Sam Butler

Samuel Butler (born 14 January 1986) is a former professional Australian rules footballer who played for the West Coast Eagles in the Australian Football League (AFL). A talented underage soccer player from Gawler, South Australia, who only took up football as a teenager, he was drafted by West Coast with the 20th pick at the 2003 National Draft, having played in a SANFL reserves premiership for Central District the year he was drafted. Butler debuted for West Coast during the 2004 season, and was nominated for the AFL Rising Star award. A mid-sized defender and occasional midfielder, he played in West Coast's 2006 premiership team, but missed the entire next season due to injury. Butler has struggled with injury throughout his career, only playing his 100th game during the 2013 season, ten seasons after his debut.

Sam Butler
Personal information
Full name Samuel Butler
Date of birth (1986-01-14) 14 January 1986
Original team(s) Central District (SANFL)
Draft No. 20, 2003 national draft
Height 187 cm (6 ft 2 in)
Weight 82 kg (181 lb)
Position(s) Defender
Playing career1
Years Club Games (Goals)
2004–2017 West Coast 166 (16)
1 Playing statistics correct to the end of 2017.
Career highlights
Sources: AFL Tables, AustralianFootball.com

Career

From Gawler in country South Australia, Butler only took up football when he was a teenager, having previously played under-16 soccer for his state.[1] He played junior football for the South Gawler Football Club (subsequently becoming the first South Gawler player in the AFL),[2] and then for underage Central District Football Club teams. A member of the AIS/AFL Academy, Butler played for South Australia at the AFL Under 18 Championships in both 2002 and 2003, and also won a reserves SANFL premiership with Central District in the latter season. He went on to be drafted by West Coast with the 20th pick in the 2003 National Draft.[1]

Butler made his debut for the West Coast Eagles in Round 10, 2004 against Richmond, gathering 14 disposals, 5 marks and 1 goal in a 37-point win to the Eagles. He went on to play 12 games that season, including a losing elimination final against Sydney.

In 2005, he played 14 games for the club including the losing grand final against Sydney.

2006 was a much more successful seasons for Sam. He played his first game of the season in round 13 against the Western Bulldogs, picking up 22 disposals and 6 marks. He notched up a further 13 games (14 games in total for the season) and having a superb 2006 final series, in particular his performances against the Western Bulldogs in the semi final (30 disposal, 3 marks, 6 tackles), Adelaide in the preliminary final (22 disposals, 6 marks, 1 goal), as well as being part of the 2006 premiership winning team over Sydney.

In 2007, he struggled with a persistent groin injury (osteitis pubis) and was restricted in the games he played, not playing any AFL games and only playing a handful of WAFL and WAFL reserve games for Perth.

He has had a slow start to season 2008, having a modified pre-season training program due to his nagging groin injuries and played 5 games for his WAFL side Perth, playing 2 reserves games and 3 senior games. He was given a week off before making his return to the Eagles senior side against Sydney in Round 11.

Playing against Collingwood in round 20 of the 2014 season, Butler recorded 32 disposals and took 14 marks, both career highs.[3][4] In the 2015 AFL Grand final, he was one of the Eagles best players during the game.

2015 was a successful year for Butler, he played a personal record of 17 games and was one of the best players for the Eagles in the 2015 Finals series. He was also in the top 5 best Eagles players in the 2015 AFL Grand final with 25 disposals. He was contracted with the Eagles till the end of 2016.

Statistics
[5]
Legend
 G  Goals  B  Behinds  K  Kicks  H  Handballs  D  Disposals  M  Marks  T  Tackles
Season Team No. Games Totals Averages (per game)
G B K H D M T G B K H D M T
2004 West Coast 261212877716433160.10.27.36.413.72.81.3
2005 West Coast 2614321036216551180.20.17.44.411.83.61.3
2006 West Coast 26146515612327958590.40.411.18.819.94.14.2
2007 West Coast 260——————————————
2008 West Coast 2650349307921110.00.69.86.015.84.22.2
2009 West Coast 26161113212425660380.10.18.37.816.03.82.4
2010 West Coast 2650045479226170.00.09.09.418.45.23.4
2011 West Coast 2613001606822880510.00.012.35.217.56.23.9
2012 West Coast 2614131776824574330.10.212.64.917.55.32.4
2013 West Coast 26151216710126878580.10.111.16.717.95.23.9
2014 West Coast 2612111088419247340.10.19.07.016.03.92.8
2015 West Coast 26172318112330496320.10.210.67.217.95.61.9
2016 West Coast 26200016213629886540.00.08.16.814.94.32.7
2017 West Coast 26900765513136120.00.08.46.114.64.01.3
Career 166 16 22 1603 1098 2701 746 433 0.1 0.1 9.7 6.6 16.3 4.5 2.6

Personal life

Butler married Natasha "Tash" Leembruggen, a Perth fashion designer, in October 2012, at a ceremony in the Barossa Valley.[6] They announced their separation in February, 2018.[7]

See also

References
  1. Peter Argent (6 June 2013). "The Butler Did It – Bulldogs Export makes 100" – Central District Football Club. Retrieved 10 August 2014.
  2. Chronology – South Gawler Football Club. Retrieved 10 August 2014.
  3. "Eagles soar over cold Pies to keep finals hopes alive" – AFL.com.au. Retrieved 10 August 2014.
  4. Sam Butler – AFL Tables. Retrieved 10 August 2014.
  5. Sam Butler's player profile at AFL Tables
  6. Jayne Rickard (22 October 2012). "Footy boys help Eagle tie knot" – The West Australian. Retrieved 10 August 2014.
  7. "They're WAGS no more". PerthNow. 11 February 2018. Retrieved 11 October 2018.
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