Dean Cox

Dean Michael Cox (born 1 August 1981) is an Australian rules footballer who currently plays for the West Coast Eagles in the Australian Football League (AFL).

Early career

Cox was a naturally gifted sportsman who excelled at sports whilst growing up in Dampier, Western Australia.

His uncle George Michalczyk, a former Australian rules player himself, recommended Cox to the club he began his senior career with, East Perth.

Cox played colts for East Perth in 1999 and at the end of the season was invited to train with the West Coast Eagles in their pre-season. He impressed enough for him to be rookie-listed, however he struggled in pre-season training and was criticised for being slightly uncoordinated.

Meanwhile he played senior football for East Perth. He began the season fifth in the order of an impressive list of ruckmen, but by season's end he had impressed so much he earned a place as the first ruckman in their grand final team and collected a Simpson Medal for his efforts.

The Eagles then put him on their senior list and he made his AFL debut in 2001. Initially he showed few signs of his potential at that level. However, he was persisted with.

He is recognizable by his intimidating 204 cm and 107 kg frame, ranking among the top 10 tallest players in the AFL at the time of writing.

2005 season

He came of age during the 2005 season, where he became a dominant player for the Eagles and is now considered one of their best.

He topped the year off with a terrific finals series, living up to his high standards. Two incidents stand out in particular for Cox – one where in the Qualifying Final against Sydney he took two saving marks in defence to secure the game in the dying moments, where his team got home by less than a goal. Unfortunately, the other moment that stands out had the Eagles on the other end, where in the Grand Final three weeks later, again against Sydney, he took a strong mark on the half-forward line and speared the ball in towards a pack in the dying moments. Unfortunately for the Eagles, Leo Barry took a saving mark and secured the Swans a victory by less than a goal.

2006 season

Cox got off to a superb start to the season and was one of the premier players in the competition early. He is still playing well and has established himself as one of the leagues premier ruckmen, averaging over 20 hitouts and almost 20 disposals per game through Round 8 of the 2006 Season. However, in Round 13 he met with a hard bump from Bulldog Adam Cooney, which left him with a broken collar bone. He returned to the side, and was a key figure in the Eagles thrilling 1 point win of Sydney in the 2006 AFL Grand Final, running Sydney ruckman Stephen Doyle and Darren Jolly ragged. Cox played 21 games in 2006, took 141 marks and bagged 14 goals.

Playing style

Dean Cox is a very versatile ruckman, who tends to cover much ground. Sometimes considered to be the Eagles 'fifth midfielder', Cox is a modern example of a mobile ruckman. He effectively wins knock-outs and can assist the likes of midfielders Daniel Kerr, Matthew Priddis and Matt Rosa. Cox is widely considered as the premier ruckman of the competition, as seen by his selection in the last four All-Australian teams.

Statistics

Statistics are correct to end of the 2011 season.

External links

• Dean Cox's profile on the Official AFL Website of the West Coast Eagles Football Club
• Dean Cox's statistics from AFL Tables