Jonathon Patton (born 20 May 1993) is a former professional Australian rules footballer who played for the Greater Western Sydney Giants and Hawthorn Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL)

Jonathon Patton
Patton playing for GWS in 2017
Personal information
Full name Jonathon Patton
Date of birth (1993-05-20) 20 May 1993 (age 31)
Original team(s) Eastern Ranges (TAC Cup)
Draft No. 1, 2011 national draft
Debut Round 12, 2012, Greater Western Sydney vs. Richmond, at Škoda Stadium
Height 198 cm (6 ft 6 in)
Weight 101 kg (223 lb)
Position(s) Forward / ruckman
Playing career1
Years Club Games (Goals)
2012–2019 Greater Western Sydney 89 (130)
2020 Hawthorn 06 00(3)
Total 95 (133)
1 Playing statistics correct to the end of 2020.
Career highlights
Sources: AFL Tables, AustralianFootball.com

Patton was taken with first selection in the 2011 AFL draft.[1] Originally from Rowville, the 197 cm, 101 kg forward played for the Eastern Ranges in the 2011 TAC Cup season and was predicted to be the No 1 draft pick from early in the season. He was referred to by many as “The General”. He retired midway through the 2021 AFL season having played 95 games

Personal life

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Patton played his junior football with St Simons Knights Football Club, based in Rowville, before joining the Eastern Ranges in the TAC Cup. He was a member of the AIS AFL Academy and was awarded best and fairest for the Eastern Ranges in 2010, going on to be named captain of the squad in 2011.

For Jonathon's schooling he went to St Simon the Apostle Primary School, Rowville and then attended Nazareth College until Year 11, then which he completed Year 12 at Rowville Secondary College.

His older brother, Chris Patton,[2] is a basketball player who played for the University of California, Riverside,[3] and also for Melbourne United in the National Basketball League.[4]

Career

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Patton was recruited to the AFL by Greater Western Sydney with the first overall selection in the 2011 AFL National Draft. Patton travelled to Stockholm, Sweden in early 2012 for treatment on a jumper's knee injury, and missed the first eleven rounds of the 2012 season.[5] Patton played his first AFL game on 16 June against Richmond, kicking one goal from seven disposals. In round 3, 2013, Patton's tenth career game, he suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament, which would see him miss the remainder of the 2013 season.[6] In round 21, 2014 after having a break out year Patton re-tore his ACL in the right knee and underwent a traditional knee reconstruction, which saw him miss 12 months.

After returning late in 2015 for three games the club chose to rest him for the remainder of the regular season so that he could benefit from an uninterrupted preparation for the following 2016 season. Patton had his most productive season to date with his contested marking a highlight. He kicked four goals in the preliminary final loss to the Western Bulldogs.

In 2017 the expectation that came with being number 1 draft pick began to be justified when he started to regularly win possessions and contests with his notable strength and marking skills. He had a career high 45 goals and 142 marks in his 22 games.

In 2018 Patton again injured his knee during a club training session requiring season ending surgery. He later tore his left ACL and missed the entire 2019 season. At the end of the 2019 season he requested a trade to Hawthorn,[7] and was traded on 15 October.[8]

In January 2021, Patton was stood down by Hawthorn for inappropriate behaviour after accusations were made that he inappropriately sent sexual images to several women over social media.[9]

Patton retired from football on 16 April 2021, citing mental health issues.[10]

Statistics

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Legend
  G  
Goals
  K  
Kicks
  D  
Disposals 
  T  
Tackles
  B  
Behinds 
  H  
Handballs 
  M  
Marks
Season Team No. Games Totals Averages (per game) Votes
G B K H D M T G B K H D M T
2012 Greater Western Sydney 12 7 4 4 28 20 48 20 9 0.6 0.6 4.0 2.8 6.8 2.8 1.3 0
2013 Greater Western Sydney 12 3 5 3 16 7 23 7 7 1.7 1.0 5.3 2.3 7.6 2.3 2.3 0
2014 Greater Western Sydney 12 19 25 17 147 68 215 96 28 1.3 0.9 7.8 3.6 11.3 5.0 1.5 0
2015 Greater Western Sydney 12 3 3 3 20 9 29 13 4 1.0 1.0 6.7 3.0 9.7 4.3 1.3 0
2016 Greater Western Sydney 12 23 38 16 160 75 235 131 33 1.7 0.7 7.0 3.2 10.2 5.7 1.4 5
2017 Greater Western Sydney 12 22 45 23 191 100 291 142 36 2.1 1.1 8.7 4.5 13.2 6.5 1.6 6
2018 Greater Western Sydney 12 12 10 10 89 74 163 58 32 0.8 0.8 7.4 6.2 13.6 4.8 2.7 0
2019 Greater Western Sydney 12 0 0
2020[a] Hawthorn 25 6 3 2 18 11 29 11 4 0.5 0.3 3.0 1.8 4.8 1.8 0.7 0
Career[11] 95 133 78 669 364 1033 478 153 1.4 0.8 7.0 3.8 10.9 5.0 1.6 11

Notes

  1. ^ The 2020 season was played with 17 home-and-away matches per team (down from 22) and 16-minute quarters with time on (down from 20-minute quarters with time on) due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Honours and achievements

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Individual

References

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  1. ^ Giant Patton leads GWS draft domination. Abc.net.au (24 November 2011). Retrieved on 2016-06-28.
  2. ^ Ryan, Conor (30 April 2011). "Big, fast and ready".
  3. ^ Steele, Allan (8 November 2012). "BASKETBALL: UC Riverside men's preview".
  4. ^ Smart, Nick (25 November 2014). "Brothers Jon and Chris Patton pursuing their sporting dreams in Aussie Rules and basketball". Herald Sun.
  5. ^ Patton to miss start of AFL season – ABC Grandstand Sport (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)
  6. ^ Landsberger, Sam (13 April 2013). "Greater Western Sydney forward Jon Patton has gone down with a knee injury". Herald Sun. Retrieved 14 April 2013.
  7. ^ "General Patton zeroes in on Hawthorn". October 2019.
  8. ^ "Patton to the Hawks".
  9. ^ "Hawthorn stands down Patton amid claims he sent women unsolicited lewd messages". www.abc.net.au. 11 January 2021. Retrieved 15 January 2021.
  10. ^ "Jonathon Patton announces retirement". Hawthorn Football Club. Telstra Media. 16 April 2021. Retrieved 16 April 2021.
  11. ^ "Jonathon Patton's player profile at AFL Tables". afltables.com.
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