Past Player - Andrew McLeod

[NikkiNoo]

#23 - Andrew McLeod​

Fast Facts:

Jumper No: 23
Height: 181
Weight: 80
DOB: 04/08/1976
Recruited From: Darwin (NT)/Port Adelaide (SANFL)
Career Matches: 283
Career Goals: 247
Debut: Round 6, May 5, 1995, Adelaide vs. Melbourne, at Football Park
Nicknames: Macca, Bunji

Honours:

Port Adelaide premiership side (SANFL) 1994
Adelaide premiership side 1997, 1998
Norm Smith Medal 1997, 1998
Adelaide Best and Fairest 1997, 2001, 2007
All-Australian 1998, 2000, 2001, 2006, 2007 (captain)
Leigh Matthews Trophy 2001
Wizard Home Loans Cup 2003
Michael Tuck Medal 2003
Indigenous Team of the Century
International Rules captain, 2005
Jim Stynes Medal, 2005
Polly Farmer Medal, 2007

Information:

Sweeping magnificently across the half-back line in 2006, the dual Norm Smith Medallist earned his first All-Australian selection since 2001, despite missing several games with a foot injury. McLeod played a variety of roles in the opening rounds but soon settled down at half-back on the way to reaching his 250-game milestone in round 10 against Essendon. A foot injury, however, had started to make training difficult and the club considered booking McLeod in for surgery before the mid-season break. Eventually it was agreed to rest and then attempt to manage the problem. But although McLeod’s on-field performances were not obviously impaired, the foot did not improve and after round 16 he had surgery to remove a bursa in a bid to be fit for the finals. The break ended a run of 97 consecutive games. McLeod made a rapid recovery and lined up for round 19 against Fremantle. But after the round 21 game against Port his foot “blew up” with an infection and he needed further surgery. McLeod missed the first final against Fremantle but defied the odds to return to full training and earn selection for the preliminary final against West Coast. He finished fourth in the club champion voting after polling in each of his 20 games. From Darwin, McLeod started his SANFL career at Port Adelaide, where he played in the club’s 1994 premiership. He was tied to Fremantle when it was forming its inaugural AFL squad but was traded to Adelaide in exchange for Chris Groom and made his AFL debut in 1995.​

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Andrew Mcleods Wikipedia Page: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andrew_McLeod​

Kahuna_202 nominated to be Bunji's watcher.

 

[Kahuna_202]

Re: #23 - Andrew McLeod

copied up... NN

 

[Campbell's Chunky]

Re: #23 - Andrew McLeod

Interesting fact.

DUAL Norm Smith medallist Andrew McLeod is now only 10 matches away from his 300th game in what has been a stellar career for Adelaide, but another landmark of sorts came his way on Saturday night when the Crows defeated North Melbourne at AAMI Stadium.

For it was the Crows champion's 150th game at the West Lakes stadium, meaning he now requires only nine more to equal the venue record, held by former star Ben Hart (and will reach it if he plays in all of the remaining Crows home games, as long as they include a finals match). And while all that might rate fairly low on the AFL stats Richter scale, it's a perfect excuse to feature a fascinating list just compiled by league historian Col Hutchinson that shows who has played the most games at all of the current venues.

The standout highlight is that 403-game Richmond legend Kevin Bartlett played in his 19-season career included almost half — 200 — at the MCG (a stat that was even news to KB when we told him about it yesterday). Not surprisingly, not only is it an MCG record, but no other player/venue tally gets close, Hart being the next highest.

http://www.theage.com.au/news/sport...l-right-at-home/2008/05/04/1209839454895.html

 

[cmndstab]

Re: #23 - Andrew McLeod

So assuming McLeod plays on next year, he should become the player with the second-highest ever venue playing record? That's pretty impressive!

I wonder how many Roo played at AAMI.

 

[KUNG FU]

Re: #23 - Andrew McLeod

http://www.afl.com.au/news/newsarticle/tabid/208/newsid/76784/default.aspx

Six steps to 312 games

The other side of a champion: Andrew McLeod consoles Rohan Smith after the Crows beat the Bulldogs in the dramatic 1997 preliminary final





By Andrew McLeod 10:54 AM Thu 14 May, 2009
IT'S FAIR to say that to play 300-plus games you need a few things to go your way.

Not even as a young kid running around my parents' backyard, pretending I was a football star, kicking that winning goal and destroying their beloved plants did I think I would last this long.

Now, looking back over my journey, here are six things I believe have got me to where I am today:

1. A supportive family
I didn’t know that I was going to be an AFL footballer as a kid but I knew that, if playing football was what I chose to do, my family would support me the whole way.

From an early age, my mum, dad and my older brother offered me great support and encouragement.They were always around to do those little things, like take me to training.

Growing up, my brother was my toughest opponent. In the backyard, he pushed me as most older brothers do. He taught me a few good lessons about playing against bigger bodies and how getting beaten up turns you into a better player.

Now, I also have the support of my own family though my wife, Rachael, and our children. The continued support I get from them has helped me enormously over the years.

2. Determination (and fitness gurus)
Having the want and determination to succeed has been one of the biggest things for me.

It comes from wanting to be the best you can be and extracting everything you can out of yourself to maximise what you have.

It also involves a lot of hard work. I’ve had a lot of injuries, but I still haven’t missed too many games over the years and our fitness guru Stephen Schwerdt has played a big role in that.

I also owe a lot to Charlie Walsh. Charlie and Schwerdty have probably added years to by career.

3. Quality coaching
All the coaches that I’ve had over the journey– have given me something.

My dad was always on about doing things with a purpose and that means learning from your coaches. It’s something I still do to this day.

Even at 32 years of age, I think there’s a lot about footy that I’m still learning and I think that’s a key to having a long career.

4. Fiercely competitive teammates
I’ve been lucky enough to have some very driven teammates, like Roo (Mark Ricciuto), Goody (Simon Goodwin), Benny Hart and Mark Bickley, who have
helped to get the best out of me while also getting the best out of themselves.

That internal competition is something that I’ve thrived on. It’s a friendly competition, but being around fiercely competitive people can give you an edge because they want to be the best.

5. Personal sacrifices
I’ve made a lot of them throughout my career. People probably take for granted some of the things that we, as footballers, don’t get to do.

For example, I haven’t had an Easter with my family in six years. You miss out on Mother’s Day because you’re playing and you miss birthdays, your kids’ sports and dance recitals.

Even just through moving away from home at an early age, you lose contact with a lot of people and family.

I don’t really have an active role in the lives of my nephews and my niece. I’d love to, but that’s just the way it is with footy. Sure, we get paid well and footy is what we do, but some people don’t realise that we’re normal too and we like to spend those special times with our families.

You don’t like to miss anything, but you have to and it’s tough. Hopefully one day, we get that time back.

6. Being traded to Adelaide
I’ve never really sat back and thought about how different things would’ve been if I stayed at Freo because I’ve been very lucky to be part of some special times here.

I’ll always be indebted to Adelaide for giving me the opportunity to come and play for the club I love, or I’ve grown to love (I was a Bombers supporter when I first started out).

I believe I’ve got the best job in the world. At times, it can be tough and challenging, but I wouldn’t have it any other way.

 

[AFC979810]

Re: #23 - Andrew McLeod

Just looking at Maccas games played (328).... Very good chance that he can become the first crow to crack the 350 games especially if we make a deep run into the finals.

What a champion.

Makes me wonder how big his reputation would be if he played in Melbourne - especially considering he never factored in on the Hird - Voss - Buckley debate (and for that matter neither did Roo).

 

[Allbetsroff]

Re: #23 - Andrew McLeod

Both Roo and Mcleod are better than Buckley ever was, Buckley is a rung down from Roo, Mcleod, Hird and Voss.

 

[GreyCrow]