Derek Wirth (born 29 November 1978) is a former

Australian rules football Australian football, also called Australian rules football or Aussie rules, or more simply football or footy, is a contact sport played between two teams of 18 players on an oval field, often a modified cricket ground. Points are scored by k ...

er who played with the

Brisbane Lions The Brisbane Lions is a professional Australian rules football club based in Brisbane, Queensland, that plays in the Australian Football League (AFL). The club was formed in late 1996 via a merger of the Melbourne-based 1883 foundation VFL c ...

in the

Australian Football League The Australian Football League (AFL) is the only fully professional competition of Australian rules football. Through the AFL Commission, the AFL also serves as the sport's governing body and is responsible for controlling the laws of the gam ...

(AFL). A Springwood junior, Wirth was a key position player, originally drafted to the

Brisbane Bears The Brisbane Football Club, nicknamed the Bears, was a professional Australian rules football club based in Queensland on the Gold Coast (relocated to Brisbane in 1993). The club participated in the Victorian/Australian Football League (VFL/A ...

. He was recruited from

Mount Gravatt Mount Gravatt is a southern suburb of the City of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia and a prominent hill and lookout within this suburb (). In the , Mount Gravatt had a population of 3,366 people. Geography The suburb is situated in the south- ...

, as one of three zone selections in the 1995 AFL Draft. He didn't play a league game for Brisbane in 1996 and at the end of the year was signed by the Lions, who were formed from a merger between the Bears and

Fitzroy Fitzroy or FitzRoy may refer to: People As a given name *Several members of the Somerset family (Dukes of Beaufort) have this as a middle-name: **FitzRoy Somerset, 1st Baron Raglan (1788–1855) ** Henry Charles FitzRoy Somerset, 8th Duke of Beau ...

. He spent two years with the Lions and in his second season finally made his debut, against

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

at the

MCG The Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG), also known locally as "The 'G", is an Australian sports stadium located in Yarra Park, Melbourne, Victoria. Founded and managed by the Melbourne Cricket Club, it is the largest stadium in the Southern Hem ...

in round 18.AFL Tables: Derek Wirth
/ref> Wirth kicked two goals and was one of just two multiple goal-scorers from Brisbane, but lost his place in the side following a 95-point loss. It was the only AFL game he would play, despite also spending a year at

Geelong Geelong ( ) (Wathawurrung: ''Djilang''/''Djalang'') is a port city in the southeastern Australian state of Victoria, located at the eastern end of Corio Bay (the smaller western portion of Port Phillip Bay) and the left bank of Barwon River, ...

, who had picked him up in the rookie draft. In 2000 he was a member of the Redland team which competed in their inaugural Queensland State League season. He went on to make over 100 appearances with the club and served as captain from 2003 to 2005.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wirth, Derek 1978 births Australian rules footballers from Queensland Brisbane Lions players Mount Gravatt Football Club players Redland Football Club players Living people