Daniel McAlister (born 22 August 1978 in

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

http://www.realfooty.com.au/news/news/field-of-dreams/2008/11/16/1226770258000.html) is an

Australian rules footballer Australian football, also called Australian rules football or Aussie rules, or more simply football or footy, is a contact sport played between two teams of 18 players on an Australian rules football playing field, oval field, often a modified ...

who played six games in the

Australian Football League The Australian Football League (AFL) is the pre-eminent professional sports, professional competition of Australian rules football. It was originally named the Victorian Football League (VFL) and was founded in 1896 as a breakaway competition ...

for the

Essendon Football Club The Essendon Football Club, nicknamed the Bombers or colloquially the Dons, is a professional Australian rules football club that plays in the Australian Football League (AFL), the game's premier competition. The club was formed by the McCrac ...

. McAlister was born in

, of

Māori Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the Co ...

heritage. He is one of the few Maori Australians in the history of the VFL/AFL. McAlister grew up playing

rugby union Rugby union football, commonly known simply as rugby union in English-speaking countries and rugby 15/XV in non-English-speaking world, Anglophone Europe, or often just rugby, is a Contact sport#Terminology, close-contact team sport that orig ...

and

rugby league Rugby league football, commonly known as rugby league in English-speaking countries and rugby 13/XIII in non-Anglophone Europe, is a contact sport, full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular Rugby league playin ...

as a junior in

Taranaki Taranaki is a regions of New Zealand, region in the west of New Zealand's North Island. It is named after its main geographical feature, the stratovolcano Mount Taranaki, Taranaki Maunga, formerly known as Mount Egmont. The main centre is the ...

. His family emigrated to

Tasmania Tasmania (; palawa kani: ''Lutruwita'') is an island States and territories of Australia, state of Australia. It is located to the south of the Mainland Australia, Australian mainland, and is separated from it by the Bass Strait. The sta ...

when Daniel was 12, and after starting as a boundary umpire he played junior Australian rules in Smithton before moving to

Hobart Hobart ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the island state of Tasmania, Australia. Located in Tasmania's south-east on the estuary of the River Derwent, it is the southernmost capital city in Australia. Despite containing nearly hal ...

where he was selected in the Under 18 state team. McAlister, who is tall and weighs , played six games in three seasons between 1997 and 2002. Originally drafted with pick 5 in the 1996 AFL Draft, McAlister was delisted after playing just two senior games. Surprisingly, he was re-drafted in the

2001 AFL Draft The 2001 AFL draft consisted of a state draft, a body draft, a pre-season draft and a trade period. The AFL draft is the annual draft of players by Australian rules football teams that participate in the main competition of that sport, the Austr ...

, picked up again by Essendon at pick #64. He was delisted at the end of 2002, after which he was signed to play for the Wodonga Raiders in country

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Queen Victoria (1819–1901), Queen of the United Kingdom and Empress of India * Victoria (state), a state of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, a provincial capital * Victoria, Seychelles, the capi ...

. In 2023, McAlister was hired to coach Thurgoona Football Club.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:McAlister, Daniel Living people 1978 births VFL/AFL players born outside Australia Australian rules footballers from Tasmania Essendon Football Club players New Zealand players of Australian rules football Tassie Mariners players Albury Football Club players Wodonga Raiders Football Club players People from Smithton, Tasmania New Zealand emigrants to Australia Australian people of Māori descent