Justin Clarke is the Brisbane Lions’ very own Ironman – and the statistics prove it.
The 21-year-old, who will play his 50th Senior game on Sunday, spends 97.5 per cent of game time on the field – more than any other player in the AFL. The closest is Fremantle’s Garrick Ibbotson with 95.5 percent.
Clarke said he was happy to spend more time on the field without a break if it allowed the team’s gamebreakers to stay fresh.
“It’s all about the team and people playing their roles,” said Clarke.
“I have to try and stay out on the field so the blokes who can have the impact on the scoreboard get the rotations and rest they need.”
Clarke, from the small country town of Booleroo in South Australia, said his journey from the family’s 1200-hectare cropping farm at the foot of the Flinders Ranges farm to 50-game AFL player had gone quickly.
“It still seems like yesterday that I had my first crack and I still feel as though there is plenty of development to go,” said Clarke.
“I’ve been extremely lucky to get the opportunity to develop my game with the Club – it’s been wonderful to get so much help and support.”
After being drafted from relative obscurity at the 2011 AFL Rookie Draft, Clarke has rapidly become one of the most promising young key defenders in the AFL.
At 195cm with terrific speed (he ran 2.97sec for 20m at the State Draft Combine in 2011), he is a long-term prospect for the Lions' backline and has carried extra load as a leader this year with the long-term injury to Dan Merrett.
Clarke – who had Tony Modra and Ben Rutten as heroes growing up – said Merrett, Matt Maguire and Joel Patfull had all played major roles in his development, while Assistant Coach Murray Davis had been invaluable as a mentor.
“Muz has been fantastic to help me learn my craft, he took me under his wing when I got here and spent a lot of time with me to help my develop,” said Clarke.
“I’ve learnt to try to take on as much as you can, enjoy playing as much as you can – and the fact that there is such a great group of blokes here to be going out each week to play with makes it a great place to be.”
