Erica Fowler (born 8 July 1992) is an Australian rules footballer who played for the Collingwood Football Club in the AFL Women's (AFLW). Originally a rugby sevens player, Fowler joined Collingwood's VFL Women's team and became a senior player after she was selected with the club's ninth selection and the 70th pick overall in the 2018 AFLW draft.[1] She made her debut in a loss to Geelong at GMHBA Stadium in round 1 of the 2019 season.[2]

Erica Fowler
Fowler playing for Collingwood's VFLW team in June 2018
Personal information
Date of birth (1992-07-08) 8 July 1992 (age 32)
Original team(s) Yeronga (QWAFL)
Draft No. 70, 2018 AFLW draft
Debut Round 1, 2019, Collingwood vs. Geelong, at GMHBA Stadium
Height 180 cm (5 ft 11 in)
Position(s) Forward / Ruck
Playing career1
Years Club Games (Goals)
2019–2024 Collingwood 46 (2)
1 Playing statistics correct to the end of the 2024 season.
Source: AustralianFootball.com

Early life

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Fowler originally played rugby sevens, representing the University of Queensland nationally.[2] She also played 33 games for Yeronga in the Queensland Women's Australian Football League (QWAFL) and its lower division, the Queensland Women's Football Association.[3] Fowler suffered injury and illness in 2016, causing her to miss the Australian University Games and leaving her with a choice between her sporting and paramedicine careers.[2] She was part of the Yeronga team victorious over Coorparoo in the 2017 QWAFL grand final.[3] Fowler accepted an offer to join Collingwood's VFL Women's side in 2018 and split her time between sport and work, travelling from Brisbane to Melbourne every few weeks to play.[2]

AFLW career

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For the 2018 AFLW draft, Collingwood was granted two chances to pre-select recruits to compensate for losing players to injury and rival clubs, using a similar bidding mechanism to the father–daughter rule. The club selected Fowler with pick 70; she was expected to play as a key forward and ruckwoman assisting Eliza Hynes, because of her 180-centimetre stature.[1] She hoped her rugby sevens experience would bring "a different physicality and athleticism to the game".[2] In November 2024, Fowler was delisted by Collingwood.[4]


Statistics

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Statistics are correct the end of the 2024 season.[5]
Legend
  G  
Goals
  K  
Kicks
  D  
Disposals 
  T  
Tackles
  B  
Behinds 
  H  
Handballs 
  M  
Marks
H/O
Hit-outs
Season Team No. Games Totals Averages (per game)
G B K H D M T H/O G B K H D M T H/O
2019 Collingwood 15 2 0 0 6 3 9 3 14 23 0.0 0.0 3.0 1.5 4.5 1.5 7.0 11.5
2020 Collingwood 15 7 0 2 26 18 44 16 19 9 0.0 0.3 3.7 2.6 6.3 2.3 2.7 1.3
2021 Collingwood 15 10 0 1 37 20 57 12 25 17 0.0 0.1 3.7 2.0 5.7 1.2 2.5 1.7
2022 (S6) Collingwood 15 9 0 1 29 15 44 9 11 15 0.0 0.1 3.2 1.7 4.9 1.0 1.2 1.7
2022 (S7) Collingwood 15 2 0 0 5 4 9 4 1 4 0.0 0.0 2.5 2.0 4.5 2.0 1.0 2.0
2023 Collingwood 15 9 2 0 31 9 40 11 22 63 0.2 0.0 3.4 1.0 4.4 1.2 2.4 7.0
2024 Collingwood 15 7 0 3 19 13 32 10 14 3 0.0 0.4 2.7 1.9 4.6 1.4 2.0 0.4
Career 46 2 7 153 82 235 65 106 134 0.04 0.2 3.3 1.8 5.1 1.4 2.3 2.9

References

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  1. ^ a b Black, Sarah (12 October 2018). "AFLW: Depleted Pies sign duo under compo rules". AFL.com.au. Telstra Media. Retrieved 14 March 2019.
  2. ^ a b c d e Mullen, Alanna (6 February 2019). "AFLW: Fowler flying high". collingwoodfc.com.au. Telstra Media. Retrieved 7 April 2019.
  3. ^ a b Wingard, Ant (13 October 2018). "Queensland Fowler announced for AFL Women's competition". aflq.com.au. AFL Queensland. Retrieved 7 April 2019.
  4. ^ "Collingwood thanks Blair, Brazzale, Fowler and Sansonetti". Collingwood. Telstra. 12 November 2024.
  5. ^ "Erica Fowler – Player Stats By Season". Australian Football. Retrieved 11 November 2024.
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