Xavier Clarke facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Xavier Clarke |
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Clarke as Richmond VFL head coach in July 2021
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| Personal information | |||
| Full name | Xavier Clarke | ||
| Date of birth | 28 September 1983 | ||
| Place of birth | Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia | ||
| Original team | St Mary's (NTFL) | ||
| Draft |
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| Position(s) | Midfielder | ||
| Career highlights | |||
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Playing
Coaching
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Xavier Clarke (born 28 September 1983) is a former Australian rules football player. He played for the St Kilda Saints and Brisbane Lions in the Australian Football League (AFL). After his playing career, he became a successful coach.
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Early Life and Football Beginnings
Xavier Clarke has Indigenous Australian heritage. His family comes from the Gambalang people near the Daly River in the Northern Territory. He grew up in Darwin.
Clarke started playing football at the St Mary's Football Club in the Northern Territory Football League (NTFL). He was a very talented junior player. Many people thought he would be one of the first players chosen in the 2001 AFL Draft.
Playing Career in the AFL
Joining St Kilda
In the 2001 AFL Draft, St Kilda picked Xavier Clarke as their first choice. He was the fifth player chosen overall. He was given the number 20 jersey.
Clarke made his first senior AFL game in the 2002 AFL season. He was even nominated for the AFL Rising Star award that year, which celebrates young, talented players. His brother, Raphael, also joined St Kilda later.
Xavier played 57 games in his first three seasons. After the 2003 AFL season, he took over the number 3 jersey from former St Kilda captain Nathan Burke.
Dealing with Injuries
In the 2005 season, Clarke had a tough time with his form. His season ended early when he hurt his hamstring in a game against Collingwood.
Injuries continued to be a challenge for Clarke throughout the rest of his AFL career. After the 2009 AFL season, he moved from St Kilda to the Brisbane Lions. This move happened in exchange for a draft pick.
Time with Brisbane Lions
Clarke played only one game for the Brisbane Lions. This was in Round 18 of the 2010 AFL season against the Melbourne Football Club. Sadly, he hurt his hamstring again during that game.
Even though he was expected to miss only a week, Clarke did not play another game. In 2011, he almost finished a full pre-season training. However, he then badly injured his right knee. He tore his anterior cruciate ligament (ACL).
After this injury, Brisbane offered him a spot on their rookie list. But Clarke decided to retire from playing football at the end of the 2011 season.
Coaching Career
After retiring as a player, Xavier Clarke started a new career in coaching. In 2014, he became the head coach of the NT Thunder team in the NEAFL league.
He quickly showed his talent as a coach. In 2014, he won the league's Coach of the Year award. The next year, in 2015, he led the NT Thunder to win the NEAFL Premiership.
In 2017, Clarke joined Richmond as an assistant coach for their VFL team. By 2020, he became the head coach of the club's VFL side.
Achievements and Awards
Xavier Clarke has received several awards for his coaching:
- NEAFL Premiership Coach: 2015
- NEAFL Coach of the Year: 2014
- NT Sports Awards Coach of the Year: 2016
Other Important Work
Beyond football, Clarke has also worked to help Indigenous communities. He worked with the AFL and the AFL Players Association (AFLPA) on projects to connect with Indigenous people.
He was also one of the people who started the Unity Foundation. This foundation worked to provide homes and support for young Indigenous people who were homeless.
