Jesse W. Smith

Jesse Smith
Personal information
Full name	Jesse W. Smith
Nickname(s)	JW, Boston
Date of birth	9 September 1986 (1986-09-09) (age 25)
Place of birth	Victoria, Australia
Original team	Calder Cannons
Draft	47th overall (father/son), 2004 Kangaroos
Height/Weight	191 cm / 83 kg
Position(s)	Half Back / Midfielder
Club information
Current club	Retired.
Playing career1
Years	Club	Games (Goals)
2005–2009	Kangaroos	27 (3)
1 Playing statistics to end of 2009 season .

Jesse W. Smith (born 29 September 1986) is a former Australian rules footballer who played for St Kilda and North Melbourne in the Australian Football League (AFL). He is the son of former North Melbourne player, Ross Smith. Formerly playing for North Melbourne, he was drafted to play for St Kilda in 2010, and retired at the end of 2010.

AFL career

North Melbourne

After being selected by North Melbourne under the father/son rule in the 2004 AFL Draft, Smith made his debut during the 2004 AFL season. However, Smith struggled with injury throughout his entire career, missing all of the 2006 season due to an ankle injury. He returned in 2007, earning a nomination for the AFL Rising Star after gathering 27 possessions in a game against Essendon.^[1] However, Smith was again limited by injuries during the 2008 season, playing only two games after suffering a series of hamstring injuries.^[2]

Smith managed just two games for the North Ballarat reserves in 2009 and re-injured his hamstring in the second of them. Frustrated with the Kangaroos' facilities, he knocked back a new contract and asked the club to trade him. After no trade was reached, he was delisted and started training with Hawthorn.

St Kilda

At the end of the 2009 season, frustrated with his inability to overcome various injuries which had sidelined him and citing the club's poor facilities as an issue, Smith requested a trade from the Kangaroos. The trade failed to eventuate and he was prepared to enter the national or pre-season drafts to find a new club.^[3] On 26 November 2009, St Kilda drafted him with pick number 60 in the AFL draft.

Smith played four games for Sandringham at VFL level and looked like a possible wildcard come finals time^[4] before breaking down with an ankle injury.^[5] Smith retired from the Saints at the end of season 2010 because of his injury toll; it impacted his fitness, skills and game time. It was widely believed that after his last ankle injury, he would not be able to compete at AFL level.^[6]

Honours and achievements

• AFL Rising Star nomination: 2007
• Larke Medal: 2004

References

1. ^ "Roos defender catches eye"
2. ^ Denham, Greg (30 April 2009) Jesse Smith sees light at end of long tunnel
3. ^ Clark, Jay (11 October 2009) "Smith leaves Roos with a swipe"
4. ^ Holmesby, Luke (6 May 2010) "EXCLUSIVE: Smith nearing return for Saints"
5. ^ Robinson, Mark (28 June 2010) "Jesse Smith bows to injury"
6. ^ Holmesby, Luke (11 October 2010) "Saints sign two assistants, Smith retires"

External links

Jesse W. Smith's statistics from AFL Tables

Awards
Preceded by Kepler Bradley	Larke Medal 2004	Succeeded by Marc Murphy

Persondata
Name	Smith, Jesse W.
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	9 September 1986
Place of birth	Victoria, Australia
Date of death
Place of death