Courtenay Dempsey facts for kids

Courtenay Dempsey (born 28 August 1987) is a former professional Australian rules football player. He played for the Essendon Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL).

In 2024, Courtenay was recognized as one of the top 100 Essendon players. He was named at Number 94 in Don The Stat’s list of Essendon players since 1980.

Courtenay Dempsey's Early Life

Courtenay Dempsey was born in Mount Isa, Queensland. He has Indigenous Australian heritage. His family comes from the Kalkadoon people. This is a tribe from Queensland's South/Central West region.

Courtenay first played rugby league when he was young. Later, he tried Aussie Rules in Cairns. He played for the Manunda Hawks in the AFL Cairns competition. After that, he moved to Brisbane. There, he played junior football for the Kenmore Bears. He also played for his school, Brisbane Boys' College.

Courtenay Dempsey's AFL Career

Courtenay Dempsey faced many injuries during his professional football career. In 2008, he had a stress fracture in his leg. A stress fracture is a tiny crack in a bone. In 2011, he tore his knee anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in round four. The ACL is an important ligament in the knee. He needed surgery to fix his knee. This surgery is called a knee reconstruction.

In May 2013, Courtenay was temporarily removed from the main team. This happened because he broke some team rules. He had to train with the VFL team instead. In August of that year, he tore a hamstring tendon. This injury meant he missed the rest of the season.

After the 2016 season ended, Essendon decided not to keep him on their team. This is called being "delisted."

Courtenay Dempsey's Career Statistics

Courtenay Dempsey played 133 games for the Essendon Football Club. He scored 35 goals during his career.