Hayden Ballantyne

Hayden Ballantyne
Personal information
Full nameHayden Ballantyne
Date of birth16 July 1987
Original teamPeel Thunder
Draft#21, 2008 National Draft, Fremantle
Height/Weight174 cm (5 ft 9 in) / 79 kg (174 lb)
Position(s)Forward
Club information
Current clubFremantle
Number1
Playing career1
YearsClubGames (Goals)
2009–Fremantle108 (183)
Representative team honours
YearsTeamGames (Goals)
2007–08WAFL2 (3)
1 Playing statistics correct to end of 2015 season.
Career highlights

Hayden Ballantyne (born 16 July 1987) is a professional Australian rules footballer, who currently plays with the Fremantle Football Club in the Australian Football League, and previously won a Sandover Medal while playing with Peel Thunder.

Early career

Only 174 cm tall, Ballantyne started his career with Peel Thunder in the West Australian Football League in 2005 as a midfielder. In 2008, Ballantyne moved into the forward line with great success, kicking 75 goals to finish second in the Bernie Naylor Medal behind Subiaco's Brad Smith, and winning the Sandover Medal by 2 votes from Callum Chambers as the fairest and best player in the league.[1] To recognise this achievement, Peel Thunder named the outer wing at Rushton Park the Hayden Ballantyne Wing in April 2009.[2]

AFL career

Ballantyne's success in the WAFL attracted the attention of AFL recruiters, and at the age of 21, he was drafted by the Fremantle Football Club[3] with its second round selection in the 2008 AFL National Draft (pick No. 21 overall).[4] Ballantyne risked being excluded from the draft when he missed the Western Australian state screening session due to being overseas on a holiday. He was later tested individually and allowed to remain nominated for the draft.[5] Ballantyne was a mature-age draftee at the age of 21, with most draftees no older than 18.

Ballantyne won the 2011 AFL Goal of the Year.[6]

In his role as a small forward, Ballantyne became noted for his ability to pester and annoy his opponents, and to often win free kicks by encouraging overzealous retaliation from them. In April 2012, the Herald Sun newspaper named him as the league's "chief pest" for his success in this aspect of the game, in the week after champion Geelong full-back Matthew Scarlett had received a three-week suspension for such a retaliatory punch.[7] Ballantyne received some criticism following his lacklustre performance in the 2013 AFL Grand Final, which Fremantle lost by 15 points.[8][9]

Statistics

Statistics are correct to the end of the 2014 season [10]
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)
2009 Fremantle 17 8 10 9 64 23 87 25 14 1.3 1.1 8.0 2.9 10.9 3.1 1.8
2010 Fremantle 1 19 33 17 180 85 265 64 62 1.7 0.9 9.5 4.5 13.9 3.4 3.3
2011 Fremantle 1 17 23 19 190 66 256 52 59 1.4 1.1 11.2 3.9 15.1 3.1 3.5
2012 Fremantle 1 21 31 17 236 81 317 58 79 1.5 0.8 11.2 3.9 15.1 2.8 3.8
2013 Fremantle 1 21 34 30 204 72 276 82 66 1.6 1.4 9.7 3.4 13.1 3.9 3.1
2014 Fremantle 1 20 49 26 194 49 243 86 54 2.5 1.3 9.7 2.5 12.2 4.3 2.7
Career 106 180 118 1068 376 1444 367 334 1.7 1.1 10.1 3.5 13.6 3.5 3.2

Personal life

Ballantyne's father, Graeme Ballantyne is a horse trainer based at Lark Hill, Rockingham. The winner of the 2013 Perth Cup, Talent Show, is trained by Graeme and part owned by Hayden and his Fremantle teammate Nick Suban.[3]

References

  1. ↑ Pike, Chris; Ballantyne wins Sandover; PerthNow; 16 September 2008
  2. ↑ McLea, Stuart (4 May 2009). "Swans clip Falcons’ wings".
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Butler, Steve (14 September 2013). "Dad knew son would be a star". The West Australian.
  4. ↑ Clarke, Tim; Ballantynes rise continues with Sandover glory; WAToday; 16 September 2008
  5. ↑ Ballantyne unconcerned by AFL draft drama; ABC News; 22 October 2008
  6. ↑ White, Simon (19 September 2011). "Ballantyne snares goal of the year with a Krakouer".
  7. ↑ Ralph, Jon (3 April 2012). "AFL pests: silent but deadly". Herald Sun. Retrieved 8 April 2012.
  8. ↑ "Hawthorn lead Fremantle by 23 points at the MCG". The Roar. 28 September 2013.
  9. ↑ Paton, Al (28 September 2013). "Parting shots: Rioli's chicken wing, Hayden Ballantyne's shocker among talking points from Hawthorn's Grand Final win". Adelaide Now. Retrieved 28 September 2013.
  10. ↑ Hayden Ballantyne's player profile at AFL Tables

External links

Awards and achievements
Preceded by
Anthony Jones		 Sandover Medal Winner
2008 		Succeeded by
Ross Young