Australian Football

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Key Facts

Full name
James Cook

Known as
James Cook

Nickname
Captain

Born
7 January 1974 (age 51)

Age at first & last AFL game
First game: 20y 79d
Last game: 26y 79d

Height and weight
Height: 190 cm
Weight: 95 kg

Senior clubs
Carlton; Western Bulldogs; Melbourne

Jumper numbers
Carlton: 18
Western Bulldogs: 12
Melbourne: 8

Recruited from
Carlton (1996); Western Bulldogs (2000)

James Cook

Club
League
Career span
Games
Goals
Avg
Win %
AKI
AHB
AMK
BV
CarltonAFL1994-199525351.4064%4.561.723.441
Western BulldogsAFL1996-199949961.9665%5.121.673.551
MelbourneAFL2000382.6733%5.670.674.000
AFL1994-2000771391.8164%4.961.653.532
Total1994-2000771391.8164%4.961.653.532

AFL: 10,476th player to appear, 3,176th most games played, 737th most goals kickedCarlton: 993rd player to appear, 508th most games played, 217th most goals kickedWestern Bulldogs: 861st player to appear, 267th most games played, 64th most goals kickedMelbourne: 1,206th player to appear, 1,119th most games played, 494th most goals kicked

Big, burly and almost equally capable of the magical, the mundane and, to be perfectly frank, the mad, James Cook lit up the football scene for a comparatively brief period in the 1990s. When asked which of the footballers he had coached was the most difficult to deal with, Carlton’s ‘Coach of the Century’ David Parkin answered almost immediately, “James Cook - on a coachability scale of one to a hundred, I’d give him a two”.

Originally from North Hobart, Cook arrived at Carlton in 1990, if not exactly to a fanfare, then certainly to some high expectations. However, despite some stand-out efforts, he never really settled at Princes Park, and after 25 games and 35 goals in 1994-5 he was traded to Footscray. He produced the best and most productive football of his career with the Bulldogs, only to lose his way somewhat towards the end of his stint, which lasted from 1996 to 1999, and saw him play 49 AFL games and score 98 goals.

Crossing to Melbourne in 2000 he managed just three games and eight goals before ankle problems brought the curtain down on a career which, as is so often the case in the capricious world of big time football, ultimately failed to live up to expectations.

Author - John Devaney

Sources

Full Points Publications

Footnotes

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