Cale Hooker

Cale Hooker
Personal information
Full nameCale Hooker
Date of birth13 October 1988
Original teamEast Fremantle (WAFL)
Draft#54, 2007 National Draft
Height/Weight196 cm / 97 kg
Position(s)Defender
Club information
Current clubEssendon
Number26
Playing career1
YearsClubGames (Goals)
2008–Essendon115 (8)
1 Playing statistics correct to end of Round 4, 2015 season.
Career highlights

Cale Hooker (born 13 October 1988) is a professional Australian rules footballer, currently playing with the Essendon Football Club in the Australian Football League.

Early life

Hooker graduated from Applecross Senior High School, he played for East Fremantle in the WAFL. He was drafted by the Essendon Football Club, with the 54th pick in the 2007 National Draft.

AFL career

He made his AFL debut against the Western Bulldogs in Round 21, 2008.[1]

After he had established himself as one of the club’s key defenders in 2009 and 2010, Hooker suffered persistent hamstring injuries which slowed his development during the 2011 season. The disciplined defender had an excellent start before tearing his hamstring against North Melbourne. He played only one more game for the remainder of the year against Port Adelaide.

Now a key player in the Essendon defence, Hooker played a number of important shutting down roles on opposition key forwards during the 2012 season. His attitude to the contest and competitive nature saw him play 17 games for the season, which was a step-up on the 13 games he played during an injury interrupted 2011.

A career-best 2013 season, was rewarded with a three-year contract extension, tying him to the Bombers until the end of 2016.

Hooker showed due faith, by toppling his previous year’s performance by dominating in the air across the backline. He became a vital cog to Essendon’s success and continued to show exceptional leadership down back. All of these factors culminated in his first selection in the All-Australian team in 2014. Hooker was elevated to Essendon's Leadership Group in 2015.

Statistics

Statistics are correct to the end of the 2014 season [2]
Legend
 G  Goals  B  Behinds  K  Kicks  H  Handballs  D  Disposals  M  Marks  T  Tackles
Season Team # Games G B K H D M T G B K H D M T
Totals Averages (per game)
2008 Essendon 26 2 — — 3 17 20 7 1 — — 1.5 8.5 10.0 3.5 0.5
2009 Essendon 26 16 3 3 72 173 245 74 53 0.2 0.2 4.5 10.8 15.3 4.6 3.3
2010 Essendon 26 18 2 1 81 174 255 71 39 0.1 0.1 4.5 9.7 14.2 3.9 2.2
2011 Essendon 26 13 — — 99 99 198 66 20 — — 7.6 7.6 15.2 5.1 1.5
2012 Essendon 26 17 — 2 149 125 274 95 28 — 0.1 8.8 7.4 16.1 5.6 1.6
2013 Essendon 26 22 2 — 197 198 395 151 44 0.1 — 9.0 9.0 18.0 6.9 2.0
2014 Essendon 26 23 — — 240 182 422 170 35 — — 10.4 7.9 18.4 7.4 1.5
Career 111 7 6 841 968 1809 634 220 0.1 0.1 7.6 8.7 16.3 5.7 2.0

References

  1. ↑ Ralph, Jon (21 August 2008). "Essendon names first-gamer Cale Hooker for Bulldogs clash".
  2. ↑ Cale Hooker's player profile at AFL Tables

External links