Charlie Ballard

Charlie Ballard (born 23 July 1999) is a professional Australian rules footballer playing for the Gold Coast Suns in the Australian Football League (AFL).

Early life

Charlie participated in the Auskick program at Mitcham, South Australia.^[1]

Ballard played in their under-18 premiership for the Sturt Football Club in the SANFL as well as for Sacred Heart College.^[2] Standing 180cm at the time, Ballard averaged 18 disposals on the wing in the 2017 AFL Under 18 Championships, playing for South Australia. He ran 3.05 seconds in the 20 m (66 ft) sprint at the AFL Draft Combine, and was touted as a top-30 selection at the 2017 AFL draft.^[3]

AFL career

Ballard was selected by with pick 42, their 3rd-round selection.^[4]

He made his AFL debut in round 7 of the 2018 season, in the nine-point loss against the Western Bulldogs at Mars Stadium. He kicked one goal on debut.^[5] Ballard's first game was praised by coach Stuart Dew, along with fellow debutant Brayden Crossley.^[6]

Ballard played his 100th game in 2023. Following a successful 2024 season with the Suns, he signed a contract extension until the end of 2029.^[7]

In round one of the 2025 season, Ballard suffered a ruptured anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee, subsequently ruling him for the rest of the season.^[8]

Statistics

Updated to the end of round 12, 2026.^[9]

|- | 2018 || || 31 | 11 || 1 || 2 || 79 || 34 || 113 || 39 || 15 || 0.1 || 0.2 || 7.2 || 3.1 || 10.3 || 3.5 || 1.4 || 0 |- | 2019 || || 10 | 21 || 0 || 1 || 211 || 63 || 274 || 111 || 23 || 0.0 || 0.0 || 10.0 || 3.0 || 13.0 || 5.3 || 1.1 || 0 |- | 2020^[a] || || 10 | 16 || 0 || 0 || 114 || 44 || 158 || 68 || 13 || 0.0 || 0.0 || 7.1 || 2.8 || 9.9 || 4.3 || 0.8 || 0 |- | 2021 || || 10 | 21 || 0 || 0 || 227 || 61 || 288 || 140 || 25 || 0.0 || 0.0 || 10.8 || 2.9 || 13.7 || 6.7 || 1.2 || 3 |- | 2022 || || 10 | 18 || 0 || 1 || 177 || 49 || 226 || 109 || 22 || 0.0 || 0.1 || 9.8 || 2.7 || 12.6 || 6.1 || 1.2 || 0 |- | 2023 || || 10 | 23 || 1 || 0 || 230 || 63 || 293 || 142 || 29 || 0.0 || 0.0 || 10.0 || 2.7 || 12.7 || 6.2 || 1.3 || 0 |- | 2024 || || 10 | 23 || 1 || 0 || 184 || 94 || 278 || 111 || 28 || 0.0 || 0.0 || 8.0 || 4.1 || 12.1 || 4.8 || 1.2 || 1 |- | 2025 || || 10 | 1 || 0 || 0 || 5 || 1 || 6 || 3 || 1 || 0.0 || 0.0 || 5.0 || 1.0 || 6.0 || 3.0 || 1.0 || 0 |- | 2026 || || 10 | 4 || 0 || 0 || 26 || 14 || 40 || 16 || 3 || 0.0 || 0.0 || 6.5 || 3.5 || 10.0 || 4.0 || 0.8 || |- class=sortbottom ! colspan=3 | Career ! 138 !! 3 !! 4 !! 1253 !! 423 !! 1676 !! 739 !! 159 !! 0.0 !! 0.0 !! 9.1 !! 3.1 !! 12.1 !! 5.4 !! 1.2 !! 4 |}

Notes

1. ^ The 2020 season was played with 17 home-and-away matches per team (down from 22) and 16-minute quarters with time on (down from 20-minute quarters with time on) due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

References

1. ^ AFL Record. Round 9, 2022. pg 78
2. ^ Abbracciavento, Daniela (2017-08-05). "Sturt under-18 player Charlie Ballard is one of SA's top AFL draft picks". The Advertiser. Archived 17 September 2018 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2018-06-02.
3. ^ Twomey, Callum. "Late bloomer looms as draft tall order". afl.com.au. Archived 7 May 2018 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2018-05-07.
4. ^ "Charlie Ballard". goldcoastfc.com.au. Archived 8 May 2018 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2018-05-07.
5. ^ Black, Sarah. "Five talking points: Western Bulldogs v Gold Coast". afl.com.au. Archived 7 May 2018 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2018-05-07.
6. ^ Black, Sarah. "Sparkling debutants can add polish Suns need". afl.com.au. Archived 7 May 2018 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2018-05-07.
7. ^ "'I love the place': Suns lock away another piece of backline puzzle". afl.com.au. 17 September 2024.
8. ^ "Suns lose crucial defensive pillar to ACL injury". afl.com.au. 18 March 2025. Retrieved 18 March 2025.
9. ^ "Charlie Ballard". AFL Tables. Retrieved 1 June 2026.