Australian Football

Chris Waterman was a stalwart of the West Coast Eagles Football Club for more than a decade. Drafted locally from East Fremantle in 1987, he spent three seasons or so finding his feet before blossoming into precisely the sort of footballer most admired by Eagles coach Michael Malthouse: determined, solid and with a strong work ethic. Between 1988 and 1998 he played 177 V/AFL games for West Coast and booted 75 goals. A true utility in that he could adapt to almost any role, he played in three grand finals: that of 1991 in which the Eagles lost to Hawthorn, plus the wins of 1992 and 1994, both of which were against Geelong. He also played five games of state of origin football for Western Australia, and represented the WAFL once. His East Fremantle career, which spanned the years 1987 to 1990 and 1993 to 1998, saw him make 61 senior appearances and kick 42 goals.

Since retiring as a player Waterman has embarked on a productive coaching career which has included stints as an assistant at West Coast and Fremantle, as well as as head coach at Peel and Subiaco.

Author - John Devaney