Charlie Dixon (born 23 September 1990) is a former

Australian rules football 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 ...

er who played for Gold Coast and

Port Adelaide Port Adelaide is a port-side region of Adelaide, approximately northwest of the Adelaide city centre, Adelaide CBD. It is also the namesake of the City of Port Adelaide Enfield council, a suburb, a federal and state electoral division and is t ...

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 ...

(AFL). He was recruited by the

Gold Coast Football Club The Gold Coast Suns, officially the Gold Coast Football Club, are a professional Australian rules football club that competes in the Australian Football League (AFL). The club is based on Queensland's Gold Coast in the suburb of Carrara. The ...

as a Queensland zoned selection made available to Gold Coast under the AFL's draft concessions. He scored the first ever goal in the history of the Gold Coast Suns, in their first ever match on 2 April 2011 against .

Early life and junior football

Dixon was born and raised in

Cairns Cairns (; ) is a city in the Cairns Region, Queensland, Australia, on the tropical north east coast of Far North Queensland. In the , Cairns had a population of 153,181 people. The city was founded in 1876 and named after William Cairns, Sir W ...

Queensland Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...

. His parents both played basketball in their younger years and Charlie began playing

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

at the age of four where he made several junior representative sides through the eight years he played the sport. Dixon began playing junior football with the Redlynch Lions Football Club in 2003. He would then join the Cairns Saints Football Club and made the seniors team at the age of 16. In his last game for the Saints he played in the 2007

AFL Cairns AFL Cairns is a semi-professional Australian rules football league that includes clubs from the Cairns region in Queensland, Australia. It is widely regarded as the strongest regional Australian rules football league in Queensland and has a lar ...

Grand Final on his 17th birthday; the Saints would finish runners-up. Following graduation from high school at the end of 2007, he and his brother moved to

Brisbane Brisbane ( ; ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the States and territories of Australia, state of Queensland and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia, with a ...

, where they were invited to play for the Redland Bombers in the

AFL Queensland State League The Queensland Australian Football League (QAFL or "Q-A-F-L") is an Australian rules football competition organised by the AFL Queensland, contested by clubs from South East Queensland. Founded in 1903 it was previously known as the Queensl ...

. He worked his way through the Redland ranks before playing for the senior side in 2008. In August 2008, Dixon was the first player ever to sign a contract with the newly formed

for their inaugural year in the

TAC Cup The Talent League (also known as the Coates Talent League under naming rights and previously as the NAB League and TAC Cup) is an under-19 Australian rules football representative competition based in Melbourne and run by the Australian Foot ...

. At the beginning of the 2009 TAC Cup season, Dixon was named vice-captain of the club. He played 15 games for the season and also represented the Queensland under 18 teams in the

AFL Under 18 Championships The AFL National Championships is an annual Australian national underage representative Australian rules football tournament. Since taking over as national governing body in 1995, the AFL has gradually restructured the competition into a primar ...

3 times and was a standout. Dixon's efforts in 2009 would see him officially drafted to the Gold Coast team at the start of 2010 by way of the local talent access selection. In the 2010 season with Gold Coast competing in the

Victorian Football League The Victorian Football League (VFL) is an Australian rules football competition in Australia operated by the Australian Football League (AFL) as a second-tier, regional, semi-professional competition. It includes teams from clubs based in east ...

, Dixon was again a standout when he finished the year with 22 goals from 14 games. Halfway through the season Dixon broke the player's code and was sent down to play for the

Labrador Tigers Labrador Australian Football Club, also known as the Labrador Tigers, is a Gold Coast based sports club. Labrador's Australian rules football team currently competes in the Queensland Australian Football League. From 2011 to 2014 it was an inau ...

for one match before returning to the VFL. He, along with teammate Brandon Matera, were the two leading goalkickers for the Suns in the 2010 VFL season.

AFL career

Gold Coast

He made his debut in Round 2, 2011 in the Gold Coast Suns' inaugural AFL match against Carlton at

the Gabba The Brisbane Cricket Ground, commonly known as the Gabba, is a major sports stadium in Brisbane, the capital of Queensland, Australia. The nickname Gabba derives from the suburb of Woolloongabba, in which it is located. Over the years, the Gab ...

, with Dixon kicking two of the Suns' goals in their heavy loss, including the club's first ever goal. Two weeks later it was found that Dixon had been playing half-blind his entire football career and required contact lenses. In Round 5, wearing contacts for the first time, Dixon was part of Gold Coast's first AFL victory over

AAMI Stadium Football Park, known commercially as AAMI Stadium, was an Australian rules football stadium located in West Lakes, a western suburb of Adelaide, the state capital of South Australia, Australia. It was built in 1973 by the South Australian Na ...

and kicked two goals during the win. He would continue to play each game until round 6 when the Suns suffered their second-worst loss to date, a 139-point loss to the

Essendon Bombers 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 ...

. Dixon was subsequently dropped and struggled to regain fitness which would only see him return to the senior side five more times for the season. He ended the 2011 season with 6 goals from 10 games. Following the 2012 pre-season in which Dixon raced the clock to gain fitness, he managed to shed 5 kg and would return in round 5 against the

North Melbourne Kangaroos The North Melbourne Football Club, nicknamed the Kangaroos or colloquially the Roos, is a professional Australian rules football club. The men's team competes in the Australian Football League (AFL), and the women's team in the AFL Women's (AF ...

, kicking two goals in the process. He was then tested in the ruck position for the next few games. In round 7 he suffered a soft tissue injury that would rule him out for 7 games. Upon return Dixon was tried in defence for the Suns and subsequently shone in the following weeks against the likes of Tom Hawkins,

Jack Riewoldt Jack Riewoldt ( ; born 31 October 1988) is a former professional Australian rules footballer who played for the Richmond Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL). He is a three-time premiership player, a three-time Coleman Medallis ...

and Jonathan Brown. On 4 July 2015, in a win over North Melbourne, Dixon became the first Suns player to kick seven goals in a game.

Port Adelaide

In the 2015 AFL Trade Period Dixon was traded to . At the end of the 2020 AFL season, Dixon finished outright second in the

Coleman Medal The Coleman Medal is an Australian rules football award given annually to the Australian Football League (AFL) player who kicks the most Laws of Australian rules football#Scoring, goals in the Australian Football League#Premiership season, home- ...

and earned his first All-Australian selection. Dixon was Port Adelaide's leading goalkicker 3 times; in 2017 (49 goals), 2020 (34 goals), and 2021 (48 goals). Dixon led the league for most contested marks in season 2021, with 46 contested marks, 8 more than second place. Dixon announced his retirement from the AFL after the conclusion of the 2024 season.

Statistics

: ''Statistics are correct to the end of round 22, 2022'' , - style="background-color: #EAEAEA" ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

2011 The year marked the start of a Arab Spring, series of protests and revolutions throughout the Arab world advocating for democracy, reform, and economic recovery, later leading to the depositions of world leaders in Tunisia, Egypt, and Yemen ...

, , 23 , , 10 , , 6 , , 4 , , 39 , , 38 , , 77 , , 14 , , 18 , , 9 , , 0.6 , , 0.4 , , 3.9 , , 3.8 , , 7.7 , , 1.4 , , 1.8 , , 0.9 , , 0 , - ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

2012 2012 was designated as: *International Year of Cooperatives *International Year of Sustainable Energy for All Events January *January 4 – The Cicada 3301 internet hunt begins. * January 12 – Peaceful protests begin in the R ...

, , 23 , , 12 , , 4 , , 6 , , 89 , , 62 , , 151 , , 48 , , 21 , , 93 , , 0.3 , , 0.5 , , 7.4 , , 5.2 , , 12.6 , , 4.0 , , 1.8 , , 7.8 , , 0 , - , - style="background-color: #EAEAEA" ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

2013 2013 was the first year since 1987 to contain four unique digits (a span of 26 years). 2013 was designated as: *International Year of Water Cooperation *International Year of Quinoa Events January * January 5 – 2013 Craig, Alask ...

, , 23 , , 13 , , 19 , , 7 , , 93 , , 73 , , 166 , , 42 , , 31 , , 135 , , 1.5 , , 0.5 , , 7.2 , , 5.6 , , 12.8 , , 3.2 , , 2.4 , , 10.4 , , 4 , - ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

2014 The year 2014 was marked by the surge of the Western African Ebola epidemic, West African Ebola epidemic, which began in 2013, becoming the List of Ebola outbreaks, most widespread outbreak of the Ebola, Ebola virus in human history, resul ...

, , 23 , , 14 , , 24 , , 9 , , 74 , , 55 , , 129 , , 37 , , 28 , , 69 , , 1.7 , , 0.6 , , 5.3 , , 3.9 , , 9.2 , , 2.6 , , 2.0 , , 4.9 , , 0 , - style="background-color: #EAEAEA" ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

2015 2015 was designated by the United Nations as: * International Year of Light * International Year of Soil __TOC__ Events January * January 1 – Lithuania officially adopts the euro as its currency, replacing the litas, and becomes ...

, , 23 , , 16 , , 41 , , 15 , , 102 , , 49 , , 151 , , 59 , , 27 , , 32 , , 2.6 , , 0.9 , , 6.4 , , 3.1 , , 9.4 , , 3.7 , , 1.7 , , 2.0 , , 6 , - ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

2016 2016 was designated as: * International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly. * International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...

, , 22 , , 18 , , 30 , , 16 , , 102 , , 103 , , 205 , , 70 , , 31 , , 21 , , 1.7 , , 0.9 , , 5.7 , , 5.7 , , 11.4 , , 3.9 , , 1.7 , , 1.2 , , 2 , - style="background-color: #EAEAEA" ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

2017 2017 was designated as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development by the United Nations General Assembly. Events January * January 1 – Istanbul nightclub shooting: A gunman dressed as Santa Claus opens fire at the ...

, , 22 , , 23 , , 49 , , 30 , , 218 , , 117 , , 335 , , 149 , , 71 , , 29 , , 2.1 , , 1.3 , , 9.5 , , 5.1 , , 14.6 , , 6.5 , , 3.1 , , 1.3 , , 8 , - ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

2018 Events January * January 1 – Bulgaria takes over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, after the Estonian presidency. * January 4 – SPLM-IO rebels loyal to Chan Garang Lual start a raid against Juba, capital of ...

, , 22 , , 20 , , 26 , , 24 , , 158 , , 107 , , 265 , , 82 , , 51 , , 159 , , 1.3 , , 1.2 , , 7.9 , , 5.6 , , 13.3 , , 4.1 , , 2.6 , , 8.0 , , 3 , - style="background-color: #EAEAEA ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

2019 This was the year in which the first known human case of COVID-19 was documented, preceding COVID-19 pandemic, the pandemic which was declared by the World Health Organization the following year. Up to that point, 2019 had been described as ...

, , 22 , , 9 , , 13 , , 11 , , 61 , , 40 , , 101 , , 29 , , 19 , , 23 , , 1.4 , , 1.2 , , 6.8 , , 4.4 , , 11.2 , , 3.2 , , 2.1 , , 2.6 , , 0 , - ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

2020 The year 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of even ...

, , 22 , , 18 , , 34 , , 21 , , 110 , , 60 , , 170 , , 69 , , 30 , , 46 , , 1.9 , , 1.2 , , 6.1 , , 3.3 , , 9.4 , , 3.8 , , 1.7 , , 2.6 , , 9 , - style="background-color: #EAEAEA ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

2021 Like the year 2020, 2021 was also heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, due to the emergence of multiple Variants of SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19 variants. The major global rollout of COVID-19 vaccines, which began at the end of 2020, continued ...

, , 22 , , 24 , , 48 , , 24 , , 178 , , 117 , , 295 , , 97 , , 50 , , 104 , , 2.0 , , 1.0 , , 7.4 , , 4.9 , , 12.3 , , 4.0 , , 2.1 , , 4.3 , , 3 , - ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

2022 The year began with another wave in the COVID-19 pandemic, with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, Omicron spreading rapidly and becoming the dominant variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus worldwide. Tracking a decrease in cases and deaths, 2022 saw ...

, , 22 , , 11 , , 16 , , 7 , , 84 , , 72 , , 156 , , 37 , , 24 , , 81 , , 1.5 , , 0.6 , , 7.6 , , 6.6 , , 14.2 , , 3.4 , , 2.2 , , 7.4 , , , - class="sortbottom" ! colspan=3, Career ! 188 ! 310 ! 174 ! 1308 ! 893 ! 2201 ! 733 ! 401 ! 801 ! 1.7 ! 0.9 ! 7.0 ! 4.8 ! 11.7 ! 3.9 ! 2.1 ! 4.3 ! 35 Notes

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Dixon, Charlie 1990 births Living people Gold Coast Football Club players Port Adelaide Football Club players Port Adelaide Football Club players (all competitions) Australian rules footballers from Cairns Redland Football Club players Labrador Australian Football Club players All-Australians (AFL)