Mathew Stokes
Mathew Stokes
Personal information
Full name	Mathew Stokes
Date of birth	22 November 1984 (1984-11-22) (age 24)
Place of birth	Northern Territory
Recruited from	Woodville-West Torrens (SANFL)
Draft	61st overall, 2005 Geelong
Height/Weight	178 cm / 80 kg
Position(s)	Forward
Club information
Current club	Geelong
Number	27
Playing career1
Years	Club	Games (Goals)
2006 –	Geelong	52 (79)
State team honours
2008	Dream Team	1 (1)
1 Playing statistics to end of 2008 season .

Mathew Stokes (born 22 November 1984) is an Australian Rules Football player for the Geelong Football Club.

[edit] Early life

Mathew Stokes grew up in Darwin, Australia, with his parents John and Jennifer, and three sisters Jaylene, Anne-Maree and Amy.^[1] Mathew has Indigenous Australian heritage and his ancestry can be traced to the Larrakia.^[2] His father was a life member of the Palmerston Magpies, having played 148 games for them in the NTFL.^[1] Growing up, Stokes played basketball, cricket and rugby league,^[1] but age restrictions limited his involvement in AFL until he was 11-years old.^[1] Stokes' main sporting passion was for basketball, where he played at every junior level growing up and won an under-14s best and fairest award whilst still only 7 years of age.^[1] When he was finally eligible to play football as an under-14, Stokes forced his way into the Palmerston Magpies senior team^[1] at only 14 years of age.^[3] In 2002, he was a member of Palmerston's premiership-winning side,^[1] and it was then that he began to switch his focus from basketball to football.^[1]Stokes' achievements in the local junior leagues saw him selected to represent Australia in the under-17's national team,^[3] alongside future AFL players Luke Hodge, Luke Ball and Nick Dal Santo.

Stokes was overlooked in the 2002 AFL Draft though, and moved to Adelaide to begin playing in the SANFL for Woodville-West Torrens.^[3] Taking up a part-time job as a zookeeper off the field,^[3] Stokes continued to establish himself in the SANFL over the next three years. His persistence paid off when he was selected with the 61st pick in the 2005 AFL Draft by the Geelong Football Club.^[3]

[edit] Career

[edit] 2006: Debut

It wasn't until his 7th game, making his mark against Port Adelaide in Round 15, 2006, that he kicked two final-term goals to lift Geelong's finals chances, one of which he marked superbly and kicked truly from 40m out under enormous pressure. For the rest of the year Stokes was inconsistent and as a result was in and out of the team.

In 2006, Stokes played in Geelong's VFL Grand Final side, losing to the Sandringham Zebras.

[edit] 2007: Premiership glory

Stokes has since cemented his spot in Geelong's best 22. His best game in the 2007 home-and-away season was against Fremantle, in round 17, when he kicked a career best 5 goals. He was a member of Geelong's 2007 AFL Premiership side, overcoming a dislocated kneecap in the first quarter to make a solid contribution to the team's record 119 point win over Port Adelaide.

[edit] 2008: Premiership heartbreak

Stokes escaped severe head injuries in a 2008 pre-season practice match against the Brisbane Lions,^[4] when in the last quarter he suffered a blow to the head after being tackled by Brisbane midfielder Albert Proud.^[4] He was declared OK after being stretchered from the ground, and despite having a sore head, didn't need to be taken to hospital.^[4]

Stokes was reported in Geelong's Round 7 clash against the Brisbane Lions, after striking Brisbane's Michael Rischitelli in the match's first quarter.^[5] Stokes went on to garner two goals and 12 disposals for the game.^[6] At the AFL Tribunal, he accepted a one match suspension for the incident,^[5] but due to his poor tribunal record, which includes a four match suspension for an incident in the 2007 pre-season, his ban could not be reduced with an early plea.^[5]

[edit] Personal life

Stokes interests outside of football include feral pig shooting, and fishing.^[7] He counts Nathan Buckley of Collingwood, as his football hero,^[7] and American basketball player, Josh Howard of the Dallas Mavericks in the NBA, as his overall sporting hero.^[7]

Growing up, Stokes was close friends with other future AFL players, including Trent Hentschel, Aaron Davey and Alwyn Davey.^[3] Stokes also grew up supporting the Collingwood Football Club.^[7] Whilst playing in the SANFL, Stokes worked part-time as a zookeeper, and hopes to return to the profession after his football career.^[1]

Stokes is currently dating Geelong girl and IAAF World Youth Championships in Athletics runner; Jess Gulli.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Statistics

Statistics are correct end of 2008 season (September 27, 2008)^[8]

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Mathew Stokes profile on the Official AFL Website of the Geelong Football Club
• Mathew Stokes's statistics from AFL Tables