Alex Davies | |
Fullname: | Alex Davies |
Birth Date: | 18 March 2002 |
Originalteam: | Broadbeach Cats (QAFL) Manunda Hawks (AFL Cairns) |
Draftpick: | Pre-Draft Academy Selection, 2020 national draft |
Height: | 191 cm |
Weight: | 86 kg |
Position: | Midfielder |
Guernsey: | 5 |
Years1: | 2021 - |
Games Goals1: | 18 (8) |
Statsend: | round 7, 2023 |
is a professional Australian rules footballer playing for the Gold Coast Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL).
Davies was born in Woollongong, New South Wales to a Japanese mother and Tasmanian-born father.[1] He was raised in raised in Cairns, Queensland.[2] He grew up playing Australian rules football for the Manunda Hawks[3] and basketball for the Cairns Marlins,[4] where he was considered an outstanding junior prospect in both sports.[5] At the age of 12, he was placed in the Gold Coast Suns Academy[6] as well as being placed in the Cairns Taipans' academy program as a teenager.[7] In 2017, Davies captained Queensland to an Under-16 Junior National Basketball Championship victory[8] which led to selection for his home state at the 2018 Basketball Australia Under-18 National Championships.[9] He also represented Queensland at the 2018 AFL Under-16 National Championships and was named in the All-Australian team for his impressive performances.[10]
Davies attended Cairns State High School[11] with fellow football and basketball prodigy Tamuri Wigness throughout most of their teenage years and both juniors were given the opportunity to pursue professional careers in either sport.[12] Wigness elected to continue with basketball in Cairns while Davies relocated to the Gold Coast towards the end of 2018 to join the Gold Coast Suns' academy program on a full-time basis as well as complete his schooling at All Saints Anglican School.[2] The pair remain close friends and often train together in both sports when based in the same area.[13]
In his first year based on the Gold Coast, Davies was influential for the Suns in their 2019 Northern Academy Series win[14] and was rewarded with selection for the Allies at the 2019 AFL Under 18 Championships as a bottom ager.[15] He made his senior QAFL for Broadbeach in June 2019, where he received his senior jumper from his Japanese grandfather,[16] and caught the eye of coach Beau Zorko in his sole appearance for the club that year.[17] Davies finished the year by competing in the Under-17 AFL Future All Stars game where he impressed with 18 disposals and a goal.[18] Leading into his draft year, he was considered a top 10 draft prospect and was compared to Scott Pendlebury with his basketball background and ability to play as a tall midfielder[19] but 2020 proved to be an injury plagued year for him. Despite the interrupted season, Davies was pre-listed by the Gold Coast Suns on the eve of the 2020 AFL draft.[20]
Davies joined Gold Coast for his first AFL preseason in December 2020.[21] He made his AFL debut for the Suns at 19 years of age in round 23 of the 2021 AFL season.[22]
Statistics are correct to the end of round 2, 2022[23] |-|- style="background-color: #EAEAEA"! scope="row" style="text-align:center" | 2021|style="text-align:center;"|| 30 || 1 || 0 || 2 || 5 || 11 || 16 || 2 || 6 || 0.0 || 2.0 || 5.0 || 11.0 || 16.0 || 2.0 || 6.0|-! scope="row" style="text-align:center" | 2022|style="text-align:center;"|| 5 || 2 || 2 || 0 || 13 || 9 || 22 || 3 || 8 || 1.0 || 0.0 || 6.5 || 4.5 || 11.0 || 1.5 || 4.0|-|- class="sortbottom"! colspan=3| Career! 3! 2! 2! 18! 20! 38! 5! 14! 0.7! 0.7! 6.0! 6.7! 12.7! 1.7! 4.7|}