| Nigel Lappin | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Personal information | |||
| Full name | Nigel Lappin | ||
| Born | (1976-06-21)21 June 1976 (age 49) Corowa, New South Wales | ||
| Original team | Chiltern (O&KFL) | ||
| Draft | No. 2,1993 National Draft,Brisbane Bears | ||
| Height | 188 cm (6 ft 2 in) | ||
| Weight | 87 kg (192 lb) | ||
| Playing career1 | |||
| Years | Club | Games (Goals) | |
| 1994–1996 | Brisbane Bears | 61(40) | |
| 1997–2008 | Brisbane Lions | 218 (134) | |
| Total | 279 (174) | ||
| Representative team honours | |||
| Years | Team | Games (Goals) | |
| Victoria | |||
| International team honours | |||
| 2001 | Australia | 2 | |
1 Playing statistics correct to the end of 2008. | |||
| Career highlights | |||
| |||
| Sources:AFL Tables,AustralianFootball.com | |||
Nigel Lappin (born 21 June 1976) is a former professionalAustralian rules footballer. Lappin is currently serving as an assistant coach with theGeelong Football Club.[1]
Lappin was born in the locally based regional hospital atCorowa, New South Wales and grew up inChiltern, Victoria. Lappin played in Chiltern's losing 1992 and 1993O&KFL grand final sides,[2] alongside his cousin,Matthew Lappin and Nigel kicked 59 goals in his two years of senior O&KFL football. Lappin won Chiltern's senior football best and fairest award in 1993.
He was drafted to play for theBrisbane Bears in theAustralian Football League in 1993, playing his first AFL game the following year in round three, against Fitzroy on the 9th April, 1994.[3] In 1997 he was a member of the inauguralBrisbane Lions team following the Bears merger withFitzroy.
A long, accurate kick, capable of running as a play maker throughout the whole match, he was recognised as a member of the group of players known as the "Fab Four",[4] a group of highly skilledmidfield players considered to be one of the major driving forces behind the Lions successive Australian Football Leaguepremierships in 2001, 2002 and 2003. An example of his courage was the 2003Grand Final win, in which he played the whole match with a broken rib.
Lappin represented Australia inInternational Rules in 2001.
In 2004 he achieved a personal milestone in winning his firstMerrett–Murray Medal. However his 2005 season ended prematurely when he broke his right ankle late in the season. Weeks into his comeback, the ankle was re-injured in a 2006 pre-season practice match, forcing him to miss the entire 2006 season.
Following the retirement of longtimecaptainMichael Voss at the end of 2006, Lappin was appointed co-captain of the club alongsideSimon Black,Luke Power,Jonathan Brown, andChris Johnson on 20 March 2007.
His cousinMatthew Lappin also played AFL football for Carlton and St. Kilda.
His grandfather,Gerry O'Neill played with Footscray in 1943 and 1944.
On 19 August 2008, Nigel Lappin announced his retirement from professional football. After only being able to play 4 games in the2008 season due to anAchilles tendon problem, Nigel decided it was time to draw a close on his career. "I'm really disappointed this season hasn't worked out for me," Lappin said at a Gabba press conference. "Every footballer wants the fairytale ending. It's hard to walk away from something that's been a really big part of your life, but I've got a family that will care for me."[5] He was the last remaining member of the Brisbane Lions inaugural Round 1, 1997 team.
In October 2008, Lappin joined theGeelong Football Club as an assistant coach.[6] In 2016 he was inducted into theAustralian Football Hall of Fame.
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 | ||||
| 1994 | Brisbane Bears | 44 | 17 | 8 | 3 | 115 | 82 | 197 | 37 | 11 | 0.5 | 0.2 | 6.8 | 4.8 | 11.6 | 2.2 | 0.6 |
| 1995 | Brisbane Bears | 44 | 19 | 17 | 18 | 179 | 80 | 259 | 56 | 14 | 0.9 | 0.9 | 9.4 | 4.2 | 13.6 | 2.9 | 0.7 |
| 1996 | Brisbane Bears | 44 | 25 | 15 | 15 | 376 | 126 | 502 | 118 | 16 | 0.6 | 0.6 | 15.0 | 5.0 | 20.1 | 4.7 | 0.6 |
| 1997 | Brisbane Lions | 44 | 21 | 10 | 14 | 281 | 119 | 400 | 107 | 17 | 0.5 | 0.7 | 13.4 | 5.7 | 19.0 | 5.1 | 0.8 |
| 1998 | Brisbane Lions | 44 | 20 | 15 | 12 | 269 | 130 | 399 | 96 | 15 | 0.8 | 0.6 | 13.5 | 6.5 | 20.0 | 4.8 | 0.8 |
| 1999 | Brisbane Lions | 44 | 25 | 23 | 23 | 281 | 185 | 466 | 109 | 29 | 0.9 | 0.9 | 11.2 | 7.4 | 18.6 | 4.4 | 1.2 |
| 2000 | Brisbane Lions | 44 | 24 | 16 | 12 | 337 | 179 | 516 | 107 | 33 | 0.7 | 0.5 | 14.0 | 7.5 | 21.5 | 4.5 | 1.4 |
| 2001 | Brisbane Lions | 44 | 25 | 26 | 19 | 383 | 232 | 615 | 157 | 50 | 1.0 | 0.8 | 15.3 | 9.3 | 24.6 | 6.3 | 2.0 |
| 2002 | Brisbane Lions | 44 | 18 | 7 | 12 | 275 | 167 | 442 | 92 | 74 | 0.4 | 0.7 | 15.3 | 9.3 | 24.6 | 5.1 | 4.1 |
| 2003 | Brisbane Lions | 44 | 22 | 8 | 15 | 371 | 191 | 562 | 124 | 70 | 0.4 | 0.7 | 16.9 | 8.7 | 25.5 | 5.6 | 3.2 |
| 2004 | Brisbane Lions | 44 | 25 | 17 | 17 | 379 | 251 | 630 | 115 | 121 | 0.7 | 0.7 | 15.2 | 10.0 | 25.2 | 4.6 | 4.8 |
| 2005 | Brisbane Lions | 44 | 16 | 8 | 5 | 220 | 147 | 367 | 76 | 49 | 0.5 | 0.3 | 13.8 | 9.2 | 22.9 | 4.8 | 3.1 |
| 2006 | Brisbane Lions | 44 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2007 | Brisbane Lions | 44 | 18 | 4 | 6 | 257 | 225 | 482 | 85 | 75 | 0.2 | 0.3 | 14.3 | 12.5 | 26.8 | 4.7 | 4.2 |
| 2008 | Brisbane Lions | 44 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 35 | 39 | 74 | 14 | 22 | 0.0 | 0.5 | 8.8 | 9.8 | 18.5 | 3.5 | 5.5 |
| Career | 279 | 174 | 173 | 3758 | 2153 | 5911 | 1293 | 596 | 0.6 | 0.6 | 13.5 | 7.7 | 21.2 | 4.6 | 2.1 | ||
Teal Cup
Brisbane Bears/Lions
