Leigh Montagna Information & Leigh Montagna Links at HealthHaven.com

**Leigh** **Montagna**
	;
Personal information
Birth	2 November 1983 (age 26)
Recruited from	Balwyn/Northern U18
Height and weight	178 cm / 78 kg
Playing career¹
Debut	Round 6, 3 May 2002, St Kilda Football Club vs. Collingwood, at Docklands Stadium; ;
Team(s)	St Kilda Football Club 2002 - present 122 games, 69 goals
	¹ Statistics to end of 2009 season
Career highlights
	; St Kilda Minor Premiership Side 2009; St Kilda AFL Cup Winning Side 2008; St Kilda AFL Cup Winning Side 2004; 3rd in St Kilda Best & Fairest 2007; All-Australian 2009;

Leigh Montagna (born 2 November 1983) is an Australian rules footballer in the Australian Football League. Montagna was recruited as the number 37 draft pick in the 2001 AFL Draft. He is a midfielder with St Kilda Football Club.

[edit] AFL career

Montagna is a hard running wingman who is known for his kicking ability and teamwork. He enjoyed a breakthrough season in 2006, only missing one match and gathering over 400 disposals for the season. He averaged 19 disposals a game, increasing his averages in both contested and uncontested possessions. He is a strong tackler.

He was recruited to the St Kilda Football Club as the number 37 draft pick in the 2001 AFL Draft.

[edit] 2004 AFL Wizard Home Loans Cup

Montagna played in St Kilda’s 2004 Wizard Home Loans Cup winning side.^[1]

In Round 8, 2007, in a match against Hawthorn, Montagna suffered a broken jaw but only missed one week with the injury. Although 2007 was the first since 2004 that the St Kilda side had missed out on playing in the finals series, it was the season that saw Montagna become a top line AFL footballer. Montagna played consistently throughout the season and continued the improvement he had shown in 2006. He played an accountable and hard running role through St Kilda's midfield, averaging 24 disposals and 3 tackles per game and kicking 10 goals for the year.^[2] Some of Montagna's highlights for the year included best on ground performances against the Kangaroos, Richmond and Hawthorn in the second half of the year. Montagna was rewarded for his efforts with a third place finish in St Kilda's 2007 best and fairest.^[3]

[edit] 2008 AFL National Australia Bank Cup

Montagna played in St Kilda’s 2008 NAB Cup winning side - the club's third AFL Cup win.^[4]^[5]

[edit] 2009 Season

Montagna averaged 27.9 disposals and 6.25 tackles in 2009.^[2].

Montagna played in 21 of 22 matches in the 2009 AFL Premiership Season in which St Kilda qualified in first position for the 2009 AFL Finals Series.^[6]

St Kilda qualified for the 2009 AFL Grand Final after qualifying and preliminary finals wins. Montagna played in the 2009 AFL Grand Final when St Kilda was defeated by 12 points.

As of the end of the 2009 AFL Premiership Season, Montagna had played in 9 AFL Finals Series matches - including 1 AFL Grand Final - and 2 AFL Cup Finals.

[edit] References

^ "AFL 2004 Wizard Cup Grand Final - Geelong v St Kilda". Slattery Media Group. 2004-03-13. http://images.slatterymedia.com/image/?image_id=114726. Retrieved 2009-11-07.
^ ^a ^b "AFL Tables: Leigh Montagna". AFL Tables. http://stats.rleague.com/afl/stats/players/L/Leigh_Montagna.html. Retrieved 24 October 2009.
^ Lane, Samantha (6 October 2007). "Riewoldt wins record fourth gong". Real Footy. http://realfooty.com.au/news/news/riewoldt-wins-record-fourth-gong/2007/10/05/1191091368176.html. Retrieved 24 October 2009.
^ "St Kilda wins NAB cup". The Age. March 8, 2008. http://www.theage.com.au/news/national/st-kilda-wins-nab-cup-by-five-points/2008/03/08/1204780132457.html?s_cid=rss_news. Retrieved 2009-11-07.
^ "Saints are NAB Cup Champions in 2008". Jeld-Wen. 8 March 2008. http://www.jeld-wen.com.au/pr/St-Kilda-2008/20080308.php. Retrieved 2009-11-07.
^ "2009 Season Scores and Results - Ladder". AFL Tables. 2009. http://stats.rleague.com/afl/seas/2009.html#lad. Retrieved 2009-11-08.

[edit] External links

Leigh Montagna profile on the Official AFL Website of the St Kilda Football Club
Leigh Montagna's statistics from AFL Tables

[0] "AFL 2004 Wizard Cup Grand Final - Geelong v St Kilda". Slattery Media Group. 2004-03-13. http://images.slatterymedia.com/image/?image_id=114726. Retrieved 2009-11-07.

[stats-1] "AFL Tables: Leigh Montagna". AFL Tables. http://stats.rleague.com/afl/stats/players/L/Leigh_Montagna.html. Retrieved 24 October 2009.

[2] Lane, Samantha (6 October 2007). "Riewoldt wins record fourth gong". Real Footy. http://realfooty.com.au/news/news/riewoldt-wins-record-fourth-gong/2007/10/05/1191091368176.html. Retrieved 24 October 2009.

[3] "St Kilda wins NAB cup". The Age. March 8, 2008. http://www.theage.com.au/news/national/st-kilda-wins-nab-cup-by-five-points/2008/03/08/1204780132457.html?s_cid=rss_news. Retrieved 2009-11-07.

[4] "Saints are NAB Cup Champions in 2008". Jeld-Wen. 8 March 2008. http://www.jeld-wen.com.au/pr/St-Kilda-2008/20080308.php. Retrieved 2009-11-07.

[5] "2009 Season Scores and Results - Ladder". AFL Tables. 2009. http://stats.rleague.com/afl/seas/2009.html#lad. Retrieved 2009-11-08.

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