John Barker (footballer)
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| Personal Info | |
|---|---|
| Birth | February 19, 1975, |
| Recruited from | Pascoe Vale, Victoria/Northern U18 |
| Height/Weight | 194cm / 86kg |
| Playing Career¹ | |
| Debut | Round 2, April 2, 1994, Fitzroy vs. Essendon, at Optus Oval |
| Team(s) | Fitzroy (1994-1996)
47 games, 12 goals Brisbane Lions (1997) 8 games, 1 goal Hawthorn (1998-) 112 games, 113 goals |
| ¹ Statistics to end of Round 21, 2006 season | |
| Career Highlights | |
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John Barker (born February 19, 1975) is an Australian rules footballer in the Australian Football League.
Contents |
[edit] Early career
Debuting in 1994 with the Fitzroy Football Club, Barker was a promising young forward who had strong hands and was a great mark. When Fitzroy merged with the Brisbane Bears at the end of 1996, he was selected as one of the players taken by the new Brisbane Lions. He stayed there for only one year before moving to the Hawthorn Football Club.
[edit] Hawthorn career
In his time at the Hawks, he has been a very good forward option, and hit his peak during the 2001 season, where Hawthorn made the preliminary finals. In that year he was the Hawks' leading goalkicker and was best remembered for his goal from the boundary line at Football Park, which gave Hawthorn the lead and helped secure a preliminary finals berth for the Hawks.
For the remainder of his career since then, he had suffered numerous injuries and struggled to get on the park, mainly playing with the Box Hill Hawks.
[edit] 2006 season
Despite the injuries, Barker signed a one-year contract for the 2006 season, which turned out to be his last year. He was still considered to be a vital player when fit for the Hawks, as a source of experience for younger, emerging players at the club such as Lance Franklin, Jarryd Roughead and Josh Thurgood (particularly with the departure in 2005 of another experienced forward, Nick Holland).
Barker played 6 games in 2006 before being recalled for a farewell game in Round 22 against Geelong after he announced his retirement during the week. [1]
[edit] Coaching Career
[edit] 2007 season
In the 2007 off season, Barker was appointed assistant coach at the St Kilda Football Club, where he is placed in charge of a forward line containing names like Fraser Gehrig, Nick Riewoldt and Justin Koschitzke. [2]
