Toby Bedford Explained

Toby Bedford
Birth Date:27 May 2000
Originalteam:Dandenong Stingrays (TAC Cup)/ Melbourne Grammar School (APS)
Draftpick:No. 75, 2018 national draft
Debutdate:Round 1, 2020
Debutstadium:Optus Stadium
Height:178 cm
Weight:69 kg
Position:Small forward
Guernsey:14
Years1:2019–2022
Games Goals1:18 (9)
Years2:2023 -
Games Goals2:39 (22)
Games Goalstotal:57 (31)
Statsend:round 21, 2024
Careerhighlights:

Toby Bedford (born 27 May 2000) is an Australian rules footballer playing for the Greater Western Sydney Giants in the Australian Football League (AFL), having initially been drafted to in the 2018 AFL draft. A small forward, he made his AFL debut in the opening round of the 2020 season.

Junior career

During his junior career, Bedford played for the Dandenong Stingrays in the TAC Cup and was part of Melbourne's Next Generation Academy, which allowed Melbourne to match any other club's bid on Bedford during a draft. He also represented Vic Country at the 2018 AFL Under 18 Championships.[1] He also played for his school side Melbourne Grammar School in the APS competition. Bedford's strong performance in a TAC Cup preliminary final victory over the Sandringham Dragons, in which he amassed three goals, six tackles and 13 disposals, was highlighted by Fox Sports and ESPN. His speed and tackling were noted as strengths; ESPN likened his play to West Coast defender Lewis Jetta. Bedford was expected to attract a second-round bid in the upcoming 2018 AFL draft.[2]

AFL career

Bedford was drafted by Melbourne as an academy selection with pick 75 in the 2018 draft. He spent his first year at the club playing for Casey, Melbourne's Victorian Football League (VFL) affiliate; he played 21 matches in 2019.[3] He made his AFL debut in the opening round of the 2020 season.[4]

Bedford was traded to at the conclusion of the 2022 AFL season.[5]

Statistics

Updated to the end of the 2023 season.[6] |- style="background:#eaeaea;"| 2020 || || 12| 2 || 0 || 1 || 6 || 10 || 16 || 3 || 4 || 0.0 || 0.5 || 3.0 || 5.0 || 8.0 || 1.5 || 2.0|- style="background:#eaeaea;"| 2021 || || 12| 0 || – || – || – || – || – || – || – || – || – || – || – || – || – || –|- style="background:#eaeaea;"| 2022# || || 12| 16 || 9 || 3 || 33 || 32 || 65 || 13 || 21 || 0.6 || 0.2 || 2.1 || 2.0 || 4.1 || 0.8 || 1.3|- style="background:#eaeaea;"| 2023 || || 14| 19 || 12 || 16 || 105 || 145 || 250 || 44 || 97 || 0.6 || 0.8 || 5.5 || 7.6 || 13.1 || 2.3 || 5.1|- class=sortbottom! colspan=3 | Career! 37 !! 21 !! 20 !! 144 !! 187 !! 331 !! 60 !! 122 !! 0.6 !! 0.5 !! 3.9 !! 5.0 !! 8.9 !! 1.6 !! 3.3|}

Notes

Personal life

An Indigenous Australian, Bedford is a cousin of Melbourne footballer Krstel Petrevski, who plays in the AFL Women's.[7]

Notes and References

  1. News: Balmer . Matt . AFL Draft 2018: Pick 1 and top 10 prospects, Jack Lukosius, Tarryn Thomas, Toby Bedford . 27 March 2020 . . . 16 September 2018.
  2. News: Doerre . Chris . AFL Draft Wrap: Toby Bedford stands out against Sandringham . 27 March 2020 . . 18 September 2018.
  3. News: Gibson . Ben . Bedford's fast start to pre-season . 27 March 2020 . melbournefc.com.au . . 21 November 2019.
  4. News: McGowan . Marc . Two to debut as Dees eye 'silver lining' to no-crowd game . 27 March 2020 . AFL.com.au . . 19 March 2020.
  5. AFL_House. 1579307024554553345 . 10 October 2022 . Trade paperwork lodged..
  6. Web site: Toby Bedford. AFL Tables. 5 April 2020.
  7. News: Black . Sarah . Cousin of AFL duo paves path for Indigenous girls . 27 March 2020 . womens.afl . . 13 November 2019.