Bailey Banfield

Bailey Banfield
Personal information
Full name	Bailey Banfield
Nickname(s)	Banners
Date of birth	(1998-02-26) 26 February 1998 (age 26)
Place of birth	Broome, Western Australia
Original team(s)	Claremont (WAFL)
Draft	No. 5, 2018 rookie draft
Height	190 cm (6 ft 3 in)
Weight	92 kg (203 lb)
Position(s)	Midfielder, half-forward
Club information
Current club	Fremantle
Number	41
Playing career1
Years	Club	Games (Goals)
2018–	Fremantle	97 (62)
1 Playing statistics correct to the end of 2024.
Career highlights
Claremont best and fairest 2017 Peel Thunder best and fairest 2019
Sources: AFL Tables, AustralianFootball.com

Bailey Banfield (born 26 February 1998) is a professional Australian rules footballer playing for the Fremantle Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL).

Early life

Banfield grew up in Broome, Western Australia. He lived there until he finished Year 7 before moving to Perth to attend senior schooling at Scotch College.

AFL career

Overlooked in the 2016 AFL draft, Banfield played for Claremont in the West Australian Football League (WAFL), being a part of the Colts (WAFL) premiership side in 2015 and winning their 2017 best and fairest award. ^[1] He finished with 22 WAFL games for Claremont. He was then selected by Fremantle with their first selection, fifth overall, in the 2018 AFL rookie draft. ^[2] Banfield made his AFL debut for Fremantle in the opening round of the 2018 AFL season after a series of impressive pre-season games. ^[3] He signed a two-year contract extension during the season, tying him to Fremantle until 2020.

Banfield was elevated to Fremantle's senior list in 2019. ^[4] Banfield had a standout performance during round 12 of the 2022 AFL season kicking a career-high four goals during Fremantle's 14 point win over the Brisbane Lions. ^[5]

Banfield was named on the interchange bench for Fremantle's opening game of the 2024 AFL season against the Brisbane Lions. He kicked Fremantle's first goal of the game as well as collecting 14 disposals during the 23 point come from behind win. ^[6] He was impactful the next week against North Melbourne at Marvel Stadium collecting 18 disposals and kicking two goals. His fine form throughout the season saw him ranked above average in almost every statistic. As of April 18, 2024, he was ranked the third best wingman in the league by Champion Data. ^[7] He primarily plays as a high forward but can seamlessly switch to the wing, providing strong support and run. After attracting interest from several Melbourne based clubs due to entering 2024 as an unrestricted free agent, Banfield signed a two-year extension to remain at the Dockers until at least 2026. ^[8]

Personal life

Banfield married Julia Edwards in October 2024. ^[9]

Statistics

AFL statistics

Statistics are correct to the end of 2024 ^[10]

Legend

G	Goals	K	Kicks	D	Disposals	T	Tackles
B	Behinds	H	Handballs	M	Marks

Season	Team	No.	Games	Totals							Averages (per game)
				G	B	K	H	D	M	T	G	B	K	H	D	M	T
2018	Fremantle	41	20	5	5	162	129	291	65	81	0.3	0.3	8.1	6.5	14.6	3.3	4.1
2019	Fremantle	41	7	2	1	39	54	93	18	30	0.3	0.1	5.6	7.7	13.3	2.6	4.3
2020 [a]	Fremantle	41	5	2	0	26	21	47	8	18	0.4	0.0	5.2	4.2	9.4	1.6	3.6
2021	Fremantle	41	6	4	2	29	27	56	12	14	0.7	0.3	4.8	4.5	9.3	2.0	2.3
2022 [b]	Fremantle	41	23	18	14	102	41	143	46	26	0.7	0.6	4.4	1.7	6.2	2.0	1.1
2023 [c]	Fremantle	41	14	11	9	89	71	160	41	16	0.8	0.6	6.4	5.1	11.4	2.9	1.1
2024	Fremantle	41	22	20	13	174	140	314	74	56	0.9	0.6	7.9	6.4	14.3	3.4	2.5
Career			97	62	44	621	483	1104	264	240	0.6	0.5	6.4	5.0	11.4	2.7	2.5

WAFL statistics

Statistics are correct to the end of 2023

Legend

G	Goals	K	Kicks	D	Disposals	T	Tackles
B	Behinds	H	Handballs	M	Marks

Season	Team	No.	Games	Totals							Averages (per game)
				G	B	K	H	D	M	T	G	B	K	H	D	M	T
2016	Claremont	51	2	1	0	20	18	38	6	7	0.5	0.0	10.0	9.0	19.0	3.0	3.5
2017	Claremont	34	20	4	5	322	162	484	80	112	0.2	0.2	16.1	8.1	24.2	4.0	5.6
2019	Peel Thunder	2/13	11	9	4	191	99	290	46	79	0.8	0.3	17.3	9.0	26.3	4.1	7.1
2021	Peel Thunder	24	6	7	8	49	27	76	22	24	1.1	1.3	8.1	4.5	12.6	3.6	4.0
2022	Peel Thunder	24	3	3	5	16	10	26	9	9	1.0	1.6	5.3	3.3	8.6	3.0	3.0
2023	Peel Thunder	55/24	3	6	4	36	9	45	17	16	2.0	1.3	12.0	3.0	15.0	5.7	5.3
Career			45	30	26	634	325	959	180	247	0.7	0.6	14.1	7.2	21.3	4.0	5.5

Notes

1. The 2020 season was played with 17 home-and-away matches per team (down from 22) and 16-minute quarters with time on (down from 20-minute quarters with time on) due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
2. 2022 statistics include five games when Banfield was used as the substitute (round 3, 6, 11, 16 & 22) and five games when Banfield wasn’t used as the substitute (rounds 4, 7, 20, Finals Week 1 & Semi Final).
3. 2023 statistics include a game when Banfield was substituted out (round 13).

References

1. "Banfield wins 2017 E.B Cook Medal". Claremont Football Club. Retrieved 19 March 2018.
2. "Banfield pressing for shock round-one selection". The West Australian. 5 March 2018. Retrieved 19 March 2018.
3. "First-year pair to get Freo debut". PerthNow. 19 March 2018. Retrieved 19 March 2018.
4. King, Travis (15 August 2018). "New deal, promotion for Dockers rookie". afl.com.au. Retrieved 15 August 2018.
5. "Banfield's day out a triumph for self-belief" . Retrieved 6 June 2022.
6. reilly, eliza (21 March 2023). "'No chance for round one:' How Freo's unsung hero keeps surviving". codesports.com.
7. Santa Maria, Jake (18 April 2024). "Champion Data rates Bailey Banfield as third best wingman in the AFL in surprise stat". The West Australian .
8. Santa Maria, Jake (6 September 2024). "Fremantle Dockers lock away Corey Wagner, Sam Sturt and Bailey Banfield on new two-year extensions". The West Australian .
9. "AFL star ties the knot with long term partner". PerthNow. 27 October 2024. Retrieved 27 October 2024.
10. "Bailey Banfield". AFL Tables. Retrieved 26 May 2022.

External links

• Bailey Banfield's profile on the official website of the Fremantle Football Club
• Bailey Banfield's playing statistics from AFL Tables
• Bailey Banfield at AustralianFootball.com
• WAFL Player Profile and Statistics