Mathew Stokes

D.O.B:    
22 November 1984
Club:    
Geelong
Honours:    
2005 NAB AFL Draft Pick No. 61
2006 AFL Debut
2007 Geelong Premiership
2008 AFL Grand Final (Runners Up)

Mathew is a great story to come out of the 2005 National Draft. Picked up with Geelong's final selection, number 61 overall, he was a 21 year old "mature age" draftee, having played senior footy at Woodville West Torrens in the SANFL over the past few years.

Stokes played his underage representative football for the Northern Territory, playing in three under 18 carnivals from 2000-2002. He represented Australia against Ireland in 2001 for the AIS-AFL Academy before he was given his deserved shot at AFL football.

Mathew was a lively addition to the Cats forward line when he made his AFL debut in the middle of the 2006 season. He played nine senior games for Geelong, with a stellar performance against Port Adelaide in round 15 in that year. In 2007, Mathew was a revelation playing mainly as a small forward for the Cats and kicked 32 goals for the season including 5 against Fremantle in round 17 and 3 important goals in the first quarter of the Preliminary final against Collingwood.

In 2008, Stokes played in his second consecutive AFL Grand Final, however was less than 100 per cent fit. He also played in AFL Hall of Fame game for the Dream Team.

A member of the NAB Cup premiership team, Stokes was the unlucky player of the year. After ruling himself out of the Preliminary Final win over Collingwood with groin soreness, Stokes struggled to regain place in their Grand Final Victory over the Saints.

Mathew has plenty to offer as a creative small forward and is also studying to be a zoo keeper. He will continue studying this interesting profession as he juggles his career as an AFL footballer.