Luke Darcy

Infobox afl player | firstname = Luke
lastname = Darcy


image capt = Luke Darcy as a celebrity racer at the Australian Formula 1 Grand Prix in Melbourne


birthdate = birth date and age|1975|7|12|df=y
birthplace =
originalteam = South Adelaide (SANFL)
heightweight = 197cm / 100kg
dead = alive
deathdate =
deathplace =
debutdate = Round 21, 13 August 1994
debutteam = Footscray
debutopponent = St Kilda
debutstadium = Waverley Park
playingteams = Western Bulldogs (1994-2007)

226 games, 183 goals
coach = notcoach
coachingteams =
statsend = 2007
careerhighlights =

*Leigh Matthews Trophy 2002 (shared)
*Charles Sutton Medal 2001
*All-Australian 2002
*State of Origin (South Australia)

Luke Darcy (born 12 July 1975) is a former Australian rules footballer who played with the Western Bulldogs who now juggles roles in media and administration.

Early life

Luke Darcy was born in South Australia, the son of David Darcy who played for South Adelaide in the SANFL and 133 games for the Footscray Bulldogs in the VFL [ [http://www.theage.com.au/news/sport/why-darcy-mk-iii-is-on-the-outer/2008/05/06/1209839651258.html] ] . David, originally a Victorian, moved his family to Adelaide. Like his father, Luke also played for both South Adelaide and the Bulldogs, being recruited from South Adelaide to play in the AFL with the Western Bulldogs.

AFL career

Debuting in 1994, Darcy is regarded as one of the Bulldogs' most successful ruckmen/forwards. In 2001 he took out the Charles Sutton Medal, and continued to stamp his name on the game in the following seasons. The following season, he and Michael Voss were the first players to be awarded the Leigh Matthews Trophy as AFL Players Association MVP¹. In 2004 he was the Western Bulldogs leading goalkicker.

In 2005 against Geelong, Darcy suffered a season-ending knee injury when he twisted it, which deprived the Bulldogs of a quality tall-forward option, something they missed during the year.

On December 20, 2005 during the final pre-season training session before the Christmas holidays, Darcy re-injured the ACL during an awful fall which slightly dislocated the knee, which meant that he would miss the entire 2006 season. The Bulldogs finished the season in sixth place, the first time the club had made the finals in six years. He had been part of a Bulldogs casualty list that included four ACL injuries during the season (up until only the Round 9 mark).

During his time on the sideline, he provided special comments for Network Ten's AFL coverage.

On 2 August 2007 Darcy announced that he would retire at the end of the 2007 AFL season. ^{[http://westernbulldogs.com.au/Season2007/News/NewsArticle/tabid/4112/Default.aspx?newsId=48473]}

Personal life

Darcy is married to Rebecca and they have three children - Sam, Sienna and Willson.

Post-football career

Since retiring, Darcy has continued his work in the media. He is a panelist on Fox Footy's Fox League Teams show and also The Fifth Quarter.

In 2008, he became a member of the AFL Rules Committee.

External links

*Wbplayer|ref=14604
*AflRleague|ref=L/Luke_Darcy.html

Note

¹The AFL MVP award dates back to 1982, when the league was still the Victorian Football League (VFL), but the Leigh Matthews Trophy was only created in 2002. All prior VFL/AFL MVPs were retrospectively given the Leigh Matthews Trophy in 2005.