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Ben King (footballer)

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Ben King
King playing for Gold Coast in May 2019.
Personal information
Full name Benjamin King
Nickname(s) Kingy[1]
Date of birth (2000-07-07) 7 July 2000 (age 24)
Place of birth Melbourne, Victoria
Original team(s) Sandringham Dragons (TAC Cup)
Draft No. 6, 2018 national draft
Height 202 cm (6 ft 8 in)
Weight 96 kg (212 lb)
Position(s) Full-forward
Club information
Current club Gold Coast
Number 34
Playing career1
Years Club Games (Goals)
2019– Gold Coast 95 (184)
1 Playing statistics correct to the end of 2024.
Career highlights
Sources: AFL Tables, AustralianFootball.com

Ben King (born 7 July 2000) is a professional Australian rules footballer playing for the Gold Coast Suns in the Australian Football League (AFL). His twin brother, Max King, also plays football professionally for St Kilda.

Early life

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King was born in Melbourne, Victoria. He and his identical twin brother Max began playing Australian rules football for the East Sandringham Football Club in the South Metro Junior Football League.[2] The twins worked their way through the junior ranks before both being selected to represent the Sandringham Dragons in the TAC Cup while also attending Haileybury.[3] Through their time at Haileybury the twins were closely mentored by three time Coleman Medal winner Matthew Lloyd.[4]

Ben's draft stocks rose in his final year of junior football when his twin brother's ACL injury[5] allowed him to play as the key forward for the Victoria Metro team at the U18 National Championships. He was subsequently named the All-Australian full forward for his performances during the championships.[6] His junior football came to an end in mid-September 2018 when Sandringham fell to Dandenong in the TAC Cup preliminary final.[7] In November 2018, he was drafted by Gold Coast with the sixth selection in the 2018 national draft.[8]

King earned an ATAR score of 96.35 upon graduation from high school.[9]

AFL career

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King made his AFL debut for Gold Coast against Port Adelaide in the ninth round of the 2019 AFL season. In round 19 of the 2019 season, he earned a nomination for the 2019 AFL Rising Star after a four goal performance while playing on highly experienced Essendon defender Cale Hooker.[10] King rejected offers to return to Victoria in October 2019 by signing a two-year extension with the Suns.[11]

He suffered the same injury as his brother, a torn right ACL on the eve of the 2022 AFL season and missed the entire season.[12] It was initially feared that King could have played his final match for the Suns, given he was out of contract at the conclusion of the year. Despite lucrative offers circulating from several Victorian clubs, he eventually signed a two-year contract, showing his loyalty and commitment to the club and its future.

King returned to action in round 1 of the 2023 AFL season and after several quiet weeks he found form and put together two strong performances in round 6 & 7 that included 9 goals.[13] In May, he reaffirmed that he was settled on the Gold Coast and intends to remain with the Suns long-term.[14]

Statistics

[edit]
'Statistics are correct to the end of 2024.[15]
Legend
  G  
 Goals
  K  
 Kicks
  D  
 Disposals 
  T  
 Tackles
  B  
 Behinds 
  H  
 Handballs 
  M  
 Marks
Season Team No. Games Totals Averages (per game) Votes
G B K H D M T G B K H D M T
2019 Gold Coast 34 14 17 9 65 134 99 48 10 1.2 0.6 4.6 2.4 7.1 3.4 0.7 0
2020[a] Gold Coast 34 17 25 20 88 33 121 48 7 1.5 1.2 5.2 2.0 7.1 2.8 0.4 1
2021 Gold Coast 34 22 47 22 112 47 159 81 16 2.2 1.2 5.9 2.5 8.4 4.3 0.8 3
2022 Gold Coast 34 0 — — — — — — — — — — — — — — –
2023 Gold Coast 34 20 40 21 112 46 158 67 9 2.0 1.1 5.6 2.3 7.9 3.4 0.5 7
2024 Gold Coast 34 22 55 26 141 35 176 98 13 2.5 1.2 6.4 1.6 8.0 4.5 0.6 0
Career 95 184 101 532 202 734 351 56 1.9 1.1 5.6 2.1 7.7 3.7 0.6 11
  1. ^ The 2020 season was played with 17 home-and-away matches per team (down from 22) and 16-minute quarters with time on (down from 20-minute quarters with time on) due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

References

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  1. ^ "Weird footy nicknames: So why do they call Gov 'Brackets'?". AFL.com. 17 May 2019.
  2. ^ McEvoy, Simon (12 November 2018). "2018 AFL draft: Twins Ben and Max King looking forward to the 'next chapter'".
  3. ^ "King twins unfazed about being split through the AFL draft". 29 July 2018.
  4. ^ Balmer, Matt (30 October 2018). "AFL Draft 2018: Identical twin brothers Max and Ben King share incredibly tight bond".
  5. ^ Twomey, Callum (23 April 2018). "Scans confirm ACL for No.1 pick contender".
  6. ^ Twomey, Callum (19 November 2018). "Tomorrow's Heroes: Tall's versatility a big selling point".
  7. ^ Bunn, Sam (15 September 2018). "Gallant Dragons Eliminated by Dandenong".
  8. ^ Cleary, Mitch (22 November 2018). "King move sees pick six finally finish the longest journey".
  9. ^ Laughton, Max (18 December 2018). "The AFL draftees who nailed Year 12 VCE studies while also getting drafted in 2018".
  10. ^ Collins, Ben. "King of the kids: Big Sun the latest Rising Star". Retrieved 30 July 2019.
  11. ^ Balmer, Matt (14 October 2019). "Gold Coast lock down young gun - and more players are on the way". Retrieved 14 October 2019.
  12. ^ "Gold Coast King hit: Scans confirm ACL tear for star forward".
  13. ^ "Firing Sun King dismisses AFL trade rumours".
  14. ^ "If you come for the King, you're going to miss: Sun wants to stay".
  15. ^ "Ben King". afltables.com. Retrieved 5 August 2021.
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