Andy Lovell

DOB: 28 July, 1970
Debut: Round 3, 1988 against Geelong at MCG
Last MFC Game: Round 22, 1995 against Brisbane Bears at Gabba

Games: 121 (164 total)
Goals: 146 (166 total)
Career Statistics (external link)

Wins	Draws	Losses	Winning %
59	1	61	48.76

From: Glenorchy/MHSOB, Selection 42, 1986 National Draft

Number: 16 1988-1995

Honours:
Best First Year Player - 1988
Grand Final team - 1988
Tasmania state player - 1991, 1993

Known as "Chopper" due to his teenage career as a wood chopping champion, Lovell played two seasons of senior football at Glenorchy - including a premiership - before being picked up by the Demons in the first national draft.

1987 was a learning curve for the tough on-baller and he played only two reserves games, but the 22-year-old debuted early the next year - kicking a goal with his first kick and the matchwinning goal on debut - and by the end of the season he was playing in a Grand Final.

Expecting to build on his 22 games that year, Lovell saw his 1989 season destroyed by injury. That year he had to wait until round 21 to play his one and only match for the season. He managed twelve games the next season but didn't play after round 14 - missing the Demons run into the finals.

1991 was another disappointment. Despite winning state selection for the first time, Lovell had to wait until round 5 for his first match, then two in the middle of the year before being recalled for the Demons finals campaign. Despite having missed the second half of the season he lined up in the Elimination Final against Essendon and as a foil for the eight goal Allen Jakovich kicked a then career high four goals.

Perhaps having saved his career with his performances in the finals that year, Lovell finally managed a relatively uninterrupted 1992, and carved out a niche as a ruck-rover that saw him finish second in the Best and Fairest.

From then on he was a fixture in the side, playing 18 games in 1993, including a career high eight goals against Richmond in round 21 of that season, 24 in 1994 and 20 in 1995 before being swapped to West Coast for Craig Turley.

Lovell spent three years at the Eagles before retiring. He only missed one game in his first year but struggled after the death of his father in 1997 and made just four appearances in 1998.

He was appointed coach of East Perth in 2003 and in 2006 was an assistant with Geelong before becoming coach of Sandringham in the VFL in the last year of their alignment with Melbourne. Lovell resigned at the end of 2010 and moved to Gold Coast as an assistant for the ((2011) season.