Brad Green

DOB: 13 March, 1981
Debut: Round 2, 2000 against Kangaroos at MCG

Games: 241*
Goals: 331*
Career Statistics

From: Northern Bombers/Tassie Mariners, Selection 19, 1999 National Draft

Number: 18 2000-

Honours
International Rules - 2004, 2010, 2011
Leading Goalkicker - 2010
Best and Fairest - 2010
Captain - 2011
Life Member

Statistical categories led:
Most marks in a game : 18 - Round 10, 2007

Named best player in Division 2 of the 1999 National Championships, Green was a talented soccer player who chose the Australian game over the world game. Turning his back on a second trial with Manchester United, and a contract offer from Walsall, Green was encouraged to play Australian football by schoolmates and went on to win a best and fairest for the Tassie Mariners. He was also a talented junior cricketer, having opened the batting for Australia in the Youth World Cup aged 15. During his youth he was also offered a place on the Tasmanian youth basketball team but turned it down.

After having his first taste of the big league with a couple of reserves matches for Essendon at the end of 1999, Melbourne rated him a much higher selection than the number 18 they got him with in the draft and his first AFL season, just his fourth year of football, saw Green almost single handedly win the Demons a Qualifying Final against Carlton and put him into a Grand Final. He suffered a severe blow to the windpipe in that game, but it was the only blemish in an otherwise remarkable debut season.

Battled Osteitis Pubis throughout 2002, but still had a positive season and finished 8th in the 2003 Best and Fairest despite briefly being dropped to the reserves during the year.

From 2004 onwards he moved into more of a midfield role. His goalkicking, once renowned as the most accurate in the league, became secondary to creating attack. Often labelled a soft player in his early years, he toughened up noticeably as his career moved on and by 2006 was reguarly backing back into packs to take marks.

Flirted with a move to Collingwood during trade week 2008 but ultimately stayed with the Demons, and was playing some of the best football of his career until he missed the end of the 2009 season with a broken hand - only the second time in his career he'd played less than twenty games for the season.

Thrown forward in 2010 Green played every match for the year, kicked a career high 55 goals and was a dominant force in the Demon forward line. He kicked five goals in a match three times in the second half of the year and despite only making cameo appearances in the midfield and backline managed to rack up his second highest amount of kicks in a season for his career. His career best season was rewarded with a place on the All-Australian final shortlist and his first Best and Fairest victory.

Named captain for 2011 Green's position came under attack from the media as his form suffered and the Demons' progress stagnated. Despite three hauls of four goals and one of three for the season his season was considered a disappointment by many as he failed to kick a goal in six matches and just one three times.

At the end of 2011 Green was dropped as captain by new coach Mark Neeld. After two weeks of the new year he was dropped from the senior side and suffered a broken hand in a VFL match.

Lists
9 Point Goals

Media
"A Green to envy" - The Sunday Age 19/12/1999

Links
melbfc.com.au profile - 2001
Wikipedia profile