Max Gawn

Last updated

Max Gawn
Max Gawn 2018.12.jpg
Gawn playing for Melbourne in April 2018
Personal information
Full name Max Gawn
Date of birth (1991-12-30) 30 December 1991 (age 32)
Original team(s) Sandringham Dragons (TAC Cup)
Draft No. 34, 2009 national draft
Debut Round 11, 2011, Melbourne  vs. Essendon, at MCG
Height 209 cm (6 ft 10 in)
Weight 111 kg (245 lb)
Position(s) Ruck
Club information
Current club Melbourne
Number 11
Playing career1
YearsClubGames (Goals)
2010– Melbourne 224 (109)
1 Playing statistics correct to the end of 2024.
Career highlights
Sources: AFL Tables, AustralianFootball.com

Max Gawn (born 30 December 1991) is a professional Australian rules footballer playing for the Melbourne Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL). A ruckman, 209 cm tall and weighing 111 kg, Gawn is capable of contributing in both the ruck and forward line. A basketballer and rugby union player at a young age, he pursued his career in Australian rules football and was drafted to the Melbourne Football Club with the thirty-fourth selection in the 2009 AFL draft. He made his AFL debut in the 2011 AFL season. Knee and hamstring injuries hampered his first four seasons in the AFL before he moved into the number-one ruck position at Melbourne in 2015 along with selection for the 2016 All-Australian team. Gawn was named as Melbourne's captain at the start of the 2020 AFL season, and in 2021 led the club to its first premiership since 1964. [1]

Contents

Early life

Born in Australia to parents Sandra (of New Zealand) and Robert (of New Zealand, and former South Island rugby representative player [2] ) who migrated to Australia as young adults [3] they moved Max to Greymouth on the South Island of New Zealand at the age of 3. A few years later, his parents settled permanently in Melbourne. [4] [5] Following his father's recommendation, he played rugby union in Under-10s for Powerhouse RUFC in Albert Park, Victoria. [6] He also played basketball as a junior. Australian rules football was his number-one sport. [7] He attended McKinnon Secondary College [3] and played his junior career with the Ormond Football Club. [8] In 2009, he played with the Sandringham Dragons in the TAC Cup and played the first three matches of the year before tearing his anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in the match against the Geelong Falcons at Skilled Stadium. [3] He was initially selected in Victoria Metro's squad for the 2009 AFL Under-18 Championships, but he missed the entire championships due to his knee injury. [7]

AFL career

2010–2013: Early years and ongoing injury

Gawn was recruited by the Melbourne Football Club with their fifth selection and thirty-fourth overall in the 2009 national draft. [9] At the time of the draft, he was the second-tallest player in the league, at 208 cm, behind Aaron Sandilands at 211 cm. [10] After undergoing surgery in 2009 to repair his ACL, [11] he missed the majority of the 2010 season. [12] [13] He played a few matches at the end of the season for Melbourne's affiliate team, the Casey Scorpions, in the VFL Development League. [14] After strong performances in the VFL for Casey in the first half of 2011, [14] he made his AFL debut in the 33-point win against Essendon at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in Round 11, [15] where he played primarily as a forward and recorded eight disposals, ten hitouts and two behinds. [16] For his debut match, he had the number 37 jumper presented to him by 1991 Brownlow Medallist, Australian Football and Melbourne hall of famer, Jim Stynes, who wore the same guernsey number in his first season. [17] He played in the next two matches before being omitted for the round fourteen match. [18] He returned to the senior side for the 76-point loss against Carlton at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in Round 20, [19] but he was dropped the next week [20] and managed just four matches in his debut season. [21]

During the 2012 pre-season, Gawn suffered a knee injury, which was initially suspected as a meniscus tear in his right knee, [22] but it was ultimately a tear in both his meniscus and ACL, which forced him to miss the entire 2012 season. [23] He had a delayed start to the 2013 season when he suffered a hamstring injury during the pre-season, [24] and he was placed on the long-term injury list in January. [25] He played his first match in 18 months when he played for Casey in a VFL pre-season match in late March. [26] He played his first AFL match for the season in Round 4, where he kicked two final-quarter goals to help Melbourne defeat Greater Western Sydney by 41 points at the Melbourne Cricket Ground when they were down by three goals at three-quarter time. [27] He played the next five matches before being omitted for the Round 10 match against Hawthorn. [28] He returned to the senior side for the three-point win against the Western Bulldogs at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in Round 14. [29] He played seven of the remaining ten matches for the season and finished with 13 in total. [30]

2014–2016: Improvement, breakout and first All-Australian selection

Gawn at training in July 2015 Max Gawn 2015.JPG
Gawn at training in July 2015

During the 2014 season, along with playing for Melbourne, Gawn returned to his junior club, the Ormond Football Club, to co-coach their division two team in the Victorian Amateur Football Association (VAFA). [8] He also began a carpentry business called Max Jones & Co alongside then-Melbourne teammates, Matt Jones and Max King, producing tables. [31] He played his first AFL match for the year in the 17 point win against Richmond at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in round nine. [32] In July, while playing for Casey in the VFL, he amassed eighty hitouts against Bendigo which broke the record for the most hitouts in a VFL match. [33] He played in the final four AFL matches of the season finishing with nine in total. [34] He suffered a knee injury in the final match of the year against North Melbourne at Etihad Stadium, although he avoided an ACL tear, he still required surgery for the third time on his right knee. [35] His season with the Casey Scorpions, in which he played eight matches, was rewarded with the Gardner Clark Medal for the club best and fairest [36] and the Broadbridge Medal, which is awarded to the best Melbourne-listed player at Casey. [37] At the end of the season he switched guernsey numbers from 37 to 11, the same numbers Melbourne hall of famer and former ruckman, Jim Stynes, wore during his career. [38]

Gawn played in the VFL for the Casey Scorpions in the first half of the 2015 VFL season, before playing his first senior match for the 2015 AFL season in the 25-point loss against Collingwood at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in the annual Queen's Birthday clash in Round 10. [39] In his third match for the season, he helped Melbourne secure a 24-point win against Geelong at Simonds Stadium in Round 12, the club's first win in Geelong since 2005, [40] where he recorded 44 hitouts, 19 disposals, eight marks (six contested), five tackles and a goal. [41] He was highly praised for the match in which the media called it the best match of his career to that point; [42] [43] [44] he also earned the maximum three Brownlow votes for the match. [45] He did not miss a match for the remainder of the season, playing thirteen in total, [46] and he was labelled the most improved ruckman in the league for the season by Fox Sports Australia journalist Ben Waterworth. [47] He was rated as an elite tap ruckman by Champion Data, winning 49 percent of contests, and elite for marks and intercept marks by a ruckman. [48] In November, he signalled his intentions to become the best ruckman in the AFL. [49] [50]

After strong form in the 2016 pre-season, [51] Gawn was added to Melbourne's leadership group. [52] In the Round 3 match against North Melbourne at Blundstone Arena, he lined up against the 2015 All-Australian ruckman, Todd Goldstein; the contest drew high attention from the media, [53] [54] [55] in which Gawn recorded 63 hitouts, the fourth-highest total for an AFL match at the time. [56] His rise in the first half of the 2016 season led commentators to question whether he had become the best ruckman in the league and if he would be the All-Australian ruckman. [57] [58] [59] [60] [61] In the Queen's Birthday game, Melbourne recorded a 46-point win against Collingwood at the Melbourne Cricket Ground; Gawn was awarded the Neale Daniher trophy as the best player on the ground, in which he recorded a career-best 27 disposals, along with three goals, six marks and 31 hitouts. [62]

Apart from his tapwork, Gawn's ability to kick goals and take contested marks drew the attention of the media with many predicting he would be the All-Australian ruckman after his form continued in the second half of the season. [63] [64] [65] [66] In particular, his match in the twenty-nine-point win against Hawthorn in round twenty, where he recorded eight contested marks, which saw Hawthorn coach, Alastair Clarkson, note that "his second half was one of the best halves of footy by a ruckman [he'd] seen in a long time". [67] Fox Sports Australia journalist, Tom Morris, noted in August that Gawn had achieved his goal of becoming the best ruckman in the competition set the previous November. [67] His rapid rise saw him move from 295th at the start of the season to twelfth at the end of the home and away season in the AFL official player ratings. [68] He played all matches for the season and finished with the most hitouts in the league with 928 and averaged 42.2 per game, [69] he also broke the record for the most hit-outs to advantage in a season with 314. [70]

Gawn was named in the AFL Media team of the week eight times, [71] [72] [73] [74] [75] [76] [77] [78] and his season was ultimately rewarded with selection in the 2016 All-Australian team as the ruckman. [79] Furthermore, he was named in the AFL Media team of the year, [80] the AFL Coaches Association team of the year [81] and several commentators within the industry teams of the year, including Herald Sun head of football writer, Mark Robinson's; [82] The Age journalist Rohan Connolly's; [83] and former players, Jonathan Brown's [84] and Cameron Mooney's. [85] After heading into the best and fairest as the heavy favourite, [86] he ultimately finished third behind Jack Viney and Nathan Jones, winning the Ron Barassi Senior Memorial Trophy [87] in addition to the Norm Smith Memorial Trophy (coaches award) and James McDonald Trophy (heart and spirit award). [88] He was recognised as one of the best players in the league by his peers when he finished equal-fourth in the Leigh Matthews Trophy for the AFL Players Association most valuable player alongside Eddie Betts of Adelaide. [89] Furthermore, he was the highest-polling ruckman in the Brownlow Medal count [90] and Melbourne's highest-polling player, scoring 16 votes. [91]

2017–present: Injury and comeback

Max Gawn warming up prior to a pre-season game in February 2017 Max Gawn 18.02.17 (2).jpg
Max Gawn warming up prior to a pre-season game in February 2017

After Gawn's All-Australian year in 2016, external expectations on him were high, especially with the third-man ruck rule change—whereby only the two nominated ruckman were allowed to compete in the ruck—with Fox Footy personality and former player, David King, saying Gawn would relish in the rule change and "take his game to another level." [92] Furthermore, he was named inside the top twenty players heading into the 2017 season by AFL Media [93] and was touted as "undoubtedly one of the game’s finest and most influential players" by Fox Sports Australia's Riley Beveridge. [94] His season was recognised internally too as he was retained in Melbourne's leadership group for the 2017 season. [95]

In the opening round match against St Kilda at Etihad Stadium, Gawn recorded 49 hitouts and led Melbourne to the 30-point win, according to the Herald Sun's Lauren Wood. [96] The Age journalist Rohan Connolly furthered this notion by saying Gawn's dominance over St Kilda ruckman Tom Hickey was crucial in the victory with his service leading to winning the clearance count. [97] He was named in AFL Media's team of the week, [98] and AFL Media's Nathan Schmook stated Gawn would have a dominant season based on his performance in the opening round. [99] He played the first three matches of the year before sustaining a serious hamstring injury during the second quarter of the 29-point loss against Geelong at Etihad Stadium in Round 3; the injury required surgery and he was initially ruled out for 12 weeks. [100] He ultimately missed ten weeks of football and returned directly to the AFL in the three-point win against West Coast at Domain Stadium in Round 14. [101]

Following his return from injury, Gawn struggled to recapture his form from the previous season and early in the season, and by his own admission, he said that he wasn't back to the speed of the game due to his long-term injury. [102] In addition, his form was further affected when his ruck technique was scrutinised by the field umpires during the twenty-four-point win against St Kilda at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in round twenty-one, in which he was giving away several free kicks for which "[Gawn] had never given away in [his] life" and he consequently conceded ruck contests so he wouldn't give away free kicks. [103] After the head of umpiring, Hayden Kennedy, explained "if there is a straight arm by one of the players, when the other player is contesting the footy, that's when it becomes a free kick," Gawn was forced to adapt his ruck technique. [104] He played every match following his return from injury to finish with thirteen matches and signed a contract extension in October, tying him to the club until the end of 2021. [105]

He played every match in 2018, including three finals, to finish with 25 matches for the season; his season was rewarded with his first club best and fairest winning the Keith 'Bluey' Truscott Trophy with 657 votes. [106] In the lead up to the 2021 finals series, Melbourne needed to defeat Geelong at their home ground. After trailing by as much as seven goals, Gawn led the comeback which culminated in a mark and shot at goal after the siren to give Melbourne the minor Premiership (top of the ladder after 23 rounds) for the first time since 1964.

On 25 September 2021 Gawn captained Melbourne to its first AFL Premiership in 57 years. [107]

Statistics

Updated to the end of 2024. [108]

Legend
  G  
 Goals
  K  
 Kicks
  D  
 Disposals  
  T  
 Tackles
  B  
 Behinds  
  H  
 Handballs  
  M  
 Marks
H/O
 Hit-outs
  #  
Played in that season's 
premiership team
  †  
Led the league for 
the season
SeasonTeamNo.GamesTotalsAverages (per game) Votes
GBKHDMTH/OGBKHDMTH/O
2010 Melbourne 370—————————————————
2011 Melbourne 374121514291212650.30.53.83.57.33.03.016.30
2012 Melbourne 370—————————————————
2013 Melbourne 371372486811638312420.50.23.75.28.92.92.418.60
2014 Melbourne 3794539569538111330.40.64.46.210.64.21.214.80
2015 Melbourne 1113647210417658294850.50.35.58.013.54.52.237.34
2016 Melbourne 112216111541643189180928†0.70.57.07.514.54.13.642.2†16
2017 Melbourne 111344778316046364660.30.35.96.412.33.52.835.83
2018 Melbourne 11251312204192396113571119†0.50.58.27.715.84.52.344.8†20
2019 Melbourne 112177253119372102518290.30.312.05.717.74.92.439.517
2020 [a] Melbourne 1114111428022263354580.10.110.15.715.94.52.532.7†13
2021 # Melbourne 1125161731614746313171804†0.60.712.65.918.55.22.832.216
2022 Melbourne 11221314287130417122405960.60.613.05.919.05.51.827.112
2023 [b] Melbourne 11221014228144372102445650.50.610.46.516.94.62.025.77
2024 Melbourne 1121119235166401110547130.50.411.27.919.15.22.634.0
Career224109102207014673537102655274010.50.59.26.515.84.62.533.0108

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. ↑ 2023 statistics include one game in which Gawn was substituted out of the game due to injury (round 2) and was replaced by Jake Melksham.

Honours and achievements

Team

Individual

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References

  1. ↑ "Perth confirmed as AFL grand final host for 2021 season decider on September 25". ABC. 30 July 2021. Retrieved 4 March 2021.
  2. ↑ Demons' Gawn a lost rugby union star SBS Sport 6 October 2021
  3. 1 2 3 Epstein, Jackie (26 November 2009). "Big man Max Gawn, not forgotten for AFL draft". Herald Sun . News Corp Australia . Retrieved 23 April 2010.
  4. ↑ "If Aussies Win then Max's Shirt is 'Gawn'". AFL Players Association. 24 March 2015. Retrieved 23 April 2010.
  5. ↑ Flanagan, Martin (18 March 2016). "Big Max a true Demon believer". The Age . Fairfax Media . Retrieved 23 April 2010.
  6. ↑ Max Gawn, the 208cm kid from Greymouth taking centre stage on one of Australian sport's biggest days Mark Geenty Sep 24 2021 Stuff.co.nz
  7. 1 2 Australian Associated Press (1 December 2009). "Melbourne Demons think big with Max Gawn". Herald Sun. News Corp Australia. Retrieved 30 August 2016.
  8. 1 2 Crook, Nick (23 April 2014). "Melbourne ruckman Max Gawn goes home to coach Ormond juniors". Herald Sun. News Corp Australia. Retrieved 23 April 2010.
  9. ↑ Petrie, Andrew (2 December 2009). "Fresh Demons touch down for pre-season and sponsor's preview". The Age. Fairfax Media. Retrieved 30 August 2016.
  10. ↑ Edmund, Sam (26 November 2009). "The 2009 AFL draft - at a glance". Herald Sun. News Corp Australia. Retrieved 30 August 2016.
  11. ↑ Quayle, Emma (14 February 2010). "Don't depend on draftees: Bailey". The Age. Fairfax Media. Retrieved 30 August 2016.
  12. ↑ Clark, Jay (21 February 2010). "Melbourne rookie Jordie McKenzie repays faith". Herald Sun. News Corp Australia. Retrieved 30 August 2016.
  13. ↑ "AFL Injury List". The Age. Fairfax Media. 28 April 2010. Retrieved 30 August 2016.
  14. 1 2 Hogan, Jesse (31 May 2011). "Demons may put their faith in young giant". The Age. Fairfax Media. Retrieved 30 August 2016.
  15. ↑ Edmund, Sam (3 June 2011). "Meet Giant Max Gawn and Jumping Jeremy Howe". Herald Sun. News Corp Australia. Retrieved 30 August 2016.
  16. ↑ Connolly, Rohan (4 June 2011). "Bombers rue Demons' day". The Age. Fairfax Media. Retrieved 30 August 2016.
  17. ↑ Quayle, Emma (4 June 2011). "Demons dig deep to go hard on Bombers". The Age. Fairfax Media. Retrieved 30 August 2016.
  18. ↑ Boulton, Martin (24 June 2011). "Ruck duo back but Jolly still out". The Age. Fairfax Media. Retrieved 30 August 2016.
  19. ↑ Boulton, Martin (5 August 2011). "Axed Sylvia's future in doubt". The Age. Fairfax Media. Retrieved 30 August 2016.
  20. ↑ Chadwick, Justin (14 August 2011). "Eagles repay Worsfold faith". The Age. Fairfax Media. Retrieved 30 August 2016.
  21. ↑ Murnane, Matt (15 December 2011). "Kennett has a final few words". The Age. Fairfax Media. Retrieved 30 August 2016.
  22. ↑ Edmund, Sam (19 December 2011). "Double blow as Melbourne bites dust". Herald Sun. News Corp Australia. Retrieved 30 August 2016.
  23. ↑ Pierik, Jon (18 December 2011). "Hawks keep dream alive for Pattison". The Age. Fairfax Media. Retrieved 30 August 2016.
  24. ↑ Burgan, Matt (17 January 2013). "Gawn doesn't want to be forgotten". MelbourneFC.com.au. Bigpond . Retrieved 30 August 2016.
  25. ↑ Guthrie, Ben (29 January 2013). "Gawn cut down". AFL.com.au. Bigpond. Retrieved 30 August 2016.
  26. ↑ "Ex-Roo sinks Port with 11". The Age. Fairfax Media. 31 March 2013. Retrieved 30 August 2016.
  27. ↑ Hanlon, Peter (22 April 2013). "At last, Demons find some leading men". The Age. Fairfax Media. Retrieved 30 August 2016.
  28. ↑ Murnane, Matt (31 May 2013). "Besieged Dogs, Saints lose key midfielders". The Age. Fairfax Media. Retrieved 30 August 2016.
  29. ↑ Quayle, Emma (28 June 2013). "Whitecross presses for recall". The Age. Fairfax Media. Retrieved 30 August 2016.
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  31. ↑ Beaton, Robert (24 June 2014). "Big Max Building for the Future". AFL Players Association. Retrieved 30 August 2016.
  32. ↑ Murnane, Matt (16 May 2014). "Bellchambers back from ankle injury". The Age. Fairfax Media. Retrieved 30 August 2016.
  33. ↑ Guthrie, Ben (14 July 2014). "Gawn in 80 hit-outs: Demon sets VFL record". AFL.com.au. Bigpond. Retrieved 30 August 2016.
  34. ↑ Burgan, Matt (2 September 2014). "Gawn avoids ACL injury". MelbourneFC.com.au. Bigpond. Retrieved 30 August 2016.
  35. ↑ Schmook, Nathan (2 September 2014). "'I've dodged an ACL': Good news for Gawn". AFL.com.au. Bigpond. Retrieved 30 August 2016.
  36. ↑ Harrington, Anna (22 September 2014). "Gawn wins Casey best and fairest". MelbourneFC.com.au. Bigpond. Retrieved 30 August 2016.
  37. ↑ Burgan, Matt (4 September 2014). "Gawn wins Broadbridge award". MelbourneFC.com.au. Bigpond. Retrieved 30 August 2016.
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  41. ↑ Ryan, Peter (22 June 2015). "Demons ruckman Max Gawn turns Saints nightmare into dream win over Cats". AFL.com.au. Bigpond. Retrieved 30 August 2016.
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  47. ↑ Waterworth, Ben (28 July 2015). "Max Gawn produces breakout AFL season to be Stefan Martin of 2015". Fox Sports (Australia). News Corp Australia. Retrieved 30 August 2016.
  48. ↑ Baldwin, Adam (23 February 2016). "Melbourne ruckman Max Gawn wants to replicate his stellar 2015 form". Fox Sports (Australia). News Corp Australia. Retrieved 30 August 2016.
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  52. ↑ Morris, Tom (10 March 2016). "Melbourne announces entire 2015 leadership group, except for skipper Nathan Jones, has changed". Fox Sports (Australia). News Corp Australia. Retrieved 30 August 2016.
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