Jack Bytel
Personal information
Date of birth (2000-03-14) 14 March 2000[1]
Place of birth Aberfeldie, Victoria
Original team(s) Calder Cannons (NAB League)
Draft No. 41, 2018 AFL draft
Debut 10 August 2020, St Kilda vs. Geelong, at The Gabba
Height 189 cm (6 ft 2 in)
Weight 84 kg (185 lb)
Position(s) Midfielder
Club information
Current club St Kilda
Number 23
Playing career1
Years Club Games (Goals)
2019–2023 St Kilda 22 (3)
1 Playing statistics correct to the end of Round 1 2021.
Sources: AFL Tables, AustralianFootball.com

Jack Bytel (born 14 March 2000) is an Australian rules footballer who last played for the St Kilda Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL). He was recruited by St Kilda with the 41st pick in the 2018 AFL draft.[2][3]

Early life

Bytel was born in Aberfeldie, Victoria and participated in the Auskick program there[4] and played junior football for the nearby Maribyrnong Park Football Club, before joining the Aberfeldie Football Club in 2013.[5][6][7] He attended high school at Maribyrnong College as part of the schools selective sports academy.[8] Bytel played for the Calder Cannons (where he was co-captain) for two seasons, playing sixteen games during his time at the club.[5] In 2017 he averaged 27 possessions in the TAC Cup as a 17-year-old, and was compared to Sydney's Josh Kennedy.[9] During his seasons with the Cannons, Bytel kicked 10 goals and averaged 25.2 disposals per game.[10] He was selected to represent Vic Metro in the AFL Under 18 Championships in both 2017 and 2018, but stress fractures in his back restricted him to just four games over the two seasons, including three in 2018.[10][11][5] Prior to his injury, Bytel had been tipped to be top-10 draft selection.[12][9]

AFL career

Bytel was selected by the Saints, who were aware of his existing back injury. As a result, in January 2019, Bytel underwent surgery to repair a bulging disk in his lower back.[13] The surgery ruled him out for the 2019 season, the Saints took a conservative approach with the youngster.

Bytel debuted in the St Kilda's 59 point loss to Geelong in the 11th round of the 2020 AFL season.[14][15][16] On debut, Bytel picked up 18 disposals, 2 marks and 2 tackles.[17] He played the following two games, before being omitted for the remainder of the season. Bytel signed a two-year contract extension at the conclusion of the season, tying him to the Saints until the end of the 2022 season.[18]

Bytel played the first two games of the 2021 season, but was omitted for round three. He reclaimed a place in round four where he had 19 disposals and seven tackles. Bytel had a career-best game in round seven against Hawthorn, collecting 21 disposals and 10 tackles in the Saints' 69-point win. Bytel suffered a concussion at training leading into the Round 15 match, meaning Bytel had to observe the 12-day concussion rule.

Statistics

Statistics are correct to the end of 2021[19]
Legend
  G  
 Goals
  K  
 Kicks
  D  
 Disposals 
  T  
 Tackles
  B  
 Behinds 
  H  
 Handballs 
  M  
 Marks
Season Team No. Games Totals Averages (per game)
G B K H D M T G B K H D M T
2019 St Kilda230——————————————
2020[lower-alpha 1] St Kilda 2330093039380.00.03.010.013.01.02.7
2021 St Kilda231321707914918550.150.085.386.0811.461.384.23
Career 16 2 1 79 109 188 21 63 0.13 0.06 4.94 6.81 11.75 1.31 3.94
  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

  1. ↑ "Jack Bytel". St Kilda Media. Retrieved 15 September 2020.
  2. ↑ Negrepontis, Nic (February 2020). "Hannebery and King to be ready for round 1: Ratten". SEN 111.6. Retrieved 8 September 2020.
  3. ↑ Navaratnam, Dinny (29 November 2018). "Jack's back: Bulged disc to delay new Saint's pre-season". AFL Media. Retrieved 8 September 2020.
  4. ↑ AFL Record. Round 2, 2022. pg 92
  5. 1 2 3 "Three EDFL Juniors Taken At 2018 National Draft". Essendon District Football League Media. 23 November 2018. Retrieved 8 September 2020.
  6. ↑ "VFL/AFL Players from Aberfeldie Abers". DraftGuru. Retrieved 8 September 2020.
  7. ↑ "Vic Metro squad finalised". AFL Victoria. 31 May 2017. Retrieved 8 September 2020.
  8. ↑ "Six MSA Students make AFL U18 Vic Metro Squad". Maribynong Sports Academy. Retrieved 10 September 2020.
  9. 1 2 "The former top-10 prospect "too good too ignore"". www.sen.com.au. Retrieved 8 May 2021.
  10. 1 2 "Jack Bytel". Aussie Rules Draft Central. Retrieved 8 September 2020.
  11. ↑ Twomey, Callum (31 May 2018). "20 prospects to watch at the championships". AFL Media. Brisbane Lions FC Media. Retrieved 8 September 2020.
  12. ↑ "Bytel to debut in Monday night special". saints.com.au. Retrieved 8 May 2021.
  13. ↑ "Injury update: Jack Bytel". saints.com.au. Retrieved 8 May 2021.
  14. ↑ "Bytel to debut in Monday night special". St Kilda FC Media. 9 August 2020. Retrieved 8 September 2020.
  15. ↑ "AFL Round 11: Teams, tips, odds - everything you need to know for the weekend". ESPN. 6 August 2020. Retrieved 8 September 2020.
  16. ↑ Collings, Tom (10 August 2020). "Opposition Analysis: Round 11". Geelong FC Media. Retrieved 8 September 2020.
  17. ↑ "Round 11 • St Kilda v Geelong Cats - Player Stats". Retrieved 8 September 2020.
  18. ↑ "Bytel locked in". saints.com.au. 29 October 2020. Retrieved 29 October 2020.
  19. ↑ "Jack Bytel". AFL Tables. Retrieved 9 November 2020.
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