Gold Coast – a rich breeding ground for AFL talent
The Gold Coast is one of the AFL’s truly rich breeding grounds, having produced more than 25 players for the national competition since the inception of the AFL draft in 1986.
Among them are Brisbane Lions 300-gamer Marcus Ashcroft and his triple premiership teammate Clark Keating, St.Kilda co-captain Nick Riewoldt, the only Queenslander to have been taken No.1 in the draft, and the Kangaroos’ David Hale, another top 10 draft pick.
Each has his own story of where he started and how he fulfilled his sporting dream to play at the elite level, and together they represent an inspiration to others wanting to follow in their footsteps. There are no less than 17 Gold Coasters in the 2008 AFL spread over nine clubs, plus a first-class array of former players who blazed the now familiar pathway from the tourist strip to the national football stage.
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