Parramatta (Sydney AFL) |
| Height and weight | 186cm / 90 kg |
| Playing career¹ | |
| Debut | 1989, Sydney Swans vs. , at |
| Team(s) | Sydney Swans (1989-1994)
43 games, 7 goals |
| ¹ Statistics to end of 2005 season | |
| Career highlights | |
Sanford Wheeler (previously known as Matthew Wheeler) (born April 6, 1970 in California, United States) is a former Australian rules football player for the Sydney Swans.
He is notable as being the first African-American born player in the history of the AFL and one of few players from the United States to play in the Australian Football League.
Matthew Wheeler migrated with his Australian father and African-American mother to Sydney, Australia at the age of 5. As a teenager, he began to take an interest in Aussie Rules and played his junior football for the Parramatta Aussie Rules club.
Recruited by the Sydney Swans as a rookie using their zone allocation, the athletic long haired Wheeler frequently exhibited some dash and flair off the wing and as a rebounding defender off the half back flank. However his disposal skills let him down and he had a tendency to get caught holding the ball.
Mid-way through his career, he changed his first name by Deed poll to "Sanford".
Up to 1993, he had played 36 games and kicked 6 goals during the Swans darkest era.
After being used sparingly by coach Ron Barassi, the coach became frustrated with Wheeler not reaching his potential and delisted the young rookie in 1994 as part of a shake up of the Swans list.
