Tom Bell (Australian footballer)

Thomas Bell (born 13 June 1991)[1] is a former professional Australian rules footballer who played for Carlton and Brisbane Lions in the Australian Football League (AFL).

Tom Bell
Bell in April 2018
Personal information
Full name Thomas Bell
Date of birth (1991-06-13) 13 June 1991
Place of birth Brisbane, Queensland
Original team(s) Morningside (NEAFL)
Draft No. 14, 2012 AFL rookie draft
Height 187 cm (6 ft 2 in)
Weight 98 kg (216 lb)
Position(s) Half-forward / Midfield
Playing career1
Years Club Games (Goals)
2012–2015 Carlton 51 (36)
2016–2018 Brisbane Lions 21 (20)
Total 72 (56)
1 Playing statistics correct to the end of 2018.
Sources: AFL Tables, AustralianFootball.com

Early life

Born and raised in Brisbane, Bell played soccer as a youth before being introduced to Australian rules football at age 12. He attended Iona College in Brisbane throughout his schooling and graduated with future AFL players Tom Hickey and Josh Thomas in 2008. He joined the NEAFL's Morningside Australian Football Club in 2010,[2] and was a regular senior player by 2011; in that season, he played twenty games for the club,[3] and made his name as a wing/halfback player.[4]

While playing in the NEAFL, Bell was selected in the Queensland Under-21 team, and also played a handful of games for the Brisbane Lions reserves. Outside of football, he undertook an apprenticeship as a refrigeration mechanic.[2]

AFL career

Following the 2011 season, and at the age of 20, Bell was recruited to the AFL as a rookie by the Carlton Football Club with its first round selection in the 2012 Rookie Draft (pick No. 14 overall).[4] He played most of his first season for Carlton's VFL-affiliate, the Northern Blues, and he made his senior debut for Carlton in Round 17.[5] Bell played the last seven AFL matches of the season, and won Carlton's Best First-Year Player award for 2012.[6]

In October 2015, Bell was traded to the Brisbane Lions.[7] He was delisted by the Lions at the end of the 2018 season.

References
  1. Macgugan, Mark (13 December 2011). "What the Blues say". Australian Football League. Archived from the original on 18 July 2012. Retrieved 13 December 2011.
  2. "Morningside Rookie in State Under-21 Squad". Sportingpulse. 19 May 2010. Retrieved 13 December 2011.
  3. "Player Statistics for Thomas Bell". Sportingpulse. Retrieved 13 December 2011.
  4. "Draft rings true for new Blue Bell". Carlton Football Club. 13 December 2011. Retrieved 13 December 2011.
  5. "Five changes to Blues line-up". Carlton Football Club. 19 July 2012. Retrieved 19 July 2012.
  6. "Scotland wins his first Best & Fairest". Carlton Football Club. 2 October 2012. Archived from the original on 7 October 2012. Retrieved 3 October 2012.
  7. Johns, Loretta (19 October 2015). "Bell traded to Brisbane". CarltonFC.com.au. Bigpond. Retrieved 19 October 2015.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.