Michael Johnson (born 20 October 1984) 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

Fremantle Football Club The Fremantle Football Club, nicknamed the Dockers or colloquially Freo, is a professional Australian rules football club competing in the Australian Football League (AFL), the sport's elite competition. The team was founded in 1994 to represen ...

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 ...

Early life

Recruited from

Perth Football Club The Perth Football Club, nicknamed the Demons, is an Australian rules football club based in Lathlain, Western Australia, Lathlain, Western Australia, currently playing in the West Australian Football League (WAFL) and WAFL Women's (WAFLW). R ...

in the WAFL with selection 8 in the 2004 Preseason Draft, he is a graduate of the Clontarf Football Academy.

AFL career

He made his debut against Richmond in Round 4 of 2005 when

Matthew Carr Matthew Carr (born 29 December 1978) is a former Australian rules footballer who played for Fremantle and St Kilda in the Australian Football League (AFL). He played as a half-back flanker and began his football career at East Fremantle. Ma ...

was a late withdrawal from the team due to illness. Due to promising performances at both WAFL and

AFL AFL may refer to: Education * Angel Foundation for Learning, a Canadian Roman Catholic charity * Ankara Science High School, a high school in Ankara, Turkey, natively referred to as ''Ankara Fen Liesi'' * Assessment for learning Military * ...

levels and his versatility, he announced a three-year extension to his contract in 2006 and then a two-year contract extensions to remain at Fremantle until the end of the 2011 season. In 2006, Michael finished equal runner-up (with

Peter Bell Peter Bell may refer to: People * Peter Hansborough Bell (1810–1898), governor of Texas, U.S. representative * Peter Bell (footballer, born 1898) (1898–1965), English footballer * Peter Bell (footballer, born 1976), Australian rules footballe ...

) in Fremantle's

Doig Medal The Doig Medal is the best and fairest award given out to the player considered best and fairest during a season for the Fremantle Football Club in the AFL. It was renamed in 2000 after the legendary Fremantle footballing family, the Doigs, who h ...

Best & Fairest count, further underlining his credentials as a prospect for the future. His 2007 season started badly when he was suspended for four matches after colliding with

Lachlan Hansen Lachlan Hansen (born 17 August 1988) is a former professional Australian rules footballer who played for the North Melbourne Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL). AFL career Hansen was drafted by North Melbourne with pick thr ...

in a

NAB Cup Nab or NAB may refer to: * The Nab, a fell in the English Lake District * Nab Tower, a lighthouse in England *Mazraat Nab, now the Israeli settlement and religious moshav Nov, Golan Heights * N.A.B. SC, a soccer club in Adelaide, Australia Abbrevi ...

match and being one of the first players to be charged under the AFL's crackdown on front-on contact to the head. In 2009, he was appointed captain of the club for a pre-season

derby Derby ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area on the River Derwent, Derbyshire, River Derwent in Derbyshire, England. Derbyshire is named after Derby, which was its original co ...

and despite missing the second half of the 2009 season due to an ankle injury, he was officially included in the leadership group for the 2010 season. He also won the club's best clubman award for 2009. In May 2010 Johnson was investigated by the police in relation to a drug-related matter.Star Docker faces drug probe
/ref> He was charged on summons with possessing

cocaine Cocaine is a tropane alkaloid and central nervous system stimulant, derived primarily from the leaves of two South American coca plants, ''Erythroxylum coca'' and ''Erythroxylum novogranatense, E. novogranatense'', which are cultivated a ...

, suspended for five matches and fined $5,000 for bringing the AFL into disrepute. He pleaded guilty and was fined $500 in court. In November 2016, Police investigated Johnson after it was alleged that he punched a Bunbury School teacher in the face while intoxicated at a kebab shop in Leederville. He was found guilty and fined a total of $4500, but was given a spent conviction. In 2017, Johnson was integral in Fremantle's early season turnaround assisting

Aaron Sandilands Aaron Wade Sandilands (born 6 December 1982) is a former professional Australian rules footballer who played for the Fremantle Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL). At tall, and with a peak weight of , he is the second heaviest ...

in the ruck despite the team generally taking a youth first approach in their team selection criteria. Johnson retired at the end of the 2018 season. In February 2019, he was appointed as Fremantle's inaugural indigenous and multicultural liaison officer.

Statistics

:Michael Johnson's player profile at AFL Tables
/ref> , - style="background-color: #EAEAEA" ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

2005 2005 was designated as the International Year for Sport and Physical Education and the International Year of Microcredit. The beginning of 2005 also marked the end of the International Decade of the World's Indigenous Peoples, Internationa ...

, style="text-align:center;", , 37 , , 11 , , 1 , , 0 , , 46 , , 36 , , 82 , , 23 , , 11 , , 0.1 , , 0.0 , , 4.2 , , 3.3 , , 7.5 , , 2.1 , , 1.0 , - ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

2006 2006 was designated as the International Year of Deserts and Desertification. Events January * January 1– 4 – Russia temporarily cuts shipment of natural gas to Ukraine during a price dispute. * January 12 – A stampede during t ...

, style="text-align:center;", , 37 , , 25 , , 5 , , 4 , , 270 , , 155 , , 425 , , 154 , , 41 , , 0.2 , , 0.2 , , 10.8 , , 6.2 , , 17.0 , , 6.2 , , 1.6 , - style="background-color: #EAEAEA" ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

2007 2007 was designated as the International Heliophysical Year and the International Polar Year. Events January * January 1 **Bulgaria and Romania 2007 enlargement of the European Union, join the European Union, while Slovenia joins the Eur ...

, style="text-align:center;", , 37 , , 18 , , 2 , , 1 , , 183 , , 130 , , 313 , , 100 , , 36 , , 0.1 , , 0.1 , , 10.2 , , 7.2 , , 17.4 , , 5.6 , , 2.0 , - ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

2008 2008 was designated as: *International Year of Languages *International Year of Planet Earth *International Year of the Potato *International Year of Sanitation The Great Recession, a worldwide recession which began in 2007, continued throu ...

, style="text-align:center;", , 37 , , 20 , , 5 , , 4 , , 204 , , 172 , , 376 , , 125 , , 30 , , 0.3 , , 0.2 , , 10.2 , , 8.6 , , 18.8 , , 6.3 , , 1.5 , - style="background-color: #EAEAEA" ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

2009 2009 was designated as the International Year of Astronomy by the United Nations to coincide with the 400th anniversary of Galileo Galilei's first known astronomical studies with a telescope and the publication of Astronomia Nova by Joha ...

, style="text-align:center;", , 37 , , 10 , , 8 , , 7 , , 122 , , 47 , , 169 , , 51 , , 18 , , 0.8 , , 0.7 , , 12.2 , , 4.7 , , 16.9 , , 5.1 , , 1.8 , - ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

2010 The year saw a multitude of natural and environmental disasters such as the 2010 Haiti earthquake, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and the 2010 Chile earthquake. The 2009 swine flu pandemic, swine flu pandemic which began the previous year ...

, style="text-align:center;", , 37 , , 19 , , 17 , , 8 , , 199 , , 120 , , 319 , , 117 , , 33 , , 0.9 , , 0.4 , , 10.5 , , 6.3 , , 16.8 , , 6.2 , , 1.7 , - 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 ...

, style="text-align:center;", , 37 , , 22 , , 13 , , 10 , , 201 , , 118 , , 319 , , 99 , , 52 , , 0.6 , , 0.5 , , 9.1 , , 5.4 , , 14.5 , , 4.5 , , 2.4 , - ! 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 ...

, style="text-align:center;", , 37 , , 24 , , 3 , , 1 , , 316 , , 150 , , 466 , , 166 , , 52 , , 0.1 , , 0.0 , , 13.2 , , 6.3 , , 19.4 , , 6.9 , , 2.2 , - 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 ...

, style="text-align:center;", , 37 , , 23 , , 5 , , 2 , , 321 , , 126 , , 447 , , 159 , , 44 , , 0.2 , , 0.1 , , 14.0 , , 5.5 , , 19.4 , , 6.9 , , 1.9 , - ! 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 ...

, style="text-align:center;", , 37 , , 18 , , 3 , , 2 , , 242 , , 113 , , 355 , , 110 , , 24 , , 0.2 , , 0.1 , , 13.4 , , 6.3 , , 19.7 , , 6.1 , , 1.3 , - 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 ...

, style="text-align:center;", , 37 , , 15 , , 1 , , 0 , , 179 , , 92 , , 271 , , 104 , , 9 , , 0.1 , , 0.0 , , 11.9 , , 6.1 , , 18.1 , , 6.9 , , 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 ...

, style="text-align:center;", , 37 , , 4 , , 0 , , 1 , , 46 , , 16 , , 62 , , 28 , , 3 , , 0.0 , , 0.3 , , 11.5 , , 4.0 , , 15.5 , , 7.0 , , 0.8 , - 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 ...

, style="text-align:center;", , 37 , , 22 , , 2 , , 1 , , 229 , , 130 , , 359 , , 123 , , 34 , , 0.1 , , 0.0 , , 10.4 , , 5.9 , , 16.3 , , 5.6 , , 1.5 , - ! 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 ...

, style="text-align:center;", , 37 , , 13 , , 3 , , 0 , , 118 , , 71 , , 189 , , 81 , , 20 , , 0.2 , , 0.0 , , 9.1 , , 5.5 , , 14.5 , , 6.2 , , 1.5 , - class="sortbottom" ! colspan=3, Career ! 244 ! 68 ! 41 ! 2676 ! 1476 ! 4152 ! 1440 ! 407 ! 0.3 ! 0.2 ! 11.0 ! 6.0 ! 17.0 ! 5.9 ! 1.7

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Johnson, Michael 1984 births Living people Fremantle Football Club players Perth Football Club players Indigenous Australian players of Australian rules football 21st-century Indigenous Australian people Australian rules footballers from Western Australia All-Australians (AFL) Peel Thunder Football Club players 21st-century Australian sportsmen