Nathan Eagleton (born 10 November 1978) is a former professional Australian rules footballer who played for the Port Adelaide Football Club and 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 the Australian Football League (AFL). Eagleton played junior level football for West Adelaide in the

South Australian National Football League The South Australian National Football League, or SANFL ( or ''S-A-N-F-L''), is an Australian rules football league based in the Australian state of South Australia. It is also the state's governing body for the sport. Originally formed as t ...

(SANFL). He was recruited as a zone selection by Port Adelaide for its inaugural AFL season in 1997. He played his first game for Port Adelaide in 1997 against

Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Queensland, and the third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of approximately 2.6 million. Brisbane lies at the centre of the South ...

in round 5, 1997. In a match in 1999, he collapsed on field, and was diagnosed and treated for Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome. Eagleton was traded to the Western Bulldogs in 2000, in exchange for

Brett Montgomery Brett Montgomery (born 1 June 1973) is a retired Australian rules football player and current assistant coach with the Port Adelaide Football Club. Early life Montgomery, known as "Monty", was originally recruited from South Croydon, and was ...

and a second-round draft pick. He got off to a slow start but was a key player for the Bulldogs in 2004 and 2005. Known as "The Bald Eagle" for his clean-shaven head and surname, in 2005 Eagleton was an important player for the Western Bulldogs with his skill and run proving vital to the team's late-season charge. He kicked a career-best 28 goals in 2005. He is recognised as having a long and raking left foot kick, regularly kicking goals from outside the 50m line. Eagleton retired from the AFL at the end of the 2010 season. He was the final player from Port Adelaide's inaugural season to still be playing in the AFL, following Warren Tredrea's retirement due to injury earlier that year. He returned to South Australia and played with SANFL club Norwood for one season in 2011, before announcing his retirement from the sport in April 2012. Briefly returning to the sport to see out the end of the 2012 Southern Football League season, Eagleton rejoined the Happy Valley Football Club to play alongside his three brothers, Jonathan, Damien and Michael, and went on to win the competition with them. This marked his first premiership at any level. Eagleton played in guernsey numbers 25 and 11 with Port Adelaide and number 10 with the Bulldogs. He is married with two children.

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* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Eagleton, Nathan Western Bulldogs players 1978 births Living people Port Adelaide Football Club players Port Adelaide Football Club players (all competitions) West Adelaide Football Club players Norwood Football Club players Australian rules footballers from South Australia Happy Valley Football Club players Australia international rules football team players