Australian Football

AustralianFootball.com Celebrating the history of the great Australian game

 

Key Facts

Full name
Sanford Matthew Wheeler

Known as
Sanford Wheeler

Born
6 April 1970

Place of birth
Lynwood, CA, USA

Died
10 March 2020 (aged 49)

Age at first & last AFL game
First game: 19y 30d
Last game: 24y 74d

Height and weight
Height: 186 cm
Weight: 90 kg

Senior clubs
Sydney

Jumper numbers
Sydney: 48, 27

State of origin
Lynwood, CA, USA

Sanford Wheeler

Advanced stats
ClubLeagueCareer spanGamesGoalsAvgWin %AKIAHBAMKBV
SydneyV/AFL1989-19944370.1612%8.123.281.652
Total1989-19944370.1612%8.123.281.652

AFL: 10,031st player to appear, 4,713th most games played, 5,779th most goals kickedSydney: 1,181st player to appear, 378th most games played, 559th most goals kicked

Notable for being the first African-American to play in the AFL, Sanford Wheeler (originally known as Matthew Wheeler) arrived in Australia as a five year old along with his African-American mother and Australian father. He soon developed an interest in Australian football, and exhibited considerable prowess at it. After playing his junior football with Parramatta he was recruited by Sydney as a rookie, using the club’s zone selection. He made his senior VFL debut in round six of the 1989 season, and although he never quite managed to nail down a regular spot in the team his athleticism, pace and raw aggression made him quite an eye-catching performer. On the debit side, however, his disposal skills were ordinary, and he had a tendency to get caught holding the ball. A knee injury sustained in 1994 effectively derailed his career and he was de-listed at the end of that season having played 43 V/AFL games and scored seven goals. Wheeler died at the comparatively young age of 49 in March 2020. 

Author - John Devaney

Sources

Full Points Publications

Footnotes

* Behinds calculated from the 1965 season on.
+ Score at the end of extra time.