Round 9 of the Mortgage Choice Hills Football League sees Blackwood utility Daniel Bennetts play his 100th match in the red and the green. A member of the senior leadership group, the 24 year old has had a successful time at the club missing only seven matches across the five and a half seasons he has played for the Woods.
Coming to the club at the start of 2013 in search of greater opportunities, Bennetts made his A Grade debut in Round 4 of the season at Uraidla Oval. It was a tough initiation to A Grade football with the side going down by 69 points. Bennetts ended up playing four A Grade matches during 2013 (Rounds 4, 16, 17 and 18) recording one win and three losses. On the return of Damien Salievic to the club in 2014, Bennetts has become a regular A Grade selection playing 77 of his next 81 matches in the A Grade.
In 2016, Bennetts earnt a spot as an Adelaide Crows top up player in the SANFL, but unfortunately didn’t play a game in the season he was on the list. Bennetts is a key member of the ‘super-six’ down back but provides coach Damien Salievic with plenty of flexibility as he can play in multiple positions across the ground from full back locking down on the key forwards of the opposition, the centre half forward providing a target and also in the ruck as the second ruck man.
Across Bennetts 99 senior matches he has some outstanding statistics:
- 99 Games (82 A Grade, 17 B Grade)
- 60.6% winning percentage (60 wins, 37 losses, 2 draws)
- 28 Goals (0.28 per match) (Most Goals in Match – Three in Round 5 of 2014 and Round 9 of 2017)
- 20 Times in Best Players (20.2%) (1st: 1 time, 2nd: 7 times, 3rd: 4 times, 4th: 3 times, 5th: 5 times)
- 1 Premiership – A Grade (2017)
- HFL Inter-league player (2016, 2018)
- Biggest win – Round 6 2014 v Bridgewater – 150 points
- Biggest loss – Round 14 2016 v Torrens Valley – 92 points
- Most successful team to beat – Bridgewater 100% (4 of 4 matches) and Mt Lofty (100%) (9 of 9 matches)
- Least successful team to beat – Hahndorf (26.67%) (4 of 15 matches)
- Most successful round – Round 1 and Round 12 (100% winning record)
- Least successful round – Round 16 (0% winning record)
Below are some photos of Bennetts during his 99 senior matches for the club.
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