Jamie Bennell (born 7 June 1990) is a former professional

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 for the

Melbourne Football Club The Melbourne Football Club, nicknamed the Demons, is a professional Australian rules football club that competes in the Australian Football League (AFL), the sport's elite competition. It is based in Melbourne, Victoria (Australia), Victoria, ...

and the

West Coast Eagles The West Coast Eagles are a professional Australian rules football club based in Perth, Western Australia. The club was founded in 1986 as one of two expansion teams in the Australian Football League (AFL), then known as the Victorian Football ...

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). Originally from

Bunbury, Western Australia Bunbury is a coastal city in the Australian state of Western Australia, approximately south of the state capital, Perth. It is the state's third most populous city after Perth and Mandurah, with a population of approximately 75,000. Located at ...

, he was recruited by Melbourne in the 2008 National draft, and played 57 games for the club before being delisted at the end of the

2012 AFL season The 2012 AFL season was the 116th 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 eig ...

. He was then redrafted by West Coast in the 2013 Rookie draft, and played an additional 30 games before again being delisted at the end of the 2016 season.

Career

Bennell is from Bunbury,

Western Australia Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...

, where he attended

Bunbury Senior High School Bunbury Senior High School is a comprehensive public co-educational high day school, located in Bunbury, a regional centre in the South West region, south of Perth, Western Australia. History The school was established in 1918 and in 2017 ha ...

. Originally playing for the Carey Park Football Club in the

South West Football League The South West Football League is an Australian rules football league based in the south-west of Western Australia. The league is affiliated to the West Australian Country Football League. History The idea of creating a larger league was discu ...

(SWFL), he played colts for the

Swan Districts Football Club The Swan Districts Football Club, nicknamed the Swans, is an Australian rules football club playing in the West Australian Football League (WAFL) and WAFL Women's (WAFLW). The club is based at Bassendean Oval, in Bassendean, an eastern suburb ...

before being selected by Melbourne in the third round at pick 35 in the 2008 National draft. He had previously been playing with

Swan Districts The Swan Districts Football Club, nicknamed the Swans, is an Australian rules football club playing in the West Australian Football League (WAFL) and WAFL Women's (WAFLW). The club is based at Bassendean Oval, in Bassendean, an eastern suburb ...

in the

West Australian Football League The West Australian Football League (WAFL) is an Australian rules football league based in Perth, Western Australia. The league currently consists of ten teams, which play each other in a 20-round season usually lasting from March to September, ...

. Bennell was named to make his debut for Melbourne in the opening round of 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 six ...

together with

Neville Jetta Neville Jetta (born 12 February 1990) is a former Australian rules footballer who played for the Melbourne Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL). Jetta was drafted by Melbourne with the 51st selection in the 2008 national dr ...

, who also played for Swan Districts and played alongside Bennell since primary school in

Bennell played predominantly across half-back during his debut season for the Demons, usually manning opposition small forwards, and playing a total of 16 games. The following season saw Bennell move into attack as a small crumbing forward, earning both mark and goal of the year nominations 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 ...

in round 7. The following fortnight Bennell had a career best four-goal game against

Port Adelaide Football Club Port Adelaide Football Club is a professional Australian rules football club based in Alberton, South Australia, Alberton, South Australia. The club's senior men's team plays in the Australian Football League (AFL), where they are nicknamed ...

, his form however began to taper off towards the end of the season as he was dropped for round 22. At the end of the 2012 season, Bennell was delisted. He had suffered a serious knee injury towards the end of the season, when playing against the

Fremantle Football Club The Fremantle Football Club, nicknamed the Dockers, is a professional Australian rules football club competing in the Australian Football League (AFL), the sport's elite competition. The team was founded in 1994 to represent the port city of ...

. In the 2013 Rookie draft, held in December 2012, he was re-drafted by West Coast with the 26th pick overall. Bennell was delisted by West Coast at the end of the

2016 AFL season The 2016 AFL season was the 120th 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 e ...

, having managed only two games during that season.

References

External links

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DemonWiki profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bennell, Jamie 1989 births Australian rules footballers from Western Australia Carey Park Football Club players Indigenous Australian players of Australian rules football Living people Melbourne Football Club players Sportspeople from Bunbury, Western Australia Swan Districts Football Club players West Coast Eagles players East Perth Football Club players Casey Demons players