Dennis Brett Armfield (born 22 December 1986) is a former professional

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 the

Carlton Football Club The Carlton Football Club, nicknamed the Blues, is a professional Australian rules football club based at Princes Park (stadium), Princes Park in Carlton North, Victoria, Carlton North, an inner suburb of Melbourne in Victoria, Australia. The c ...

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). After moving from Canberra to Perth as a child, Armfield spent all his junior years 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 ...

, where, among his duties, he was his team's designated place-kicker. After converting to Australian Rules Football at the age of 17, where he played for the local Kalamunda Football Club, before being recruited that year by

Swan Districts Football Club The Swan Districts Football Club, nicknamed the Swans, is an Australian rules football club playing in the West Australian Football League (WAFL) and WAFL Women's (WAFLW). The club is based at Bassendean Oval, in Bassendean, Western Australia, ...

in Western Australia in 2002, playing as a utility/midfielder. He worked his way through the Swan Districts junior ranks, and in 2006 was awarded the club's rookie of the year award, as well as being best on ground in the 2006 reserves grand final. He played all twenty games for the Swans' seniors in 2007. Armfield was nominated for the 2007 national draft. He was noted for his fast pace and quick acceleration, and a strong tackling style remnant from his rugby union background. He was selected by the

with a third-round selection (No. 46 overall) at the age of almost 21, which was rather old for a National Draft selection at the time. Armfield made his debut in round 10, 2008, against

Geelong Geelong ( ) (Wathawurrung language, Wathawurrung: ''Djilang''/''Djalang'') is a port city in Victoria, Australia, located at the eastern end of Corio Bay (the smaller western portion of Port Phillip Bay) and the left bank of Barwon River (Victo ...

. Armfield was primarily back pocket in his first four seasons with the club, playing 60 of a possible 92 games throughout that time, as either a midfielder/small forward, or in defensive roles against small forwards. He became a regular player in 2012, playing 21 out of 22 games, and added a strong counter-attacking game to his defensive abilities, kicking 16 goals for the season; he won the Best Clubman and Spirit of Carlton awards at the 2012 Best and Fairest awards night. In 2015, Armfield was recognised for his work as an ambassador and weekly volunteer for Odyssey House Drug and Rehabilitation Centre as well as his regular contributions to the Carlton Football Club’s community programs at the

Royal Children’s Hospital The Royal Children's Hospital (RCH), colloquially referred to as the Royal Children's, is a major children's hospital in Parkville, a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Regarded as one of the great Children's hospitals globally, the hosp ...

and Parkville Juvenile Justice Centre. For these efforts, he received the

Jim Stynes Community Leadership Award James Peter Stynes OAM (23 April 196620 March 2012) was an Irish footballer who converted from Gaelic football to Australian rules football and the first international player to be inducted into the Australian Football Hall of Fame in 2003. P ...

and a $20,000 donation to the charity of his choice. Armfield became a cult figure at the club, popular among fans, and was elevated to the club's leadership group in the 2017 season. Despite the position, a drop-off in form saw him play only five games for the season, and he retired from the AFL at the end of the year. During his time at Carlton, Armfield studied podiatry, after previously studying physiotherapy.

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WAFL player statistics
{{DEFAULTSORT:Armfield, Dennis 1986 births Carlton Football Club players Swan Districts Football Club players Living people Australian rules footballers from Western Australia Northern Bullants players 21st-century Australian sportsmen