Sam Butler (footballer, born 1986)
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| Sam Butler | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Personal information | |||
| Full name | Samuel Butler | ||
| Born | 14 January 1986 | ||
| Original team | Central District (SANFL) | ||
| Draft | No. 20, 2003 national draft | ||
| Height | 187 cm (6 ft 2 in) | ||
| Weight | 82 kg (181 lb) | ||
| Position | Defender | ||
| Playing career1 | |||
| Years | Club | Games (Goals) | |
| 2004–2017 | West Coast | 166 (16) | |
|
1 Playing statistics correct to the end of 2017. | |||
| Career highlights | |||
| |||
| Sources: AFL Tables, AustralianFootball.com | |||
Samuel Butler (born 14 January 1986) is a former professional Australian rules footballer who played for the West Coast Eagles in the Australian Football League (AFL). Raised in Gawler, South Australia, Butler took up Australian rules football as a teenager. He was drafted by the West Coast Eagles with the 20th pick in the 2003 National Draft after playing in a SANFL reserves premiership for Central District in the same year. Butler debuted for West Coast during the 2004 season and was nominated for the AFL Rising Star award.
A mid-sized defender and occasional midfielder, he played in West Coast's 2006 premiership team but did not participate in the following season due to a groin injury. Butler struggled with groin injuries throughout his career, playing his 100th game during the 2013 season, ten seasons after his debut. Butler retired from being a footballer in 2017.
Butler began playing Australian rules football as a teenager and represented South Australia in under-16 play, getting his start with the South Gawler Football Club before joining the Central District Football Club youth development team.[1][2] As a member of the AIS/AFL Academy, he represented South Australia at the AFL Under-18 Championships in 2002 and 2003 and was part of Central District's reserves SANFL premiership team in 2003.
In 2004, Butler made his AFL debut for the West Coast Eagles in Round 10 against Richmond. He went on to play 12 games that season, including a losing elimination final against Sydney.[3] In 2006, Butler played as a member of the premiership-winning team.[4]
In 2007, he struggled with a persistent groin strain (osteitis pubis), didn’t play any AFL games, and only played a handful of WAFL reserves games for Perth.[5] In 2014, Butler experienced career highs during the Round 20 match of the season, playing against Collingwood.[6][3]
Butler amassed 25 disposals in the 2015 AFL Grand Final. He was contracted with the Eagles until his retirement at the end of the 2017 season.[7] After retirement, Butler accepted a position in West Coast’s commercial partnerships team.[8]
Statistics
- Across his 166-game career, Butler recorded a total of 16 goals and 22 behinds, amassing 2,701 disposals (1,603 kicks, 1,098 handballs), 746 marks, and 433 tackles. His per-game averages were 16.3 disposals, 9.7 kicks, 6.6 handballs, 4.5 marks, and 2.6 tackles.[3]
G |
Goals | K |
Kicks | D |
Disposals | T |
Tackles |
B |
Behinds | H |
Handballs | M |
Marks |
| Season | Team | No. | Games | Totals | Averages (per game) | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| G | B | K | H | D | M | T | G | B | K | H | D | M | T | ||||
| 2004 | West Coast | 26 | 12 | 1 | 2 | 87 | 77 | 164 | 33 | 16 | 0.1 | 0.2 | 7.3 | 6.4 | 13.7 | 2.8 | 1.3 |
| 2005 | West Coast | 26 | 14 | 3 | 2 | 103 | 62 | 165 | 51 | 18 | 0.2 | 0.1 | 7.4 | 4.4 | 11.8 | 3.6 | 1.3 |
| 2006 | West Coast | 26 | 14 | 6 | 5 | 156 | 123 | 279 | 58 | 59 | 0.4 | 0.4 | 11.1 | 8.8 | 19.9 | 4.1 | 4.2 |
| 2007 | West Coast | 26 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2008 | West Coast | 26 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 49 | 30 | 79 | 21 | 11 | 0.0 | 0.6 | 9.8 | 6.0 | 15.8 | 4.2 | 2.2 |
| 2009 | West Coast | 26 | 16 | 1 | 1 | 132 | 124 | 256 | 60 | 38 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 8.3 | 7.8 | 16.0 | 3.8 | 2.4 |
| 2010 | West Coast | 26 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 45 | 47 | 92 | 26 | 17 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 9.0 | 9.4 | 18.4 | 5.2 | 3.4 |
| 2011 | West Coast | 26 | 13 | 0 | 0 | 160 | 68 | 228 | 80 | 51 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 12.3 | 5.2 | 17.5 | 6.2 | 3.9 |
| 2012 | West Coast | 26 | 14 | 1 | 3 | 177 | 68 | 245 | 74 | 33 | 0.1 | 0.2 | 12.6 | 4.9 | 17.5 | 5.3 | 2.4 |
| 2013 | West Coast | 26 | 15 | 1 | 2 | 167 | 101 | 268 | 78 | 58 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 11.1 | 6.7 | 17.9 | 5.2 | 3.9 |
| 2014 | West Coast | 26 | 12 | 1 | 1 | 108 | 84 | 192 | 47 | 34 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 9.0 | 7.0 | 16.0 | 3.9 | 2.8 |
| 2015 | West Coast | 26 | 17 | 2 | 3 | 181 | 123 | 304 | 96 | 32 | 0.1 | 0.2 | 10.6 | 7.2 | 17.9 | 5.6 | 1.9 |
| 2016 | West Coast | 26 | 20 | 0 | 0 | 162 | 136 | 298 | 86 | 54 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 8.1 | 6.8 | 14.9 | 4.3 | 2.7 |
| 2017 | West Coast | 26 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 76 | 55 | 131 | 36 | 12 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 8.4 | 6.1 | 14.6 | 4.0 | 1.3 |
| Career | 166 | 16 | 22 | 1603 | 1098 | 2701 | 746 | 433 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 9.7 | 6.6 | 16.3 | 4.5 | 2.6 | ||
