- The player crashed into a fence and his head fell on a rock.
- He suffered terrifying injuries that led to his premature retirement.
- He is now suing for negligence in the Supreme Court
Former AFL player Eli Templeton is suing Balwyn Football Club, the Eastern Football League and Boroondara Council after a serious incident on the field.
In August 2022, while playing for Balwyn Football Club, Templeton was sent over a fence and landed headfirst on concrete.
The impact caused a skull fracture and a brain hemorrhage. The incident occurred when Templeton crashed at the Balwyn interchange area and hit his head on rocks outside the ground.
Clarke, a former Essendon and Fremantle player, received a two-match suspension for his involvement.
Despite recovering physically, Templeton had to retire from football.
The 28-year-old, who played 14 games for St Kilda between 2014 and 2016 and was currently a player for Port Melbourne in the VFL, is now suing for negligence in the Supreme Court.
Templeton during his days as an AFL player at St Kilda before being forced to retire from football aged just 26.
Templeton’s legal team will argue that the council, Balwyn Football Club and the Eastern Football League were negligent in placing the player exchange and fence too close to the ground.
At the time of the incident, he was 26 years old and played a one-off match for Balwyn during a weekend off for Port Melbourne.
Nine News reporter Tom Morris said: “Eli Templeton was playing a one-off game here at Balwyn in 2022 when he suffered a career-ending concussion aged 26.
Templeton has launched an action in the Supreme Court, suing not only Balwyn Football Club, but also the Eastern Football League and the City of Boroondara for negligence.
Templeton alleges the boundary line was too close to the fence and the drinks table he collided with created a hazard that did not comply with AFL and local football regulations.
The injuries Templeton suffered in 2022 have lasting effects. Morris reported: ‘She suffered four seizures and two brain haemorrhages, which caused permanent damage.
Templeton’s injuries were so terrible that the game (in 2022) was suspended immediately, early in the third quarter.
The documents I discussed earlier reveal that Templeton suffers from major depressive disorder with anxiety, among a host of other mental health illnesses.
“The case has significant ramifications for local football across the country and no hearing date has been set.”
Templeton, who was part of Port Melbourne’s leadership group and contributed to their 2017 VFL premiership, was selected with pick three in the 2014 AFL rookie draft by St Kilda.
