Dean Cox (born August 1, 1981) also known as "Big Cox" is a professional Australian rules footballer who plays for the West Coast Eagles in the Australian Football League. The All-Australian Team is an all star team of Australian rules footballers, selected by a panel at the end of each season. ... is the 213th day of the year (214th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1981 (MCMLXXXI) was a common year starting on Thursday (link displays the 1981 Gregorian calendar). ... High marking is a key skill and spectator attribute of Aussie Rules Precise field and goal kicking using the oval shaped ball is the key skill in Aussie Rules Football Australian rules football, also known as Australian football, Aussie rules, or simply football or footy is a code of football... West Coast Eagles Football Club is an Australian rules football club competing in the Australian Football League. ... The Australian Football League (AFL), formerly known as the Victorian Football League, and sometimes known as the VFL/AFL, is the elite Australian national competition in the sport of Australian rules football. ...

Early career

Cox was evidently a naturally gifted sportsman who excelled at sports whilst growing up in Dampier, Western Australia. Dampier is a major industrial port in the north-west of Western Australia, located at 20. ...

His uncle George Michalczyk, a former Australian rules player himself, recommended Cox to the club he began his senior career with, East Perth. Home Ground: Leederville Oval (Based at Perth Oval between 1910 and 1999, The WACA Ground in 1988) Formed: 1902 (as Union Football Club) Colours: Royal Blue and Black Nickname: Royals WAFL Premierships: 1919-20-21-22-23, 1926-27, 1936, 1944, 1956, 1958-59, 1972, 1978, 2000-01-02 Record...

Cox played colts for East Perth in 1999 and at the end of the season was invited to train with the West Coast Eagles in their pre-season. He impressed enough for him to be rookie-listed, however he struggled in pre-season training and was criticised for being slightly uncoordinated.

Meanwhile he played senior football for East Perth. He began the season 5th in the order of an impressive list of ruckmen, but by season's end he had impressed so much he earned a place as the first ruckman in their grand final team and collected a Simpson Medal for his efforts. The Simpson Medal, a prize for Australian rules football, has been donated by Dr. Fred Simpson and family since 1945. ...

The Eagles then put him on their senior list and he made his AFL debut in 2001. Initially he showed few signs of his potential at that level. However, he was persisted with.

He is recognizable by his intimidating 204cm and 104kg frame, ranking among the top 10 tallest players in the AFL at the time of writing.

2005 season

He came of age during the 2005 season, where he became a dominant player for the Eagles and is now considered one of their best. Results and statistics for the Australian Football League season of 2005. ...

He topped the year off with a terrific finals series, living up to his high standards. Two incidents stand out in particular for Cox - one where in the Qualifying Final against Sydney he took two saving marks in defence to secure the game in the dying moments, where his team got home by less than a goal. Unfortunately, the other moment that stands out had the Eagles on the other end, where in the Grand Final three weeks later, again against Sydney, he took a strong mark on the half-forward line and speared the ball in towards a pack in the dying moments. Unfortunately for the Eagles, Leo Barry took a saving mark and secured the Swans a victory by less than a goal. The Australian Football Leagues 2005 Finals Series began on the weekend of September 2, 2005 and ended with the 109th AFL Grand Final at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on 24 September 2005, won by the Sydney Swans. ... Sydney Swans is an Australian Football League (AFL) club based in Sydney, New South Wales. ... Part of the pre-match entertainment at the 2006 AFL Grand Final at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. ... In the sport of Australian rules, the half-forward line refers to a position on the field of play. ... Leo Barry (born May 19, 1977) is an Australian rules footballer in the AFL with the Sydney Swans. ...

2006 Season

Cox got off to a superb start to the season and was one of the premier players in the competition early. He is still playing well and has established himself as one of the leagues premier ruckmen, averaging over 20 hitouts and almost 20 disposals per game through Round 8 of the 2006 Season. However, in Round 13 he met with a hard bump from Bulldog Adam Cooney, which left him with a broken collar bone. He returned to the side, and was a key figure in the Eagles thrilling 1 point win of Sydney in the 2006 AFL Grand Final, running Sydney ruckman Stephen Doyle and Darren Jolly ragged. Cox played 21 games in 2006, took 141 marks and bagged 14 goals. The 2006 AFL Grand Final was contested between the Sydney Swans and West Coast Eagles at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on September 30, 2006. ... The Sydney Opera House on Sydney Harbour Sydney (pronounced ) is the most populous city in Australia, with a metropolitan area population of approximately 4. ... Ruckman may mean: Ruckman, West Virginia Ruckman (Australian rules football position) This is a disambiguation page, a list of pages that otherwise might share the same title. ... Stephen Doyle (born 13 July 1981) is a South Australian Australian rules football player with the Sydney Swans of the AFL. Doyle was selected by the Swans under the father-son rule in the 1999 National Draft. ... Darren Jolly (born November 6, 1981) is an Australian rules football player for the Sydney Swans in the AFL. DARREN JOLLY ROXX!! Jolly began playing for the North Ballarat Football Club before being drafted by the Melbourne Demons to the AFL in 2004. ...

Playing Style

Dean Cox is a very versatile ruckman, who tends to cover much ground. Sometimes considered to be the Eagles 'fifth midfielder', Cox is a classic example of a mobile ruckman (See Ruckman). He effectively wins ruck knock-outs and can assist the likes of Daniel Kerr, Ben Cousins, Chad Fletcher and Chris Judd. The Midfield in relation to the football positions In association football, a midfielder is a player whose position of play is midway between the attacking strikers and the defenders (highlighted in blue on the diagram). ... Ruckman may mean: Ruckman, West Virginia Ruckman (Australian rules football position) This is a disambiguation page, a list of pages that otherwise might share the same title. ... Daniel Kerr (born May 16, 1983) is an Australian rules footballer. ... Benjamin Cousins (born 30 June 1978) is an Australian rules footballer for the West Coast Eagles in the Australian Football League from 1996 to present. ... Chad Fletcher (born 30 August 1979) is an Australian rules footballer who plays for the West Coast Eagles in the Australian Football League. ... Christopher Dylan Judd (born 8 September 1983) is the premiership captain of the West Coast Eagles in the Australian Football League. ...

External link

• Dean Cox's statistics from AFL Tables