David Zaharakis

David Zaharakis
Personal information
Full nameDavid Zaharakis
Date of birth21 February 1990
Original teamNorthern Knights (TAC Cup)
Draft#23, 2008 National Draft
Height/Weight182 cm / 79 kg
Position(s)Midfielder
Club information
Current clubEssendon
Number11
Playing career1
YearsClubGames (Goals)
2009–Essendon114 (91)
1 Playing statistics correct to end of Round 4, 2015 season.
Career highlights

David Zaharakis (born 21 February 1990) is a professional Australian rules footballer, currently playing for the Essendon Football Club in the Australian Football League, who is of Greek heritage.

Early life

Zaharakis was selected by Essendon, the team he supported all his life,[1] with their second (23rd overall) pick in the 2008 AFL Draft. He had previously been playing with the Northern Knights in the TAC Cup and was captain in 2008. He attended Our Lady Help of Christians (Eltham), finishing Year 12 in 2008 at Marcellin College where he also won the Terrence Cleary Memorial Sporting Award for sportsmanship and sporting excellence.[2]

He played his junior football with the Eltham Panthers in the Northern Football League. He supports Melbourne Victory and Everton and is also a talented basketballer, earning Australian Marist V honours in 2007.

AFL career

Zaharakis was awarded Essendon's number 11 guernsey which was previously worn by Damien Peverill and has been his number throughout most of his junior career.[3] He kicked his first career goal for Essendon in the final seconds of the 2009 Anzac Day match to beat Collingwood by five points.[4]

He played 10 games in his debut season and 20 in 2010. His 2011 season has been his most consistent and impressive season to date. He capped off the year by winning his first Crichton Medal as Essendon's best and fairest player.[5]

At the 2013 Anzac Day match, in which Essendon defeated Collingwood by 46 points, Zaharakis won the Anzac Day Medal for best-on-ground performance. He had stats of 34 disposals, 14 contested possessions, 6 clearances, 6 Inside 50s and 4 goals.

It has been revealed by Zaharakis' manager that he did not take any part in Essendon's 2012 controversial sport science program that has since put the club under scrutiny by the AFL and ASADA (the Australian Sports Anti-Doping Authority) during the 2013 season.[6]

Statistics

Statistics are correct to end of Round 4, 2015 season.[7][8]
Season Team # Games G B K H D M T G B K H D M T
Totals Averages (per game)
2009
 Essendon 11 10 7 8 87 50 137 47 25 0.7 0.8 8.7 5.0 13.7 4.7 2.5
2010
 Essendon 11 20 19 18 178 141 319 93 52 1.0 0.9 8.9 7.0 16.0 4.6 2.6
2011
 Essendon 11 23 31 17 277 195 472 103 88 1.4 0.7 12.0 8.5 20.5 4.5 3.8
2012
 Essendon 11 13 7 8 171 119 290 43 42 0.5 0.6 13.2 9.2 22.3 3.3 3.2
2013
 Essendon 11 21 9 17 266 210 476 73 62 0.4 0.8 12.7 10.0 22.7 3.5 3.0
2014
 Essendon 11 23 14 14 332 228 560 108 85 0.6 0.6 14.4 9.9 24.4 4.7 3.7
2015
 Essendon 11 4 4 0 34 43 77 15 16 1.0 0.0 8.5 10.7 19.2 3.7 4.0
Career 114 91 82 1345 986 2331 482 370 0.8 0.7 11.8 8.6 20.4 4.2 3.2
Legend
 G  Goals  B  Behinds  K  Kicks  H  Handballs  D  Disposals  M  Marks  T  Tackles

Footnotes

  1. ↑ "Malthouse fumes". www.abc.net.au/news Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 2009-04-26. Retrieved 2009-04-27.
  2. ↑ Merry, Mark (13 November 2008). "Year 12 Valedictory Awards". Marcellin College. Retrieved 13 December 2008.
  3. ↑ "Lonergan to wear Johnson guernsey". EssendonFC.com.au. 11 December 2008. Retrieved 12 December 2008.
  4. ↑ The Age Dream result for lifetime Dons fan
  5. ↑ "Zaharakis wins first Crichton Medal". Essendon Football Club. 7 October 2011. Retrieved 7 October 2011.
  6. ↑ Fear of needles: Zaharakis wasn't injected. AFL news. Retrieved 1 August 2013
  7. ↑ "David Zaharakis statistics". AFL Tables. Retrieved 24 September 2012.
  8. ↑ "David Zaharakis of the Essendon Bombers Career AFL Stats". footywire.com. Retrieved 24 September 2012.

External links

Awards and achievements
Preceded by
Jobe Watson		 Essendon Best and Fairest Winner
2011 		Succeeded by
Jobe Watson