Michael Gardiner

Michael Strickland Gardiner (born 5 July 1979) is a former Australian rules footballer who played for the St Kilda Football Club and the West Coast Eagles in the Australian Football League (AFL).

Originally from Albany, Western Australia.

Gardiner played for the Claremont Football Club in the West Australian Football League (WAFL) before being drafted by West Coast with the number-one pick in the 1996 National Draft.

Gardiner nominated for the 1996 ADL Draft, and was considered a solid chance to be selected in the top 10.

Gardiner was selected by the West Coast Eagles with the number 1 draft pick in the 1996 AFL Draft.

He made his debut for the club in 1997, and over the next seasons replaced Ryan Turnbull as the club's first-choice ruckman.

Gardiner debuted in 1997 in Round 4 against Hawthorn, at only 17 years of age.

His number 1 draft pick status came with big expectations from his new club to immediately establish himself as an emerging ruckman/forward.

He did not disappoint, winning a Rising Star Rookie of the Year nomination in West Coats's Round 19 win over Hawthorn.

He played 10 games for the season, including his first Finals Match in the semi-final loss.

West Coast led at every break before being defeated by 13 points by North Melbourne, who went on to play St Kilda in the Preliminary Final.

Gardiner played 14 games in his second season of AFL Football, averaging 10 disposals and 15 hit-outs a game in a season where he appeared in his second Finals Match.

His season ending with defeat in the a qualifying final loss.

In 1999 he played in 17 matches, averaging just under 10 disposals 14 hit-outs per game.

Gardiner appeared in both Finals Matches with West Coast, including his first Finals win as a Player in the Qualifying Final win.

His season ended with a semi-final loss in week 2.

The 2000 AFL season saw Gardiner play all of the first 14 matches of the season, before being restricted to just 1 more game for the rest of the season.

He had his first 20 plus disposals match against Fremantle in Round 6, kicking 3 goals against Melbourne the following week.

He also was awarded 3 Brownlow Medal votes for his 21 disposal, 31 hit-out performance in Round 11.

He averaged a personal best 19.6 hit-outs per game for the season.

The 2001 through 2003 seasons saw Gardiner steadily improve in the Ruck, his average hit-outs per season increased from 18.7 to a career best 25.2 per game over the three seasons.

West Coast's 2002 and 2003 seasons ended in defeat in the Elimination Final on both occasions.

After being named in the All-Australian team in 2003, Gardiner missed most of the 2004 season due to injury.

In Round 5, 2003 he was awarded the Ross Glendinning Medal for best afield in West Coast's win over rivals Fremantle.

He was recognised for his improved consistency by being selected in the 2003 All-Australian Team.

However, he was then limited by chronic knee injuries, and played 18 games in the next three seasons with the Eagles with Dean Cox becoming the leading ruckman in the AFL competition.

Gardiner's 2004 season was limited to only the first 3 matches, with a knee injury ending his season.

Gardiner played limited games in 2005, 12 in total for the year.

He played more forward time and averaged 6 disposals per game and kicked 16 goals.

He played in all of West Coast's Finals matches for the season, including the ultimately inconsequential 2005 AFL Grand Final.

Gardiner was much maligned for his limited season, becoming a target for criticism from West Coast supporters.

In May 2005, Gardiner and then West Coast teammate Ben Cousins were criticised for involvement with a group of alleged Perth crime figures.

Cousins and Gardiner allegedly received phone calls from the crime figures both before and after incidents at the Metro City nightclub.

Police questioned Cousins and Gardiner about the incidents.

The Eagles told the pair that they were on their "last warning" and that their off field behaviour would not be tolerated.

Loss of form and a series of off-field controversies led to him being traded to St Kilda at the end of the 2006 season, having played total of 129 games for West Coast.

Gardiner's alleged off-field lifestyle issues were often seen as detrimental to the West Coast playing group and, in February 2006, in the midst of the Ben Cousins booze bus incident, he was dropped to the Western Australian Football League side Claremont indefinitely on grounds of poor performance and poor off field behaviour.

Gardiner's 2006 season was limited to just 3 games.

During his time at St Kilda, Gardiner added another 52 games, including St Kilda's 2009 and 2010 losing grand final teams, before retiring at the end of the 2011 season.

Gardiner played junior football in Western Australia for the Royals Football Club, before heading to Perth to play for Claremont Football Club in the WAFL.