Patrick Cripps

Patrick Cripps
Personal information
Date of birth	March 18, 1995
Place of birth	Canberra, Australia
Original team(s)	East Fremantle
Draft	No. 13, 2013 National Draft, Carlton
Height/Weight	194 cm (6 ft 4 in)/ 92 kg
Position(s)	Midfield
Club information
Current club	Carlton
Number	9
Playing career^1
Years	Club	Games (Goals)
2014–	Carlton	24 (7)
^1 Playing statistics correct to the end of Round 1, 2016 season.
Career highlights
John Nicholls Medallist: 2015 22under22 team: 2015 Rising Star runner-up: 2015

Patrick Cripps (born 18 March 1995) is an Australian rules footballer who currently plays with the Carlton Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL).

Early life

Cripps was born in Canberra, Australian Capital Territory and moved to the small farming town of Northampton in Western Australia's Mid West at a young age. Cripps played junior football in Northampton, and then moved to Perth and played juniors and colts for the East Fremantle Football Club in the West Australian Football League. He represented Western Australia at the 2013 AFL Under 18 Championships, serving as vice-captain and winning a place in the All-Australian Team for the tournament.^[1]

AFL career

Cripps was recruited by the Carlton Football Club with its first round selection in the 2013 AFL National Draft (No. 13 overall). Even as a junior, his playing style as a slow but strong-bodied midfielder with a strong ability to win clearances by handpass drew comparisons with club great Greg Williams.^[2] Cripps made his senior debut against Melbourne in Round 4, 2014,^[3] but played only three matches during the season due to injuries. Cripps changed from his debut jumper number of 16 at the end of the 2014 season, to number 9 after it was vacated after the delisting of Kane Lucas.

In just his second season, Cripps established himself as a top inside midfielder, finishing 8th in the league for contested possessions and 11th for clearances, and earning strong acclaim for his attacking use of handball.^[4] He finished second in the 2015 AFL Rising Star award after holding favouritism with bookmakers for much of the year, and he won the John Nicholls Medal as Carlton's best and fairest to become the second-youngest winner in the award's history.^[5]

References

1. "Four Sharks picked up in the 2013 AFL draft". 22 November 2013. Retrieved 28 June 2014.
2. Landsberger, Sam (22 November 2013), "Blues evoke Diesel in securing Cripps", Herald Sun
3. Connolly, Rohan (12 April 2014), "Blue day as Dees dare to believe", The Age
4. Riley Beveridge (8 September 2015). "Patrick Cripps tells Fox Footy he wants to be a one-club player at Carlton". Fox Sports. Retrieved 17 September 2015.
5. Loretta Johns (17 September 2015). "Cripps wins John Nicholls Medal". Carlton Football Club. Retrieved 17 September 2015.

External links

• Patrick Cripps's profile on the official website of the Carlton Football Club
• Patrick Cripps's statistics from AFL Tables