Fergus Watts (born 21 September 1985) is a former professional

Australian rules footballer 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 ...

who played for the

Adelaide Football Club The Adelaide Crows (officially the Adelaide Football Club) are a professional Australian rules football team based in Adelaide, South Australia. Founded in 1990. The Crows has fielded a men's team in the Australian Football League (AFL) since ...

and the

St Kilda Football Club The St Kilda Football Club, nicknamed the Saints, is a professional Australian rules football club based in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, Victoria. The club plays in the Australian Football League (AFL), the sport's premier league. The club ...

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). Watts was a

forward line In the sport of Australian rules football, each of the eighteen players in a team is assigned to a particular named position on the field of play. These positions describe both the player's main role and by implication their location on the gro ...

player. He later went on to form

Bastion Collective Bastion is a global marketing and advisory company headquartered in the Melbourne, Australia suburb of Cremorne, Victoria. It is reportedly the largest independent marketing and communications group in Australia, and was founded in 2009 by former ...

, reportedly the largest independent marketing agency in Australia. Watts serves as the company's executive chairman.

Playing career

Originally from England, Watts was educated at

Wesley College, Melbourne , motto_translation = Dare To Be Wise , slogan = A ''True'' Education (2010 – Present) , established = 18 January 1866 , type = Independent, day & boarding , gender ...

and was a 1st round draft selection (14th overall) for the

Adelaide Crows The Adelaide Crows (officially the Adelaide Football Club) are a professional Australian rules football team based in Adelaide, South Australia. Founded in 1990. The Crows has fielded a men's team in the Australian Football League (AFL) sinc ...

at the 2003 AFL Draft. Watts made his senior AFL debut for Adelaide in Round 17

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 6 ...

, against the

Western Bulldogs The Western Bulldogs are a professional Australian rules football team that competes in the Australian Football League (AFL), the sport's premier competition. Founded in 1877 as the Footscray Football Club, and based in West Footscray in the o ...

AAMI Stadium Football Park, known commercially as AAMI Stadium, was an Australian rules football stadium located in West Lakes, a western suburb of Adelaide, the state capital of South Australia, Australia. It was built in 1973 by the South Australian Nat ...

. Watts played five games in 2004, kicking two goals, and a good future for Watts seemed assured. However, Watts was unable to break into Adelaide's side throughout the

2005 AFL season The 2005 AFL season was the 109th season of the Australian Football League (AFL), the highest level senior Australian rules football competition in Australia, which was known as the Victorian Football League until 1989. The season featured sixt ...

, instead playing with the Crows's South Australian National Football League (SANFL) affiliate

Woodville-West Torrens Football Club Woodville-West Torrens Football Club is an Australian rules football club playing in the South Australian National Football League (SANFL). It was formed in 1990 from an amalgamation of the neighbouring Woodville and West Torrens football clu ...

, for whom he kicked 10 goals in the 2005 SANFL semi-final. Watts requested to be traded to St Kilda at the end of the 2005 season, citing limited playing opportunities at Adelaide. Watts's father Jim Watts was the then

CEO A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especially ...

of St Kilda, later leaving the club in June 2006. A deal was made with Adelaide, in which St Kilda traded their first round selection (number 17 overall) at the

2005 AFL Draft The 2005 AFL draft was the 2005 event of the AFL draft, the annual draft of players by Australian rules football teams that participate in the main competition of that sport, the Australian Football League. The 2005 draft consisted of a pre-seas ...

in return for Watts. Watts made his debut for St Kilda in the

2006 AFL season The 2006 AFL season was the 110th season of the Australian Football League (AFL), the highest level senior Australian rules football competition in Australia, which was known as the Victorian Football League until 1989. The season featured si ...

opener against West Coast, where he kicked one goal. Dropped to St Kilda's

Victorian Football League The Victorian Football League (VFL) is an Australian rules football league in Australia serving as one of the second-tier regional semi-professional competitions which sit underneath the fully professional Australian Football League (AFL). It ...

(VFL) affiliate

Casey Scorpions The Casey Football Club, nicknamed the "Demons" and formerly the "Scorpions", is an Australian rules football club based in Cranbourne East, Victoria. The club, which was known until 2005 as the Springvale Football Club and the Casey Scorpions ( ...

, Watts broke his ankle two weeks later. His recovery was prolonged, punctuated by five surgeries on his leg and ankle and a struggle with osteitis pubis. Although returning to the VFL in the latter half of

2007 File:2007 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Steve Jobs unveils Apple's first iPhone; TAM Airlines Flight 3054 overruns a runway and crashes into a gas station, killing almost 200 people; Former Pakistani Prime Minister of Pakistan, Pr ...

, Watts was unable to break back into the AFL and at the end of the season he was delisted by St Kilda.

Business career

In 2009, after his football career ended, the 23 year Watts founded advertising agency Bastion Group. He had been working in an advertising agency, and then decided to form his own company. In October 2015, the company changed its name to Bastion Collective. As of 2018, it was reportedly the largest independent marketing and communications group in Australia.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Watts, Fergus 1985 births Living people Adelaide Football Club players St Kilda Football Club players Sandringham Dragons players Woodville-West Torrens Football Club players Casey Demons players VFL/AFL players born in England People educated at Wesley College (Victoria) Australian rules footballers from Victoria (state)