Gary Ablett Jr. (born 14 May 1984) is a former professional
Australian rules footballer who played for the
Geelong Football Club and
Gold Coast Suns in the
Australian Football League (AFL). The eldest son of
Australian Football Hall of Fame member and former Hawthorn and Geelong player
Gary Ablett Sr., Ablett was drafted to Geelong under the
father–son rule
The father–son rule is a rule that allows clubs preferential recruiting access to the sons of players who have made a major past contribution to the club in Australian rules football, most notably in the Australian Football League.
The rule ...
in the
2001 national draft and has since become recognised as one of the all-time great
midfielder
A midfielder is an outfield position in association football.
Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As central midfielders often go across boundarie ...
s. Ablett is a dual
premiership player, dual
Brownlow Medal
The Charles Brownlow Trophy, better known as the Brownlow Medal (and informally as "Charlie"), is awarded to the "best and fairest" player in the Australian Football League (AFL) during the home-and-away season, as determined by votes cast by t ...
list, five-time
Leigh Matthews Trophy
The Leigh Matthews Trophy is an annual award given by the AFL Players Association to the Most Valuable Player in the Australian Football League. It is named in honour of Leigh Matthews, who won the first MVP award in 1982, when the league was st ...
winner, three-time
AFLCA champion player of the year award winner and eight-time
All-Australian
The All-Australian team is an all-star team of Australian rules footballers, selected by a panel at the end of each season. It represents a complete team, including an interchange bench, of the best-performed players during the season, led b ...
.
During his first stint at Geelong, Ablett won two premierships, two
Carji Greeves Medals, a
Geelong leading goalkicker award and the
2009 Brownlow Medal
The 2009 Brownlow Medal was the 82nd year the award was presented to the player adjudged the fairest and best player during the Australian Football League (AFL) home and away season. Gary Ablett of the Geelong Football Club won the medal by poll ...
. He is also a life member of the club and has been inducted into the club's Hall of Fame. At Gold Coast, Ablett was the club's inaugural
captain, holding the role for the club's first six seasons, and won four
Gold Coast Suns Club Champion awards (including the first three in the club's history), two
Gold Coast leading goalkicker awards and the
2013 Brownlow Medal, the first Brownlow Medal in the club's history. Between 2014 and 2018, Ablett suffered a number of setbacks through injury; despite this, Ablett
played 357 games, the thirteenth-most in VFL/AFL history at the time.
Early life
Gary Ablett Jr. was born to
Gary and Sue Ablett in the country town of Modewarre, outside the regional centre of
Geelong, Victoria.
[Baum, G]
"Ablett the younger makes his own mark"
''The Age'', 18 September 2004. Retrieved 11 March 2009 As the eldest boy among four siblings, Ablett's childhood coincided with the peak of his father's footballing career. Along with his brother
Nathan, Ablett would regularly attend his father's training sessions and weekly games.
Geelong players regarded them as "barefooted pests in the rooms", and would often engage in kick-to-kick sessions with both of the boys.
He attended
Christian College Geelong during his schooling years.
Ablett played junior football with the
Modewarre Football Club until he was chosen to play for the
Geelong Falcons
The Geelong Falcons is a youth Australian rules football representative club in the NAB League, the Victorian statewide under-18s competition, Victoria, Australia.
The club takes in talented junior players from the Geelong, Colac and Warrnambo ...
in the under–18
TAC Cup
The NAB League Boys (also referred to as simply the NAB League and formerly known as the TAC Cup) is an under-19 Australian rules football representative competition held in Australia. It is based on geographic regions throughout country Vict ...
competition for the 2001 season.
Ablett's selection was met with controversy, as some families of other prospective junior players felt Ablett was chosen on the basis of his famous family heritage rather than footballing merit.
However, the Falcons' football manager
Mick Turner
Mick Turner (born 1960) is an Australian musician and artist. He is the founding mainstay guitarist for Dirty Three and has had art exhibitions around Australia and internationally. Previously he was a member of the Sick Things, the Moodists ( ...
repeatedly dismissed speculation.
Nonetheless, as the son of a popular and famous football player from Geelong, Ablett attracted a large following even at junior level. Although he was still a
bottom-aged player, Ablett received mid-year State honours for Victoria Country during the 2001 National Championships. After spending one year in the TAC Cup, Ablett entered his name into the
2001 AFL draft
The 2001 AFL draft consisted of a state draft, a body draft, a pre-season draft and a trade period. The AFL draft is the annual draft of players by Australian rules football teams that participate in the main competition of that sport, the Austra ...
at the conclusion of the 2001 season.
AFL career
First stint at Geelong (2002–2010)
2002–2006: Early years
Ablett was drafted by with their fifth selection, and was the fortieth overall draft pick in the
2001 AFL draft
The 2001 AFL draft consisted of a state draft, a body draft, a pre-season draft and a trade period. The AFL draft is the annual draft of players by Australian rules football teams that participate in the main competition of that sport, the Austra ...
under the
father–son rule
The father–son rule is a rule that allows clubs preferential recruiting access to the sons of players who have made a major past contribution to the club in Australian rules football, most notably in the Australian Football League.
The rule ...
. Ablett made his senior debut for the club in the opening round of the
2002 AFL season
The 2002 AFL season was the 106th 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 ...
, where he gathered 8 disposals and took 4 marks. Ablett made twelve senior appearances in total during the season, before spending the latter half of the year with the reserves team.
Playing as a
small forward
The small forward (SF), also known as the three or swingman, is one of the five positions in a regulation basketball game. Small forwards are typically shorter, quicker, and leaner than power forwards and centers but taller, larger, and stronger ...
, he helped the club's reserves team win the 2002 VFL premiership against
Port Melbourne
Port Melbourne is an inner-city List of Melbourne suburbs, suburb in Melbourne, Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia, south-west of Melbourne's Melbourne central business district, Central Business District, located within the Cities of ...
. After achieving premiership success with the reserves team in the previous year, Ablett established his position in the senior side the following season. Ablett alternated as a
small forward
The small forward (SF), also known as the three or swingman, is one of the five positions in a regulation basketball game. Small forwards are typically shorter, quicker, and leaner than power forwards and centers but taller, larger, and stronger ...
and midfielder,
[Lovett, M, "AFL Season Preview 2004", Australian Football League Publishing, 2004, page 74] scoring 26 goals and appearing in all of Geelong's senior fixtures during the
2003 AFL season
The 2003 AFL season was the 107th 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 six ...
.
In round 2 in a loss against
North Melbourne
North Melbourne is an inner-city suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, north-west of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the City of Melbourne local government area. North Melbourne recorded a population of 14,953 at ...
he received his first Brownlow vote, in a performance in which he registered 22 disposals and a goal. Ablett finished the year ranked first at the club for
tackles
Tackle may refer to:
* In football:
** Tackle (football move), a play in various forms of football
** Tackle (gridiron football position), a position in American football and Canadian football
** Dump tackle, a forceful move in rugby of picking u ...
(77) and
inside 50s (89), as well as second for hard-ball gets (65).
Following another season without participation in the finals series, Ablett and his teammates began their 2004 campaign with an appearance in the
pre-season competition final against . Geelong would qualify for its first finals series in four years, being eliminated in the preliminary final by the . Ablett made 21 appearances in total over the course of the season, and kicked a career-high 35 goals. He once again finished the year ranked first within the club for total tackles (93), and was awarded the club's Best Team and Most Constructive Player award at the end of the season.
The following year, Geelong again qualified for the finals series, progressing through to the semi-finals, before a three-point loss to ended their season. Ablett's consistency, reflected with his appearance in all senior games during the year and team-high 86 tackles, was rewarded with a third-place finishing in the
Carji Greeves Medal as the club's best and fairest player. After consecutive appearances in the finals series, Ablett and Geelong were expected to challenge for the premiership once again in 2006. The club's 2006 campaign began successfully when they captured the pre-season
NAB Cup
In the Australian Football League (AFL), previously the Victorian Football League (VFL), the pre-season competition, known during its history by a variety of sponsored names and most recently as the NAB Cup, was an annual Australian rules foot ...
, winning their first pre-season premiership since 1961. During the season, Ablett kicked a career-high six goals against in round twelve, before making his 100th senior appearance for the club in round 22 against . However, the Cats only managed to win 10 games throughout the season and did not qualify for the finals series. Ablett finished the season with 35 goals to win the club's leading goalkicker award and once again place third in the Carji Greeves Medal.
2007–2008: First premiership and team success
![Gary Ablett Jr](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/15/Gary_Ablett_Jr._2007_%28cropped%29.jpg)
After playing his first five seasons as a small forward who occasionally pushed up the ground, Ablett made a permanent move to the midfield in
2007. He helped the Cats finish the home-and-away season first on the ladder to win the
McClelland Trophy
The McClelland Trophy is an Australian rules football trophy which has been awarded each year since 1951 by the Australian Football League (known prior to 1990 as the Victorian Football League) to the best-performing club in the home-and-away sea ...
and qualify for the finals series. Geelong progressed through to the
2007 AFL Grand Final
The 2007 AFL Grand Final was an Australian rules football game contested between the Geelong Football Club and the Port Adelaide Football Club, held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in Melbourne on 29 September 2007. It was the 111th annual G ...
, in which they defeated by a record 119 points to win their first premiership since 1963. Ablett recorded 19 disposals, one goal, and an equal game-high eight tackles in the grand final victory. Ablett played in all 25 games for the year and gained a number of individual accolades. After winning his first premiership, he also achieved
All-Australian
The All-Australian team is an all-star team of Australian rules footballers, selected by a panel at the end of each season. It represents a complete team, including an interchange bench, of the best-performed players during the season, led b ...
honours for the first time in his career. Despite being the favourite to win the
2007 Brownlow Medal, he finished equal-sixth with 20 votes behind teammate
Jimmy Bartel on 29 votes. However, his breakthrough season was recognised by the
AFL Players Association
The AFL Players Association (AFL PA, also simply known as AFL Players) is the representative body for all current and past professional Australian Football League (AFL) and AFL Women's (AFLW) players.
The AFL PA promotes and protects its membe ...
as they awarded him the
Leigh Matthews Trophy
The Leigh Matthews Trophy is an annual award given by the AFL Players Association to the Most Valuable Player in the Australian Football League. It is named in honour of Leigh Matthews, who won the first MVP award in 1982, when the league was st ...
as the league's most valuable player. Ablett also became the youngest ever recipient of the AFL Coaches' Association (AFLCA) 'Champion Player of the Year' Award and the Australian Football Media Association (AFMA) 'Player of the Year' Award. Ablett also claimed two of the major media awards; the
''Herald Sun'' Player of the Year and ''
The Age
''The Age'' is a daily newspaper in Melbourne, Australia, that has been published since 1854. Owned and published by Nine Entertainment, ''The Age'' primarily serves Victoria, but copies also sell in Tasmania, the Australian Capital Territory ...
'' Player of the Year awards. Ablett completed his sweep of individual awards when he was awarded the Carji Greeves Medal as Geelong's best and fairest player for the first time in his career.
[Witham, J]
"Ablett tops off a grand year for Geelong"
Australian Football League & BigPond Network, 4 October 2007. Retrieved 29 September 2008 Ablett's breakthrough season was highlighted by his increased output in several major statistical categories: Ablett increased his disposal average to 26.7 (from 16.9 the previous season), kicks per game to 14.3 (from 10.1), and handpasses per game to 12.4 (from 6.8). He ranked first at the club and second within the league for total disposals (667) and total kicks (358), and also second for total handballs (309).
Ablett continued to establish his position as one of the premier players of the competition during the
2008 AFL season
The 2008 AFL season was the 112th 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 ...
. He helped the Cats achieve a record-equalling 21-win season and secure the McClelland Trophy for the second successive year. His standout season was recognised early on when he was selected to play for the
Victorian state team in the
AFL Hall of Fame Tribute Match
The AFL Hall of Fame Tribute Match was a one-off all-star game between two representative sides organised by the Australian Football League to celebrate the History of Australian rules football, 150th anniversary of Australian rules football. Th ...
. However, a groin injury prevented him from participating in the
all-star event. Having qualified for the finals series in the first position on the ladder, Geelong progressed through to the grand final for the second successive year; despite losing only one game during the home-and-away season, Geelong failed to capture the premiership as they were defeated by in the grand final. Ablett's performance in the final, during which he recorded a game-high 34 possessions, five tackles, eight inside 50s, and kicked an equal-team-high two goals, was recognised as he placed second in
Norm Smith Medal
The Norm Smith Medal is an Australian rules football award presented annually to the player adjudged the best on ground in the Grand Final of the Australian Football League (AFL). Prior to 1990 the competition was known as the Victorian Football ...
voting for best afield in the grand final. Ablett featured in 21 games for the season and was awarded All-Australian honours for the second successive year. Despite entering the
2008 Brownlow Medal
The 2008 Brownlow Medal was the 81st year the award was presented to the player adjudged the fairest and best player during the Australian Football League (AFL) home and away season. Adam Cooney of the Western Bulldogs won the medal by polling ...
count as the favourite once again, Ablett tallied 22 votes to finish third behind
Adam Cooney. However, Ablett's performances throughout the year were further recognised when he was awarded the AFLPA
Leigh Matthews Trophy
The Leigh Matthews Trophy is an annual award given by the AFL Players Association to the Most Valuable Player in the Australian Football League. It is named in honour of Leigh Matthews, who won the first MVP award in 1982, when the league was st ...
and AFL Coaches' Association 'Champion Player of the Year' awards for the second consecutive season. After increasing his disposal average once again to 28.9 possessions per game, Ablett finished runner-up for the Carji Greeves Medal to teammate
Joel Corey. His 606 disposals ranked ninth in the league, while his 318 handpasses throughout the season ranked him fourth within the competition. Geelong coach
Mark Thompson described Ablett's 2008 season as "amazing" and implied he was unsure if Ablett could improve any more.
[Robinson, M]
"Geelong coach Mark Thompson commits to staying at Cats"
''The Herald Sun'', 11 March 2009. Retrieved 11 March 2009 Thompson cited that he believed Ablett to be "at the top of his game".
2009–2010: First Brownlow Medal and second premiership
![Geelong Cats AFL Premiers 2009 (cropped)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/57/Geelong_Cats_AFL_Premiers_2009_%28cropped%29.jpg)
Ablett was appointed to the club's seven-man leadership group and inducted into the Geelong Football Club Hall of Fame prior to the
2009 AFL season
The 2009 AFL season was the 113th 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 sixte ...
.
[Cresswell, J]
"Five welcomed into Cats hall of fame"
''The Geelong Advertiser'', 19 March 2009. Retrieved 23 March 2009 Following the
2008 AFL Grand Final
The 2008 AFL Grand Final was an Australian rules football match contested between the Geelong Football Club and the Hawthorn Football Club, held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in Melbourne on 27 September 2008. It was the 112th annual grand ...
loss, Thompson suggested that Ablett would become a more prominent player in the forward line to provide the team with another goal-scoring option.
Ablett and his teammates began their 2009 campaign by winning the pre-season
NAB Cup
In the Australian Football League (AFL), previously the Victorian Football League (VFL), the pre-season competition, known during its history by a variety of sponsored names and most recently as the NAB Cup, was an annual Australian rules foot ...
for the second time in four years. Ablett recorded 35 disposals and kicked three goals to place second for the
Michael Tuck Medal as the player judged best afield in the final. In round four, Ablett made his 150th senior appearance for the club against Adelaide and gained life membership with Geelong in the process. Ablett went on to tie
Nathan Buckley
Nathan Charles Buckley (born 26 July 1972) is a former professional Australian rules football coach, player and commentator.
He is listed by journalist Mike Sheahan as one of the top 50 players of all time. Buckley won the inaugural Rising S ...
's then-record of 46 disposals in a game while also setting a new record for most handpasses in a game (33). Ablett's proficiency in finding the football saw him reach 40 or more disposals in a game a record six times throughout the season, and 30 or more disposals fifteen times. However, Ablett's critics accused him of playing selfishly in pursuit of individual honours ahead of team values.
[Auciello, M]
"Geelong Cats defend Gary Ablett after Tim Watson criticism"
''The Geelong Advertiser'', 11 August 2009. Retrieved 28 January 2010 Commentators such as
Tim Watson
Timothy Michael Watson (born 13 July 1961) is a former Australian rules footballer who played for the Essendon Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL). After retiring from the game, he has continued working in the Australian footb ...
claimed that Ablett had "become obsessed with the whole idea of going out there and being the best player"
in order to win the Brownlow Medal. Despite this, Ablett helped Geelong finish the home-and-away campaign with an 18–4 win–loss record to finish second on the ladder and qualify for the finals series. After wins against the Western Bulldogs and Collingwood, Geelong progressed through to the Grand Final for the third successive season. During the final, Ablett gathered 25 disposals, six tackles, five inside-50s, and kicked one goal to help the Cats defeat St Kilda by 12 points and capture the premiership for the second time in three years.
Ablett's performances throughout the season were recognised at the 2009
AFL Players Association awards, where he was awarded his third consecutive Leigh Matthews Trophy as the AFL Player's Association Most Valuable Player. Ablett's victory saw him become the first player in history to win the award three times.
["Ablett voted MVP for third consecutive year"](_blank)
Australian Football League & BigPond Network, 7 September 2009. Retrieved 8 September 2009 Ablett also won his third consecutive AFL Coaches' Association 'Champion Player of the Year' Award and was further acknowledged for his record-breaking season when awarded the
2009 Brownlow Medal
The 2009 Brownlow Medal was the 82nd year the award was presented to the player adjudged the fairest and best player during the Australian Football League (AFL) home and away season. Gary Ablett of the Geelong Football Club won the medal by poll ...
. Ablett polled 30 votes to win the award despite missing the most games (3) by any Brownlow winner since the 22-round season was introduced in 1994. Ablett's role in Geelong's premiership-winning campaign was further recognised at the conclusion of the season, when he was co-awarded his second Carji Greeves Medal alongside
Corey Enright
Corey Enright (born 14 September 1981) is a former professional Australian rules footballer who played for the Geelong Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL). He has played the second-most games for . Enright is currently def ...
. Ablett averaged a career-high and league-leading 33.8 possessions per game throughout the season. Ablett also led the league in total handpasses (445), handpasses per game (20.2) and contested possessions (256). His 744 total disposals during the season also ranked second within the league, while his 494 uncontested possessions ranked fourth.
After the 2009 season, and indeed at many points during the season, speculation continued to mount that Ablett would leave Geelong at the end of 2010 and join the AFL's newest team, . Despite the rumours, Ablett continued his own individual success, recording career-high totals in disposals (756), marks (106) and goals (44). Ablett would serve as the runner-up for several awards at the end of the home-and-away season, including the Carji Greeves Medal and Brownlow Medal. On 29 September, it was announced that Ablett would be joining Gold Coast in what was understood to be a multimillion-dollar deal.
Gold Coast (2011–2017)
2011–2015: Second Brownlow Medal and injury struggles
![9 Gary Ablett 2 (cropped)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/79/9_Gary_Ablett_2_%28cropped%29.png)
On 29 September 2010, Ablett signed a five-year contract valued at $9 million with the
Gold Coast Football Club
The Gold Coast Suns is a professional Australian rules football club that competes in the Australian Football League (AFL). The club is based on Queensland's Gold Coast in the suburb of Carrara.
The club has been playing in the AFL since the ...
, a side entering the AFL for the first time in
2011. On 19 January 2011, after much speculation, Ablett was named the inaugural captain of the Suns. In the club's inaugural season, Gold Coast finished last on the ladder with a 3–19 win–loss record, meaning that Ablett missed out on playing in a final for the first time in five years; he still had a great individual season, finishing with career-highs in tackles (119) and clearances (133) and being named captain in the
2011 All-Australian team
The 2011 All-Australian team represents the best performed Australian Football League (AFL) players during the 2011 season. The team was announced on 19 September as a complete Australian rules football team of 22 players. The team is honorary an ...
. In 2012, Ablett continued his individual success, winning his fourth Leigh Matthews Trophy and finishing the season with a career-high in kicks (389). In 2013, Ablett had a tremendous season, leading the league in average disposals (31.2) and taking home his second consecutive (and fifth overall) Leigh Matthews Trophy. He also won his second Brownlow Medal, becoming the first Gold Coast player to win the award and the 14th player in VFL/AFL history to win it twice. Ablett became the fifth player to win Brownlow Medals at different clubs, joining
Ian Stewart,
Peter Moore,
Greg Williams and
Chris Judd
Christopher Dylan Judd (born 8 September 1983) is a former professional Australian rules footballer and captain of both the West Coast Eagles and Carlton Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL).
Widely regarded as one of the bes ...
. Ablett had a career-best season in 2014, averaging 32 possessions and kicking 24 goals before suffering a season-ending shoulder injury in the Sun's win against Collingwood in round 16.
Despite playing only 15 games, he finished equal-third in the Brownlow Medal with 22 votes.
Ablett's shoulder injury affected his 2015 preseason, but he took the field in the Suns' opening game against . He scored two goals and had 19 disposals in the loss, then had 23 disposals and kicked one goal in the round 2 loss to St Kilda, but laid only one tackle across the two games.
The shoulder was still causing problems, and the Suns' medical staff sidelined him indefinitely before the round 3 clash with Geelong. Dr
Peter Larkins stated four weeks later that the status of Ablett's injury meant that he could "miss the majority of the season". By the end of May, Ablett began to draw criticism from media personalities such as
Garry Lyon
Garry Peter Lyon (born 13 September 1967) is a former professional Australian rules football player and was captain of the Melbourne Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL). Since his retirement from football, he has been mainly ...
and
Jonathan Brown for his supposed lack of leadership in the struggling Suns side. On top of their numerous losses, some Suns players were displaying poor discipline and Lyon considered Ablett was not doing enough to prevent off-field indiscretions. When he refused to discuss the issues with Lyon on Triple M, Lyon described Ablett as "immature". The following Monday on Fox Footy's On The Couch program, Jonathan Brown lashed Ablett for not taking the field, claiming he was cleared to play by Suns medicos and he should "play through the pain". Ablett addressed these criticisms with a press conference on June 3 saying it was not just an issue of pain and to return early would be "selfish". On ''
AFL 360
''AFL 360'' is an Australian television talk show that covers current issues in the Australian Football League (AFL). It airs on Fox Footy at Mondays to Wednesdays during the AFL season. It is hosted by Gerard Whateley and Mark Robinson, and ...
'', Ablett's former coach Mark Thompson defended his decision not to play, stating that Ablett's high standards meant that he would not want to take the field if he could not give 100% effort. Ablett eventually returned for the round 14 game against ; although starting quietly, he was instrumental in the win, gaining 31 disposals and kicking three goals. He continued to perform well in the next two games, racking up 30 disposals in each and kicking four goals,
however he was struck down with a season-ending injury in round 17, suffering a medial ligament tear to the left knee in the first quarter of the Suns' loss to . The recovery time required meant that he did not play again in the 2015 season.
2016–2017: Further injury struggles and trade requests
![Gary Ablett 2017](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0d/Gary_Ablett_2017.2.jpg)
Ablett played 14 games for Gold Coast in 2016, averaging 27 disposals and six tackles per game.
However, he suffered another season-ending shoulder injury during the round 16 win over Brisbane. He polled six votes in the 2016 Brownlow Medal, taking him to a total of 220 career votes; the equal-highest number in history (alongside Hawthorn's
Sam Mitchell). In addition he has now received votes in 103 games, placing him second on the list of total games in which votes were awarded to a single player. During the 2016 trade period, Ablett requested a trade back to Geelong for "family reasons." Ablett later stepped down as Suns' captain, stating he was unsure if he would play on after the 2017 season.
In the early rounds of the 2017 season, speculation about his commitment to the Suns escalated after the team lost the first two matches. He was criticised by experts such as
Matthew Lloyd
Matthew James Lloyd (born 16 April 1978) is a former professional Australian rules footballer, who played for the Essendon Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL).
A highly decorated full-forward, Lloyd's AFL's honours include ...
for his poor performance in the Suns' 102-point loss to , who said Ablett needed to "suck it up" as he was no longer playing in the midfield and was now in forced to play in a position he did not enjoy. Following the 2017 AFL season, Ablett won his fourth
Gold Coast Suns Club Champion award, despite playing only 14 games. He polled 14 votes in the 2017 Brownlow Medal count, taking him to outright second all-time career votes behind
Gary Dempsey. By polling 3 votes in 3 rounds of the 2017 season, he became the first player to receive the maximum 3 votes in 50 matches.
On 26 September 2017, Gold Coast announced that Ablett had requested a trade back to Geelong. It was reported that Ablett was seeking a return home for "family reasons", and if no trade was forthcoming, he would quit football despite being contracted to play at Gold Coast until the end of 2018.
Second stint at Geelong (2018–2020)
![Gary Ablett 2018](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c5/Gary_Ablett_2018.3.jpg)
In October 2017, Ablett was traded back to Geelong. His 2018 preseason was impacted by injury followed by a significant injury in the Round 3 loss to
West Coast. Upon his return, Ablett drew criticism from AFL media figures such as
Wayne Carey
Wayne Francis Carey (born 27 May 1971) is a former Australian rules footballer who played with the North Melbourne Football Club and Adelaide Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL).
A dual-premiership captain at North Melbou ...
, who believed that Ablett should not be played in the Cats' midfield. Following his return from injury, Ablett's form quickly improved, with a best on ground performance in the win over
North Melbourne
North Melbourne is an inner-city suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, north-west of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the City of Melbourne local government area. North Melbourne recorded a population of 14,953 at ...
in Round 12 equalling
Sam Mitchell's record of 121 games with 30 or more possessions.
After a strong start to the 2019 season, Ablett was offered a one-match suspension, which would have been the first of his career, after striking Essendon midfielder
Dylan Shiel
Dylan Anthony Shiel (born 9 March 1993) is a Australian rules footballer playing for the Essendon Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL). He was one of 12 underage recruits that GWS had access to as part of their list conces ...
with a forearm to the head in the Cats' round 7 win; the club chose to appeal the suspension at the AFL Tribunal and was ultimately successful, maintaining Ablett's clean record. An almost identical incident occurred the following week involving North Melbourne utility
Sam Wright, but Ablett was not penalised. A third incident followed a fortnight later, this time a punch to the jaw of Gold Coast midfielder
Anthony Miles; he was again offered a one-match suspension, which the club chose to accept, meaning that Ablett was suspended for the first time in his career after 331 games to that point. After maintaining his good form upon his return, his best game for the year came in a best-on-ground performance round 23 against , when he accumulated 28 disposals and kicked three goals. At the end of the season, Ablett signed a one-year deal with Geelong, extending his AFL career into a nineteenth season, and announced that it would be his last.
Ablett played his 350th game in round 5 of the 2020 season against his former club, Gold Coast, in what was also
Joel Selwood
Joel Anthony Selwood (born 26 May 1988) is a former Australian rules footballer who played for the Geelong Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL). He was a quadruple premiership player, a six-time All-Australian, and a three-ti ...
's 300th game; he kicked a goal in the final quarter among 14 disposals. He later left the Cats' Perth hub after round 7 to be with his wife and son after earlier revealing that his son had been diagnosed with a rare degenerative disease.
After finding out that he would not be allowed to return to play until the final home-and-away round due to Queensland travel restrictions, Ablett joined two players in the AFL's Gold Coast quarantine hub in September, before returning in Geelong's win against Sydney in round 18. He was among the best afield in Geelong's preliminary final win against the Brisbane Lions at
the Gabba
The Brisbane Cricket Ground, commonly known as the Gabba, is a major sports stadium in Brisbane, the capital of Queensland, Australia. The nickname Gabba derives from the suburb of Woolloongabba, in which it is located. Over the years, the Ga ...
, kicking two third-quarter goals among 14 disposals. Ablett played his final game in Geelong's 31-point loss to in the
2020 AFL Grand Final the following week; he injured his left shoulder in the opening minutes of the game but continued to play, with scans later revealing that he had played out the rest of the match with a broken shoulder.
Personal life
Ablett is a member of what has been called the "Ablett dynasty", a group of footballers all descended from Alf and Colleen Ablett. Ablett's father,
Gary Ablett Sr., and two of his uncles,
Kevin
Kevin () is the anglicized form of the Irish masculine given name (; mga, Caoimhghín ; sga, Cóemgein ; Latinized as ). It is composed of "dear; noble"; Old Irish and ("birth"; Old Irish ).
The variant '' Kevan'' is anglicized from , a ...
and
Geoff Ablett, played senior VFL football from the 1970s to the 1990s. His brother
Nathan Ablett
Nathan Ablett (born 13 December 1985) is a former Australian rules footballer who played for Gold Coast and Geelong in the Australian Football League (AFL).
A key forward, tall and weighing , Nathan is the youngest son of Gary Ablett Sr and ...
and cousin,
Luke Ablett both played senior football in the 2000s and 2010s. In May 2012, it was noted that, all together, Ablett's family had played a total of 900 matches, with his immediate family (Ablett, his father, and his brother) having a combined total of 500 matches. Ablett's aunt, Fay Ablett, married
Michael Tuck
Michael Tuck (born 24 June 1953) is a seven-time premiership-winning player, Australian rules footballer with the Hawthorn Football Club in the Victorian Football League (VFL) / Australian Football League (AFL).
His 426 career games was a VFL/ ...
, who was up until the 2016 AFL premiership season the AFL's all-time games record holder, with whom she had two sons who also played league football:
Shane
Shane may refer to:
People
* Shane (actress) (born 1969), American pornographic actress
* Shane (New Zealand singer) (born 1946)
* iamnotshane (born 1995), formerly known as Shane, American singer
* Shane (name)
Shane is mainly a masculine g ...
and
Travis Tuck. Ablett's great-uncle,
Len Ablett, played in 's 1943 premiership side.
[Lyon, Karen (2007)]
The Ablett effect
– ''The Sydney Morning Herald
''The Sydney Morning Herald'' (''SMH'') is a daily compact newspaper published in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, and owned by Nine. Founded in 1831 as the ''Sydney Herald'', the ''Herald'' is the oldest continuously published newspaper ...
''. Published 24 April 2007. Retrieved 9 July 2012.
Ablett dated
Nine Network presenter Lauren Phillips for seven years, having first started dating after the 2002 grand final of the
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 ...
.
However, in early January 2010 it was confirmed the pair had ended their relationship. Ablett then dated Canadian former model Abby Boulbol. In August 2010, Lauren Phillips confirmed that she and Ablett were back together; however, in September 2012, their relationship ended after nine years together. At the 2013 Brownlow medal ceremony, Ablett was accompanied by girlfriend Jordan Papalia. After a disappointing season in 2015 where injury kept him out of all but six games, Ablett announced his engagement to Papalia in July. On 1 January 2016, Ablett and Papalia were married in
Coldstream, Victoria
Coldstream is a locality and township within Greater Melbourne beyond the Melbourne metropolitan area Urban Growth Boundary, 36 km north-east from Melbourne's central business district, located within the Shire of Yarra Ranges local gove ...
. The pair gave birth to their son Levi in 2019. It was revealed in an interview in 2020 that Levi has “rare and degenerative disease”. This caused Ablett to miss a significant part of the 2020 home and away season as the hub life nature of the Covid-interrupted season would not allow him to regularly be with his family.
Ablett is a committed
Christian. During Ablett's longing to seek a trade back to
Geelong, his eldest sister Natasha died in October 2017 during the trade period.
Other work
In 2009, Ablett appeared alongside other AFL footballers in an AFL television advertisement titled "AFL: In a League of its Own".
The ad featured the players playing Australian rules football at famous sporting venues around the world, and in the middle of other sports being played, including
basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...
,
soccer and
American football
American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team wi ...
.
Ablett is featured in a scene evading cars in an international off-road
rally driving event, before kicking the ball to
Fremantle player
Matthew Pavlich
Matthew Pavlich (born 31 December 1981) is a former professional Australian rules footballer who played for the Fremantle Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL).
A versatile player, Pavlich is widely regarded as one of the premi ...
.
The ad premiered on television on 22 March 2009.
Statistics
, -
,
2002 , , , , 29
, 12 , , 10 , , 3 , , 37 , , 63 , , 100 , , 13 , , 25 , , 0.8 , , 0.3 , , 3.1 , , 5.3 , , 8.3 , , 1.1 , , 2.1 , , 0
, -
,
2003 , , , , 29
, 22 , , 26 , , 20 , , 189 , , 138 , , 327 , , 61 , , 77 , , 1.2 , , 0.9 , , 8.6 , , 6.3 , , 14.9 , , 2.8 , , 3.5 , , 3
, -
,
2004 , , , , 29
, 21 , , 35 , , 25 , , 178 , , 123 , , 301 , , 46 , , 93 , , 1.7 , , 1.2 , , 8.5 , , 5.9 , , 14.3 , , 2.2 , , 4.4 , , 3
, -
,
2005 , , , , 29
, 24 , , 29 , , 26 , , 257 , , 178 , , 435 , , 65 , , 86 , , 1.2 , , 1.1 , , 10.7 , , 7.4 , , 18.1 , , 2.7 , , 3.6 , , 3
, -
,
2006 , , , , 29
, 21 , , 35 , , 28 , , 212 , , 142 , , 354 , , 74 , , 65 , , 1.7 , , 1.3 , , 10.1 , , 6.8 , , 16.9 , , 3.5 , , 3.1 , , 5
, -
, bgcolor=F0E68C ,
2007# , , , , 29
, 25 , , 30 , , 26 , , 358 , , 309 , , 667 , , 98 , , 86 , , 1.2 , , 1.0 , , 14.3 , , 12.4 , , 26.7 , , 3.9 , , 3.4 , , 20
, -
,
2008
File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...
, , , , 29
, 21 , , 26 , , 24 , , 288 , , 318 , , 606 , , 100 , , 95 , , 1.2 , , 1.1 , , 13.7 , , 15.1 , , 28.9 , , 4.8 , , 4.5 , , 22
, -
, bgcolor=F0E68C ,
2009# , , , , 29
, 22 , , 27 , , 26 , , 299 , , bgcolor=CAE1FF , 445
† , , 744 , , 93 , , 92 , , 1.2 , , 1.2 , , 13.6 , , bgcolor=CAE1FF , 20.2
† , , bgcolor=CAE1FF , 33.8
† , , 4.2 , , 4.2 , , bgcolor=98FB98 , 30
±
, -
,
2010 , , , , 29
, 24 , , 44 , , 26 , , 338 , , 418 , , 756 , , 106 , , 101 , , 1.8 , , 1.1 , , 14.1 , , 17.4 , , 31.5 , , 4.4 , , 4.2 , , 26
, -
,
2011 , , , , 9
, 20 , , 18 , , 17 , , 304 , , 301 , , 605 , , 45 , , 119 , , 0.9 , , 0.9 , , 15.2 , , 15.1 , , 30.3 , , 2.3 , , 6.0 , , 23
, -
,
2012
File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gat ...
, , , , 9
, 20 , , 26 , , 19 , , 389 , , 286 , , 675 , , 61 , , 110 , , 1.3 , , 1.0 , , 19.5 , , 14.3 , , 33.8 , , 3.1 , , 5.5 , , 24
, -
,
2013
File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fa ...
, , , , 9
, 21 , , 28 , , 23 , , 343 , , 312 , , 655 , , 73 , , 96 , , 1.3 , , 1.1 , , 16.3 , , 14.9 , , bgcolor=CAE1FF , 31.2
† , , 3.5 , , 4.6 , , bgcolor=98FB98 , 28
±
, -
,
2014
File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...
, , , , 9
, 15 , , 24 , , 7 , , 254 , , 227 , , 481 , , 30 , , 91 , , 1.6 , , 0.5 , , 16.9 , , 15.1 , , 32.1 , , 2.0 , , 6.1 , , 22
, -
,
2015 , , , , 9
, 6 , , 10 , , 3 , , 94 , , 43 , , 137 , , 12 , , 28 , , 1.6 , , 0.5 , , 15.6 , , 7.2 , , 22.8 , , 2.0 , , 4.6 , , 5
, -
,
2016
File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the Impeachment of Dilma Rousseff, impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses duri ...
, , , , 9
, 14 , , 10 , , 12 , , 203 , , 175 , , 378 , , 28 , , 85 , , 0.7 , , 0.9 , , 14.5 , , 12.5 , , 27.0 , , 2.0 , , 6.7 , , 6
, -
,
2017
File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a s ...
, , , , 9
, 14 , , 8 , , 11 , , 266 , , 196 , , 462 , , 49 , , 77 , , 0.6 , , 0.8 , , 19.0 , , 14.0 , , 33.0 , , 3.5 , , 5.5 , , 14
, -
,
2018
File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the Unit ...
, , , , 4
, 19 , , 16 , , 15 , , 296 , , 256 , , 552 , , 85 , , 72 , , 0.8 , , 0.8 , , 15.6 , , 13.5 , , 29.1 , , 4.5 , , 3.8 , , 14
, -
,
2019
File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...
, , , , 4
, 24 , , 34 , , 18 , , 293 , , 189 , , 482 , , 89 , , 108 , , 1.4 , , 0.8 , , 12.2 , , 7.9 , , 20.1 , , 3.7 , , 4.5 , , 13
, -
,
2020
2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global social and economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, worldwide lockdowns and the largest economic recession since the Great Depression in t ...
, , , , 4
, 12 , , 9 , , 8 , , 97 , , 82 , , 179 , , 24 , , 27 , , 0.8 , , 0.7 , , 8.1 , , 6.8 , , 14.9 , , 2.0 , , 2.3 , , 1
, - class=sortbottom
! colspan=3 , Career
! 357 !! 445 !! 337 !! 4695 !! 4201 !! 8896 !! 1152 !! 1533 !! 1.2 !! 0.9 !! 13.2 !! 11.8 !! 24.9 !! 3.2 !! 4.3 !! 262
Notes
Honours and achievements
Team
* 2×
AFL premiership player ():
2007,
2009
* 3×
McClelland Trophy
The McClelland Trophy is an Australian rules football trophy which has been awarded each year since 1951 by the Australian Football League (known prior to 1990 as the Victorian Football League) to the best-performing club in the home-and-away sea ...
():
2007,
2008
File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...
,
2019
File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...
Individual
*
Gold Coast captain: 2011–2016
* 2×
Brownlow Medal
The Charles Brownlow Trophy, better known as the Brownlow Medal (and informally as "Charlie"), is awarded to the "best and fairest" player in the Australian Football League (AFL) during the home-and-away season, as determined by votes cast by t ...
:
2009,
2013
File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fa ...
* 5×
Leigh Matthews Trophy
The Leigh Matthews Trophy is an annual award given by the AFL Players Association to the Most Valuable Player in the Australian Football League. It is named in honour of Leigh Matthews, who won the first MVP award in 1982, when the league was st ...
: 2007, 2008, 2009, 2012, 2013
* 3×
AFLCA Champion Player of the Year Award: 2007, 2008, 2009
* 8×
All-Australian team
The All-Australian team is an all-star team of Australian rules footballers, selected by a panel at the end of each season. It represents a complete team, including an interchange bench, of the best-performed players during the season, led b ...
:
2007,
2008
File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...
,
2009,
2010,
2011 (c),
2012
File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gat ...
,
2013
File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fa ...
,
2014
File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...
* 2×
Carji Greeves Medal: 2007, 2009
* 4×
Gold Coast Suns Club Champion: 2011, 2012, 2013, 2017
*
Geelong leading goalkicker: 2006
* 2×
Gold Coast leading goalkicker: 2012, 2013
* 2×
Marcus Ashcroft Medal
The Marcus Ashcroft Medal is awarded to the player judged best on ground in the QClash football match played between Brisbane and Gold Coast.
It is named after former footballer Marcus Ashcroft, who played junior football on the Gold Coast for ...
: 2012 (game 2), 2014 (game 1)
*
Australian Football Media Association Player of the Year: 2007
* 3×
Herald Sun Player of the Year: 2007, 2012, 2013
* 2×
Lou Richards Medal
The Lou Richards Medal is an annual Most Valuable Player award for the Australian Football League, based on votes from the '' Sunday Footy Show'' panel each week.
History
The Lou Richards Medal is named after former Collingwood player, Lou R ...
: 2009, 2013
See also
*
List of Australian rules football families
*
Alf Williamson
Alfred Williamson (6 October 1893 – 11 April 1917) was an Australian rules footballer who played for the Carlton Football Club and Melbourne Football Club in the Victorian Football League (VFL).
Family
He was born in Toongabbie, to Reuben ...
Notes
*
*
*
References
External links
*
Gary Ablett Jr.'s profileat AustralianFootball.com
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ablett, Gary Jr.
1984 births
Living people
Geelong Football Club players
Geelong Football Club Premiership players
Gold Coast Football Club players
Leigh Matthews Trophy winners
All-Australians (AFL)
Carji Greeves Medal winners
Gary II
Brownlow Medal winners
Geelong Falcons players
Australian rules footballers from Geelong
Gold Coast Suns Club Champion winners
Australian Christians
Two-time VFL/AFL Premiership players