Chris Yarran facts for kids

Christopher Yarran (born 19 December 1990) is a former professional Australian rules football player. He played for the Carlton Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL). He was also part of the Richmond Football Club team but did not play any senior games for them.

Chris Yarran's Early Football Journey

Chris Yarran is an Indigenous Australian footballer. He started playing football in Western Australia when he was young. In his junior years, he mostly played as a small forward, scoring many goals. Sometimes, he also played in the midfield or in defence.

When he was 17, Chris joined the senior team for Swan Districts Football Club. He played thirteen games and kicked thirty-nine goals. In his very first game, he kicked seven goals! He also kicked eight goals in three final matches.

Chris played for Western Australia in the under 18s championships, where he kicked eight goals in four games. He was chosen to join the Australian Institute of Sport-AFL academy in 2006/07. He even captained a team from the Clontarf Football Academy in a game against a visiting South African under 19s team in February 2007. Chris Yarran is also the cousin of former Fremantle player Shane Yarran.

Chris Yarran's AFL Career

Getting Drafted into the AFL

Chris Yarran was known as a very talented player. Many people expected him to be chosen early in the draft. Some even thought he was one of the most skilled players available. The Carlton Football Club picked him with their first choice, which was the sixth pick overall, in the 2008 AFL draft. At the time, Carlton's coach, Brett Ratten, believed Chris could help other forwards like Eddie Betts. He also thought Chris could take some pressure off their main forward, Brendan Fevola.

Playing for Carlton (2009–2015)

Chris Yarran played his first senior game for Carlton in round 7 of the 2009 season against Fremantle. He played a few games for Carlton that year, six in total. Most of his games were with Carlton's reserve team, the Northern Bullants, in the Victorian Football League (VFL). He even kicked five goals in a VFL preliminary final.

In 2010, Chris played 16 games for Carlton. He was nominated for the AFL Rising Star award, which recognizes young, talented players. During that season, Chris was part of a special group of forwards. This group included a tall forward, Setanta Ó hAilpín, and three small forwards: Eddie Betts, Chris Yarran, and his former Swan Districts teammate Jeff Garlett. They were even called "Setanta's Little Helpers"!

In 2011, coach Brett Ratten changed the team's strategy. He decided to use only two small forwards: Eddie Betts and Jeff Garlett. Chris Yarran was moved to the half-back line. Within a year, he became a very important defender. He used his speed, quick movements, and accurate kicking to help Carlton move the ball from defence into attack. Chris played 23 games that season and finished tenth in the John Nicholls Medal, which is Carlton's best and fairest award.

In 2012, Chris's season was affected by a foot injury called turf toe. However, he still won the Goal of the Year award for an amazing goal in round 1. He picked up a loose ball, dodged three Richmond opponents, ran along the boundary line, and kicked a goal from 50 meters away!

Time with Richmond

In October 2015, Chris Yarran was traded to Richmond in exchange for a first-round draft pick. However, he did not play any games for the club in 2016. Chris was dealing with personal challenges that made it difficult for him to play professional football. He did return to training for a short time before the 2017 season. The next day, he and the club decided together that he would leave his contract. This was because he was unable to meet the demands of playing in the league due to ongoing health challenges.

Other Work

Chris Yarran was featured in a documentary film called Three Boys Dreaming, which won an award in 2010. The film followed Chris and two other young Indigenous Australian footballers for four years, from when they were 14 to 18 years old.