Lenny Hayes

Lenny Hayes
Personal information
Full name	Lenny Hayes
Date of birth	(1980-01-14) 14 January 1980
Original team	NSW/ACT Rams (TAC Cup)
Draft	#11, 1998 National Draft, St Kilda
Height/Weight	186cm / 83kg
Position(s)	Midfielder
Club information
Current club	St Kilda
Number	7
Playing career1
Years	Club	Games (Goals)
1999–	St Kilda	277 (91)
International team honours
Years	Team	Games (Goals)
2003	Australia	2 (0)
1 Playing statistics correct to end of 2013 season.
Career highlights
Norm Smith Medal 2010 All-Australian Team 2003, 2005, 2009 Trevor Barker Award 2003, 2010, 2012 St Kilda captain 2004 & 2007

Lenny Hayes (born 14 January 1980) is a professional Australian rules footballer playing with St Kilda Football Club in the Australian Football League.

Hayes is a former captain of St Kilda and continues to be an onfield leader in the Saints' midfield.

Overview

Hayes at training prior to the 2009 AFL Grand Final

Hayes grew up in suburban Sydney and began playing junior football with Pennant Hills in the Sydney AFL.

In 1998, Hayes was a standout player for NSW/ACT in the representative TAC Cup, taking out the Morrish Medal as the best player in the competition.

Hayes sporting his famous No. 7 jumper

Hayes debuted the following year in the AFL. Although he started well, he improved throughout the year, earning an AFL Rising Star nomination in the final round of the season (R22).

2004: Captain

Hayes was captain for the 2004 season as part of St Kilda's then policy of rotating the captaincy to a different player each season.

Hayes was captain in St Kilda’s 2004 Wizard Home Loans Cup winning side, the club's second pre-season cup win.^[1][2]

After a strong start to the 2006 season, Hayes ruptured his anterior cruciate ligament against the Kangaroos in Round 9, requiring a minor knee reconstruction which sidelined him until the 2007 season. In just his fifth game back in the 2007 season he suffered a broken collarbone, sidelining him for three weeks, although he managed to come back and play 19 games for the year.

2007: Co-captain

Hayes was a co-captain and part of the Saints' 2007 leadership group – dubbed the "Young Saints", which also included Justin Koschitzke, Luke Ball (co-captain) and Nick Riewoldt (co-captain). Also included in the leadership group were Aaron Hamill, Fraser Gehrig, Nick Dal Santo and Robert Harvey.

2008 season

Hayes played in St Kilda’s 2008 NAB Cup winning side, the club’s third pre-season cup win.^[3][4]

2009 season

In 2009, Hayes played his 200th AFL game in Round 9 against the Brisbane Lions at Docklands Stadium. During the match he gained 31 possessions in the Saints' 16 point victory.^[5] He finished third in the 2009 Brownlow Medal.

Hayes played in 19 of the 22 matches in the 2009 home and away rounds in which St Kilda qualified in first position for the finals series, winning the club’s third minor premiership.^[6]

Hayes was recognised for his excellent season with selection in the 2009 All-Australian Team as a midfield player, his third All-Australian Team award.

St Kilda qualified for the 2009 AFL Grand Final after qualifying and preliminary final wins. Hayes played in the grand final in which St Kilda were defeated by 12 points.

2010 season

Hayes played 25 games in 2010, including four finals, and received a number of accolades for his performances during the season:

• Trevor Barker medallist for St Kilda's best & fairest player in 2010.
• 2010 Norm Smith Medallist (1st Grand Final).
• St Kilda's player of the finals series (jointly with Zac Dawson).

2011 season

Hayes injured his left ACL early in the 2011 season and did not play the rest of the year.

2012 season

Hayes played 23 games in 2012 and won his third Trevor Barker medal as St Kilda's best & fairest player for the season. He had a fantastic season and made a brilliant recovery from the ACL injury from 2011.

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to St Kilda Football Club.

• Lenny Hayes's profile on the official website of the St Kilda Football Club
• Lenny Hayes's statistics from AFL Tables

v t e Australian squad – 2003 International Rules Series Barry Bell Bickley Bizzell Brown Burgoyne Carr Crouch Crawford Hall Harvey Hasleby Hayes Jakovich B. Johnson C. Johnson Kirk Murphy Pavlich Power Rawlings Scarlett Simpson Smith Wells Wirrpanda Coach: Lyon