Jason Akermanis

Jason Akermanis
Personal information
Full name	Jason Dean Akermanis
Nickname(s)	Aker
Original team(s)	Mayne (QAFL)
Draft	NAT Zone Selection, 1994 Brisbane Bears
Height	177 cm (5 ft 10 in)
Weight	85 kg (187 lb)
Position(s)	Midfield/Forward
Club information
Current club	Western Bulldogs
Number	21
Playing career
Years	Club	Games (Goals)
	Brisbane Bears
	Brisbane Lions
	Western Bulldogs
Sources: AFL Tables, AustralianFootball.com

Jason Dean "Aker" Akermanis (born 24 February, 1977) is a former Australian rules football player. He is a Brownlow Medallist and triple premiership player who played for the Brisbane Bears, Brisbane Lions and Western Bulldogs.

Early career

Akermanis grew up in Victoria, moving to Queensland in his youth where he was educated at Wavell State High School then at St. Joseph's Nudgee College and played football with the Mayne Football Club where he was spotted by Brisbane Bears talent scouts. He completed year 12 at high school (aged 18) during his first year with the Brisbane Bears.

AFL career

Brisbane Bears (1995–1996)

Akermanis was a solid contributor to the Brisbane Bears midfield (wing), with his pace and skills evident even early in his career.

Brisbane Lions (1997–2006)

It was after the Brisbane Lions formed that he began to shine, bulking up significantly, and a move to the forward line enabled him to make the most of his opportunities and develop a reputation as a goal sneak.

Akermanis became one of the Brisbane Lions' most talented players. His flamboyant talents and bleached-blonde hair and contrasting black beard make him easy to identify on the field. At the Lions he made his name as a speedy midfielder or on-baller with blistering acceleration and an uncanny ability to kick exceptionally well with either foot, talents which helped him win the AFL's coveted Brownlow Medal in 2001.

He was also a crowd favourite with Lions fans, being famous for his handstands. Following a winning match, he usually performed a handstand and kissed the ground, much to the delight of his home crowd. Since joining the Western Bulldogs he stopped the practice.

Akermanis is also known for his goalscoring abilities. He was a winner of the AFL Goal of the Year 2002 award and has an ability to kick goals from acute angles. In a match in 2005, he kicked two goals within minutes of each other from almost the exact same spot: deep in the right forward pocket on the run. Early in the 2006 season, Akermanis was dropped from the Brisbane Lions side for Round 7, playing a game with the Suncoast Lions. This coincided with inflammatory comments that he made about the coach, Leigh Matthews, during the week and there was speculation that his time at the club was up, only a few months after he had won the 2005 club best and fairest award. However, Akermanis was soon recalled to the side and responded with 22 disposals across half-back in the game against Port Adelaide and a post-match interview with Channel Nine showed him smiling and visibly happy with his performance. On 27 July 2006 it was reported that the coaching panel and senior playing group had voted unanimously (12–0) to not allow him back into the club.

Western Bulldogs (2007–2010)

On 6 September, it was reported that the Western Bulldogs were leading in the race to sign Akermanis for the 2007 season. On 15 September, Akermanis confirmed that he wanted to join the Bulldogs and it was then down to the Lions agreeing on the trade price which they did on 9 October, when Brisbane Lions football manager Graeme Allan announced that the team had agreed to trade Akermanis to the Bulldogs.

At the end of the 2008 season, Akermanis made a statement that he would retire at the end of 2009 when his three year contract expired, however he displayed excellent form at the start of the 2009 season and later retracted his earlier comment about retirement. Western Bulldogs coach Rodney Eade said he had not ruled out the possibility of extending Akermanis' contract, depending on his performance for the rest of the season. He then signed with the Bulldogs for another year, hoping to play in a fourth premiership side. It is assumed his contract would be for substantially less pay than his previous deal which is estimated at between $350,000 and $400,000 a year.

In July 2010 it was announced that the Western Bulldogs had terminated Akermanis's contract due to the club's judgement that the two were on different paths.

Off field personality and controversy

Off the field, Akermanis is often very outspoken on issues concerning the Australian Football League and other codes.

His brash, over-confident demeanor makes him a favourite target for abuse by some supporters of other clubs, although others regard him as a colourful character and an antidote to most footballers who speak in a politically correct way. He often appears on The AFL Footy Show. He co-wrote a book with Gary Smart titled AKA – The Battle Within, which was released in 2004.

Some of his controversies include:

• Threatening to switch codes to rugby union if the Lions signed former Kangaroos Football Club star Wayne Carey
• Revealing to the media that teammate Nigel Lappin had broken ribs before the 2003 Grand Final
• Ongoing criticism of his coach at the Brisbane Lions, Leigh Matthews and
• Claiming "an opposing player" was using performanace-enhancing drugs; a comment that was linked by the media to West Coast Eagles' Michael Braun (though Akermanis never said who he was referring to), who was cleared after an investigation by the Australian Sports Anti-Doping Authority, which led to claims that Akermanis had lied.

"Stay in the closet" remarks

In May 2010, Akermanis wrote in the Herald Sun newspaper that he believes "locker room nudity and homoerotic activities are normal inside footy clubs", but advises young gay players who are "thinking of telling the world [about their sexual orientation to] forget it." The story quickly went international and Akermanis attracted considerable criticism for his statements. In a subsequent clarification on the SkyNews program The Today Show, Akermanis stated: "the homoeroticism around football clubs ... what workplace would you be able to see 20 men nude all the time if you wanted to? When you're slapping blokes on the bum and just having a bit of fun, what would that do to a man in there when you actually work out, 'Oh wait a second, wait a second. I don't know if I can handle that guy'". In a related interview, he stated that he himself was not homophobic, but merely believed that "it would cause discomfort in that environment should someone declare himself gay."

Numerous other AFL figures have publicly distanced themselves from the claims of Akermanis, including Western Bulldogs coach Rodney Eade, Sydney Swans coach Paul Roos, AFL Players Association general manager of culture and leadership Pippa Grange and the CEO of the AFL, Andrew Demetriou. In the week following the publication of the column, Akermanis twice met with other players and club officials of the Western Bulldogs and was told that he was on the team "to help the club win games of football – not to make off-field headlines and, by extension, create massive headaches for everyone else". However, in a radio interview on Melbourne Talk Radio on 31 May, Akermanis stated that he had not lied to his club about the article and that he had the support of his club "from the top down".

It was stated on The AFL Footy Show and elsewhere that, rather than Jason Akermanis being homophobic, he was in fact standing up for the rights of homosexual footballers in his statements, which suggested his perception of an aura of homophobia around football clubs. This was particularly emphasised by Sam Newman, whose statements supporting Akermanis on this topic were used by the Western Bulldogs as justification for his sacking.

Family

Akermanis is married to Megan Legge, a speech pathologist. They have two daughters, Charlotte and Sienna. Akermanis learned Auslan in order to communicate with his wife's hearing-impaired parents. He also speaks Spanish.

Swine flu fears

In early June 2009, Akermanis triggered fears within the AFL of a swine flu outbreak when it was revealed he had had contact with Ben Hannant of the Queensland State of Origin team just before Hannant was diagnosed with the disease. Akermanis himself was recovering from a cold and joked briefly on radio in Melbourne that he had made half the Queensland team sick. Akermanis tested negative for swine flu, alleviating fears of a swine flu outbreak in the Western Bulldogs team.

External links

• Jason Akermanis's profile on the official website of the Western Bulldogs
• Jason Akermanis's playing statistics from AFL Tables