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Key Facts
Full name
Dale Mathew Kickett
Known as
Dale Kickett
Born
4 May 1968 (age 56)
Ethnicity
Indigenous Australian
Age at first & last AFL game
First game: 21y 331d
Last game: 34y 63d
Height and weight
Height: 179 cm
Weight: 81 kg
Senior clubs
Claremont; Fitzroy; West Coast; St. Kilda; Essendon; Fremantle
Jumper numbers
Fitzroy: 12
West Coast: 33
St. Kilda: 52
Essendon: 16
Fremantle: 11
Recruited from
Fitzroy (1991); West Coast (1992); St. Kilda (1994); Essendon (1995)
Family links
Larry Kickett (Uncle)Lance 'Buddy' Franklin (Cousin)Jeff Garlett (Cousin)Derek Kickett (First cousin (Once removed))
Dale Kickett
Club | League | Career span | Games | Goals | Avg | Win % | AKI | AHB | AMK | BV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Claremont | WAFL | 1988-1989, 1991, 1993, 2001-2003 | 82 | 102 | 1.24 | — | — | — | — | — |
| Fitzroy | AFL | 1990 | 15 | 13 | 0.87 | 27% | 7.53 | 5.80 | 2.87 | 2 |
| West Coast | AFL | 1991 | 2 | 0 | 0.00 | 0% | 2.00 | 3.50 | 0.50 | 0 |
| St. Kilda | AFL | 1992 | 21 | 20 | 0.95 | 67% | 8.76 | 6.57 | 2.19 | 0 |
| Essendon | AFL | 1994 | 8 | 7 | 0.88 | 63% | 5.88 | 3.13 | 1.75 | 0 |
| Fremantle | AFL | 1995-2002 | 135 | 24 | 0.18 | 33% | 9.58 | 7.91 | 3.45 | 13 |
| WAFL | 1988-1989, 1991, 1993, 2001-2003 | 82 | 102 | 1.24 | — | — | — | — | — | |
| AFL | 1990-1992, 1994-2002 | 181 | 64 | 0.35 | 37% | 9.07 | 7.32 | 3.15 | 15 | |
| Total | 1988-2003 | 263 | 166 | 0.63 | — | — | — | — | — | |
AFL: 10,079th player to appear, 869th most games played, 1,704th most goals kickedFitzroy: 1,075th player to appear, 538th most games played, 312th most goals kickedWest Coast: 72nd player to appear, 262nd most games played, 260th most goals kickedSt. Kilda: 1,388th player to appear, 584th most games played, 312th most goals kickedEssendon: 981st player to appear, 784th most games played, 524th most goals kickedFremantle: 12th player to appear, 27th most games played, 84th most goals kicked
Dale Kickett was only the third man to play for five different V/AFL clubs. However, it was only at his fifth club, Fremantle, that he truly came into his own.
Originally from the small country town of Tammin, 84 kilometres east of Perth, Kickett commenced his senior league football career with Claremont and was a member of their 1989 WAFL premiership team. After the season had finished he was drafted by Fitzroy who thought so highly of him that they used their first round pick (pick 9 overall) to secure his services.
The 1990 season saw him play 15 AFL games for the Lions but he did not settle in Melbourne and at the end of the year he was traded to West Coast for whom he managed just 9 games in 1991, whilst simultaneously resuming in the WAFL with Claremont. The disappointment of his failure to kick on with the Eagles was mitigated to some extent by participation in the Tigers 1991 grand final defeat of Subiaco, after which he was awarded the Simpson Medal for best afield.
The 1992 season saw Kickett traded to St Kilda for whom he showed some promising form in racking up 21 games. However, once again he failed to settle in the city, and he departed the Saints at season's end. In 1993 he payed exclusively for Claremont whom he helped to another premiership whilst also collecting a second Simpson Medal.
Essendon were impressed with Kickett's 1993 WAFL form and selected him in the mid-season draft but he did not debut with the Bombers until 1994. Once again, it proved to be somewhat anti-climactic as he only managed 9 AFL games for the year.
In 1995 the AFL expanded to include a new team, Fremantle, knows as the Dockers, and that was where Dale Kickett found himself as he embarked on the most personally satisfying and fruitful phase of his career. Playing mainly as a defender he exhibited great pace, skill and purpose, and was often the springboard for his team's attacks. After consecutive second placed finishes in the Dockers' 1995 and 1996 best and fairest counts he proved a highly popular winner in 1997.
The Freo phase of Kickett's career saw him add 135 games and 34 goals to his respective tallies whilst stamping himself as one of the most eye catching footballers of his generation. He retired from AFL football at the end of the 2002 season but made one further apperance with Claremont the following year to take his final tally of games with that club to 81. He also played a couple of state of origin games for Western Australia.
Author - John Devaney