Bret Thornton
Encyclopedia
Bret Thornton is an Australian rules football
er for Carlton
in the Australian Football League
(AFL).
suburb of Mount Waverley
and attended Mount Waverley Secondary College
.
As a junior he played for the Waverley Blues Football Club, before being selected to play for the Oakleigh Chargers
in the TAC Cup
.
in Round 10, 2002 against Fremantle
after being elevated from the rookie list that year.
Thornton has been an important part of the Carlton backline since his debut in 2002. The retirements of Stephen Silvagni
, Michael Sexton
and Ang Christou
over a two year period saw a major gap left in the Carlton defence, and the young Thornton quickly found himself forced to try to fill that hole. Over the next few years, constantly defending against top forwards with more experience, Thornton developed into an important and reliable defender for the club.
With the development of Carlton's backline through the mid-2000s, Thornton's role became more variable. He still plays full-back when required, with reasonable capability against both leading and tall marking forwards, but Carlton benefits significantly when he is able to push up the ground and direct play from centre half-back. He played every game in 2006, and played his 100th game in 2007, becoming the ninth-youngest Carlton player to achieve the milestone.
Hawthorn
has been particularly keen to acquire Thonton's services. They expressed interest in trading for the out-of-contract Thornton for the 2007 season, and Thornton similarly named Hawthorn as his preferred destination for 2007. Carlton refused to agree to a trade, stating that Thornton was a required player at the club. After no trade was made, Thornton re-signed with Carlton on the 14 October 2006 for a three year deal. Hawthorn again expressed an interest in trading for Thornton for the 2008 season, but Carlton again refused.
In Round 19, 2009 against Geelong, he accumulated a career high 30 disposals.
He celebrated his 150th game in style in round one of the 2010 season when the Blues defeated Richmond
by 56 points at the MCG
.
Australian rules football
Australian rules football, officially known as Australian football, also called football, Aussie rules or footy is a sport played between two teams of 22 players on either...
er for Carlton
Carlton Football Club
The Carlton Football Club is a professional Australian rules football club based in Melbourne, Victoria. The club competes in the Australian Football League, and was one of the eight founding members of that competition in 1897...
in the Australian Football League
Australian Football League
The Australian Football League is both the governing body and the major professional competition in the sport of Australian rules football...
(AFL).
Early life and junior career
Thornton grew up in the MelbourneMelbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
suburb of Mount Waverley
Mount Waverley, Victoria
Mount Waverley is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 16 km south-east from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Monash...
and attended Mount Waverley Secondary College
Mount Waverley Secondary College
Mount Waverley Secondary College is a Public secondary school located in the Melbourne suburb of Mount Waverley. The school consists of roughly 1900 students and is one of the largest in the state....
.
As a junior he played for the Waverley Blues Football Club, before being selected to play for the Oakleigh Chargers
Oakleigh Chargers
The Oakleigh Chargers are an Australian rules football club playing in the TAC Cup, an under-18 competition in Victoria, Australia. They are based at Warrawee Park in Oakleigh, Victoria, representing the southeastern suburban area of Melbourne...
in the TAC Cup
TAC Cup
The TAC Cup is an under 18 Australian rules football representative competition held in Victoria, Australia. It is based on geographic regions throughout country Victoria and metropolitan Melbourne with each team representing 12 Victorian regions....
.
AFL career
He made his debut CarltonCarlton Football Club
The Carlton Football Club is a professional Australian rules football club based in Melbourne, Victoria. The club competes in the Australian Football League, and was one of the eight founding members of that competition in 1897...
in Round 10, 2002 against Fremantle
Fremantle Football Club
The Fremantle Football Club, nicknamed The Dockers, is an Australian rules football team which plays in the Australian Football League . The club is based in the port city of Fremantle at the mouth of the Swan River in Western Australia...
after being elevated from the rookie list that year.
Thornton has been an important part of the Carlton backline since his debut in 2002. The retirements of Stephen Silvagni
Stephen Silvagni
Stephen Silvagni is a former Australian rules footballer for the Carlton Football Club.During his long VFL/AFL career, from his debut in 1985, until his retirement in 2001, he gained the reputation as one of the greatest ever full-backs to play the game and was named as full-back in the AFL Team...
, Michael Sexton
Michael Sexton
Michael Sexton is a former Australian rules footballer who played for the Carlton Blues between 1990 and 2000.A defender, Sexton was a member of Carlton's 1995 premiership team and an All Australian in both 1996 and 1997. He was recruited from the Sandhurst Dragons.Sexton is member of the AFL...
and Ang Christou
Ang Christou
Ang Christou is a former Australian rules footballer for Carlton in the Australian Football League.-Football career:Christou played for the Carlton Football Club and along with Anthony Koutoufides was a popular figure as a Greek Australian.In 2001, Christou had a solid pre-season, but missed the...
over a two year period saw a major gap left in the Carlton defence, and the young Thornton quickly found himself forced to try to fill that hole. Over the next few years, constantly defending against top forwards with more experience, Thornton developed into an important and reliable defender for the club.
With the development of Carlton's backline through the mid-2000s, Thornton's role became more variable. He still plays full-back when required, with reasonable capability against both leading and tall marking forwards, but Carlton benefits significantly when he is able to push up the ground and direct play from centre half-back. He played every game in 2006, and played his 100th game in 2007, becoming the ninth-youngest Carlton player to achieve the milestone.
Hawthorn
Hawthorn Football Club
The Hawthorn Football Club, nicknamed the Hawks, is a professional Australian rules football club in the Australian Football League . The club, founded in 1902, is the youngest of the Victorian-based teams in the AFL. The team play in Brown & Gold vertically striped guernseys...
has been particularly keen to acquire Thonton's services. They expressed interest in trading for the out-of-contract Thornton for the 2007 season, and Thornton similarly named Hawthorn as his preferred destination for 2007. Carlton refused to agree to a trade, stating that Thornton was a required player at the club. After no trade was made, Thornton re-signed with Carlton on the 14 October 2006 for a three year deal. Hawthorn again expressed an interest in trading for Thornton for the 2008 season, but Carlton again refused.
In Round 19, 2009 against Geelong, he accumulated a career high 30 disposals.
He celebrated his 150th game in style in round one of the 2010 season when the Blues defeated Richmond
Richmond Football Club
The Richmond Football Club, nicknamed The Tigers, is an Australian rules football club which competes in the Australian Football League. Richmond shares healthy rivalries with Carlton, Collingwood and Essendon. After winning five premierships between 1967 and 1980, the club hit the depths in 1990,...
by 56 points at the MCG
Melbourne Cricket Ground
The Melbourne Cricket Ground is an Australian sports stadium located in Yarra Park, Melbourne and is home to the Melbourne Cricket Club. It is the tenth largest stadium in the world, the largest in Australia, the largest stadium for playing cricket, and holds the world record for the highest light...
.