Maurice Rioli Jr. facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Maurice Rioli |
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Rioli with Richmond's VFL team in April 2021
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| Personal information | |||
| Nickname(s) | MJ | ||
| Date of birth | 1 September 2002 | ||
| Place of birth | Darwin, Northern Territory | ||
| Original team | St Mary's (NTFL)/Scotch College/Oakleigh Chargers | ||
| Draft | No. 51, 2020 AFL draft | ||
| Debut | Round 21, 2021, Richmond v. North Melbourne, at MCG |
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| Position(s) | Small forward | ||
| Club information | |||
| Current club | Richmond | ||
| Number | 17 | ||
Maurice Rioli Jr. (born 1 September 2002) is a professional Australian rules football player for the Richmond Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL). He is known for his amazing tackling skills and for being part of the famous Rioli football family.
Contents
Early Life and Junior Football
Maurice Rioli Jr. is the son of the famous footballer Maurice Rioli, who is in the Australian Football Hall of Fame. He grew up on Melville Island, which is part of the Tiwi Islands in the Northern Territory. He lived there with his relatives, including his nephew Daniel Rioli, who also became a Richmond player.
He first went to high school in Darwin. Because of his famous last name, people in the football world were interested in him from a young age. Three AFL clubs, Richmond, Fremantle, and Essendon, were all hoping he would one day play for them.
Richmond and Fremantle had a special chance to pick him because of the father–son rule. This rule allows clubs to draft the sons of their former players. Essendon was also interested through a program for young players. Maurice showed he was most interested in Richmond, often visiting the club where his nephew Daniel played.
At age 14, he played for the Northern Territory in the AFL Under-16s Championships and was great at kicking goals. That same year, he played his first senior game for St Mary's in the Northern Territory Football League.
In 2018, Maurice moved to Melbourne to attend Scotch College. He played football for his school and again for the Northern Territory team. After playing for St Mary's again, he joined the Oakleigh Chargers in 2019.
Journey to the AFL
Getting Noticed by Recruiters
During the 2019-2020 season, Maurice played nine games for St Mary's. He had an amazing game in a semi-final, kicking four goals and being named the best player on the ground. He also trained with the Richmond AFL team, as he was eligible to be drafted by them under the father-son rule.
In 2020, many junior football seasons, including the NAB League and the AFL Under 18 Championships, were cancelled because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite this, Maurice was invited to the AFL Draft Combine, where top young players show their skills to recruiters. He officially chose to nominate for Richmond under the father-son rule.
Experts predicted that Richmond would select him in the draft. They were impressed with his speed, his ability to kick goals, and especially his tackling.
Joining the Richmond Tigers
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In the 2020 AFL draft, the Essendon club tried to pick Maurice. However, Richmond used its rights under the father-son rule to match Essendon's offer. This meant Maurice officially became a Richmond player, selected with pick number 51.
He started his career playing for Richmond's reserves team in the VFL. He played so well that he was chosen as an emergency player for the main AFL team. In his first VFL game, he kicked two goals and had 17 disposals.
Richmond's coach, Damien Hardwick, said Maurice was very close to playing in the AFL but needed to improve his running endurance. By July, he was one of the best tacklers in the VFL. After a game where he made eight tackles, he was finally selected to make his AFL debut. He played his first game in Round 21, 2021, against North Melbourne at the MCG.
What Kind of Player Is He?
Rioli is known as a defensive small forward. His main job is to put a lot of pressure on the other team's defenders when they have the ball. He is excellent at tackling and causing turnovers, which means he helps his team get the ball back.
Statistics
Updated to the end of round 5, 2025.
| 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 | ||||
| 2021 | Richmond | 49 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 7 | 2 | 9 | 1 | 4 | 1.0 | 0.0 | 3.5 | 1.0 | 4.5 | 0.5 | 2.0 |
| 2022 | Richmond | 49 | 15 | 14 | 7 | 76 | 46 | 122 | 30 | 41 | 0.9 | 0.4 | 5.0 | 3.0 | 8.1 | 2.0 | 2.7 |
| 2023 | Richmond | 10 | 10 | 2 | 5 | 40 | 22 | 62 | 14 | 21 | 0.2 | 0.5 | 4.0 | 2.2 | 6.2 | 1.4 | 2.1 |
| 2024 | Richmond | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 52 | 33 | 85 | 19 | 29 | 0.9 | 0.8 | 5.8 | 3.6 | 9.4 | 2.1 | 3.2 |
| 2025 | Richmond | 17 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 2.0 | 0.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 6.0 | 1.0 | 0.0 |
| Career | 37 | 28 | 19 | 178 | 106 | 284 | 65 | 95 | 0.8 | 0.5 | 4.8 | 2.9 | 7.7 | 1.8 | 2.6 | ||
A Family of Football Stars
Maurice is part of the famous Rioli family, which has a long history of producing amazing football players. He is the sixth member of his family to play in the VFL/AFL.
The other Rioli family members who played in the league are:
- His father, Maurice Sr.
- His cousin, Dean
- His cousin, Cyril
- His nephew, Daniel
- His cousin, Willie
