Tim Houlihan

Timothy Houlihan (born 10 February 1989) is a former Australian rules footballer who played for the West Coast Eagles in the Australian Football League (AFL), and also for East Fremantle in the West Australian Football League (WAFL) and South Adelaide in the South Australian National Football League (SANFL).

Tim Houlihan
Personal information
Full name Timothy Houlihan
Date of birth (1989-02-10) 10 February 1989
Original team(s) North Ballarat Rebels
Draft 43rd pick, 2006 National Draft
10th pick, 2011 Rookie Draft (re-drafted)
Height 190 cm (6 ft 3 in)
Weight 83 kg (183 lb)
Position(s) Midfielder
Playing career1
Years Club Games (Goals)
2007–11 East Fremantle (WAFL) 72 (34)
2008–09 West Coast 15 (1)
2012 South Adelaide (SANFL) 19 (4)
1 Playing statistics correct to the end of 2013.
Sources: AFL Tables, AustralianFootball.com

Football career

Originally from Harrow in country Victoria, Houlihan moved to South Australia with his mother after his parents split, and played for Goolwa and Goolwa /Port Elliot in South Australia's Great Southern Football League.[1] He and his mother, a nurse, later moved to Kaltjiti (Fregon), a community in the APY lands in the state's far north, before finally returning to Victoria, where he played for Harrow Balmoral in the Horsham & District Football League. He was also a talented junior distance runner, winning the 1500m and 3000m races at the 2005 national championships.[2] Playing for the North Ballarat Rebels in the under-18 TAC Cup,[3] Houlihan recorded the best times in the beep test and 3km time trial at the 2006 AFL Draft Camp,[4] and was subsequently selected by West Coast with pick 43 in the 2006 National Draft.[1] He was very close with fellow teammate Ashton Hams. Houlihan retired before the start of the 2013 season after being diagnosed with a brain trauma injury. He had been knocked out in the last round of the previous season, following a sling tackle, although he had suffered several other concussions throughout his career.[5] His retirement, which came after consultation with specialists in Adelaide, Melbourne, and Perth, made him the second former AFL player to retire due to brain injury, after former Melbourne player Daniel Bell.

References
  1. Jai Bednall (26 February 2012). "Houlihan's long-awaited arrival" – Adelaide Now. Retrieved 11 April 2014.
  2. Rod Morris (4 October 2012). "West Gambier premiership ruckman on verge of AFL call-up" – Border Watch. Retrieved 11 April 2014.
  3. "AFL Drafted Players" – North Ballarat Rebels Football Club. Retrieved 11 April 2014.
  4. "AFL Draft Camp Best for Each Year" – Top End Sports. Retrieved 11 April 2014.
  5. Kym Morgan (26 February 2013). "Brain trauma ends ex-Eagle Tim Houlihan's football career" – The Adelaide Advertiser. Retrieved 11 April 2014.
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