| Adam Saad | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 Saad playing for Essendon in August 2018 | |||
| Personal information | |||
| Full name | Adam Saad | ||
| Born | (1994-07-23)23 July 1994 (age 31) | ||
| Original team | Coburg (VFL) | ||
| Draft | No. 25,2015 rookie draft | ||
| Height | 178 cm (5 ft 10 in) | ||
| Weight | 76 kg (168 lb) | ||
| Position | Defender | ||
| Club information | |||
| Current club | Carlton | ||
| Number | 42 | ||
| Playing career1 | |||
| Years | Club | Games (Goals) | |
| 2015–2017 | Gold Coast | 48(3) | |
| 2018–2020 | Essendon | 61(5) | |
| 2021– | Carlton | 107(4) | |
| Total | 216 (12) | ||
| Representative team honours | |||
| Years | Team | Games (Goals) | |
| 2020 | Victoria | 1 (0) | |
1 Playing statistics correct to the end of the 2025 season. | |||
| Career highlights | |||
| |||
| Sources:AFL Tables,AustralianFootball.com | |||
Adam Saad (born 23 July 1994) is anAustralian rules footballer currently playing for theCarlton Football Club in theAustralian Football League. He previously played for theGold Coast Suns and theEssendon Football Club.
As a junior, Saad first played forWest Coburg Football Club in theEssendon District Football League. He was part of the club's under-18s premiership in 2010, where he was coached byPhil Cleary.[1]
Saad joinedCoburg in 2013 following aTAC Cup stint with theCalder Cannons. After appearing to struggle between Senior and Development level football, he established himself as one of the VFL's leading small defenders, winning the Coburgbest and fairest award in 2014 sharing in a tie with Daniel Venditti, and was named in the 2014 VFL Team of the Year.[2] His strong form and State Combine testing led him to being drafted to the Gold Coast Suns with pick 25 in the2015 rookie draft.
Saad made his debut for theGold Coast Suns in round 1 of the2015 season and kicked one goal in a defeat toMelbourne. In round 5, 2015, Saad was nominated for the Rising Star after his team's win over theBrisbane Lions where he had 26 touches.[citation needed]
Following the2017 season, Saad requested and was granted a trade to Essendon, who sent their2018 second round draft pick to the Gold Coast in return.
Following his impressive first two seasons, in which he placed fourth and third in theCrichton Medal, Saad and Essendon opened contract talks on the eve of the2020 season about a long-term extension, with a four-year deal expected to be agreed in the short term.[3] However, after round 1 of the season, the league was forced to shut itself down indefinitely due to theCOVID-19 pandemic, with the AFL placing an indefinite embargo on any new player contracts as it sought to come to terms with the financial ramifications of the situation. The AFL resumed its season in early June, but did not lift the contract embargo until mid-July.[4] Essendon struggled for form during this period, and by the time the contract embargo had been lifted, Saad was less sure about re-signing with the Bombers than he had been in March.
At the end of the season, Saad shocked Essendon by requesting a trade to their fierce rivals, Carlton, only three years after seeking out Essendon to recruit him.[5]
Saad kicked his first goal for Carlton in the Blues' round 7,2021 win against his old side Essendon.[citation needed]
Through his career, Saad has been known for his dashing pace, and propensity to run long distances with the ball, frequentlybouncing it. He led the league in bounces in 2017,[6] 2018,[7] 2021[8] and 2022;[9] in both 2018 and 2022, his tally of bounces more than doubled his nearest rival. As of 2024, he holds the record for highest average running bounces per game since statistics were first recorded in 1999, with 3.46 per game.[10] He has a long left-foot kick, and during his time at Carlton, the spectators would shout "woof!" whenever he took a kick; he was the fifth long-kicking left footed Carlton player to receive this traditional treatment, which had originated withVal Perovic in the 1980s.[11]
Saad is a practisingMuslim. He is of Lebanese descent.[12]
Updated to the end of the 2025 season.[13]
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 | |||||
| 2015 | Gold Coast | 42 | 16 | 1 | 2 | 121 | 151 | 272 | 66 | 44 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 7.6 | 9.4 | 17.0 | 4.1 | 2.8 | 3 |
| 2016 | Gold Coast | 42 | 10 | 0 | 2 | 75 | 76 | 151 | 36 | 25 | 0.0 | 0.2 | 7.5 | 7.6 | 15.1 | 3.6 | 2.5 | 0 |
| 2017 | Gold Coast | 42 | 22 | 2 | 7 | 194 | 171 | 365 | 78 | 50 | 0.1 | 0.3 | 8.8 | 7.8 | 16.6 | 3.5 | 2.3 | 1 |
| 2018 | Essendon | 42 | 22 | 0 | 3 | 199 | 178 | 377 | 56 | 55 | 0.0 | 0.1 | 9.0 | 8.1 | 17.1 | 2.5 | 2.5 | 3 |
| 2019 | Essendon | 42 | 22 | 3 | 0 | 239 | 149 | 388 | 62 | 75 | 0.1 | 0.0 | 10.9 | 6.8 | 17.6 | 2.8 | 3.4 | 0 |
| 2020[a] | Essendon | 42 | 17 | 2 | 1 | 201 | 119 | 320 | 49 | 34 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 11.8 | 7.0 | 18.8 | 2.9 | 2.0 | 2 |
| 2021 | Carlton | 42 | 22 | 2 | 6 | 311 | 113 | 424 | 72 | 39 | 0.1 | 0.3 | 14.1 | 5.1 | 19.3 | 3.3 | 1.8 | 0 |
| 2022 | Carlton | 42 | 21 | 0 | 0 | 323 | 136 | 459 | 100 | 47 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 15.4 | 6.5 | 21.9 | 4.8 | 2.2 | 3 |
| 2023 | Carlton | 42 | 25 | 0 | 0 | 341 | 161 | 502 | 111 | 48 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 13.6 | 6.4 | 20.1 | 4.4 | 1.9 | 3 |
| 2024 | Carlton | 42 | 18 | 1 | 1 | 217 | 113 | 330 | 70 | 40 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 12.1 | 6.3 | 18.3 | 3.9 | 2.2 | 0 |
| 2025 | Carlton | 42 | 21 | 1 | 1 | 264 | 114 | 378 | 61 | 53 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 12.6 | 5.4 | 18.0 | 2.9 | 2.5 | 0 |
| Career[14] | 216 | 12 | 23 | 2485 | 1481 | 3966 | 761 | 510 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 11.5 | 6.9 | 18.4 | 3.5 | 2.4 | 15 | ||
Notes
