Victorian basketballer Patrick Bines joined the club ahead of the 2019 season as a Category B rookie alongside Brodie Riach.
West Coast career[]
After playing junior football with East Brighton, Bines opted to pursue basketball, representing Australia at the world Under-17s championship in 2016 as well as playing for Vic Metro alongside Jack Petruccelle. Bines spent 2018 playing SEABL for the Melbourne Tigers, but was courted by a number of AFL clubs to switch codes and eventually signed with West Coast in August 2018.[1]
Developed as a ruck/forward, Bines played just one WAFL game before needing surgery on a hernia. He returned later in the year but was used sparingly, only adding three more games as the standalone reserves side pressed for a finals berth, and was delisted at the end of the season.
Long after he was delisted, it was revealed that during his time in the WAFL he had suffered a neck injury in a seemingly-innocous marking contest, leading to years of debilitating pain and a legal battle with the AFLPA's insurers who refused to pay him out as being totally and permanently disabled.[2]
Stats[]
| AFL | Gm | G | B | K | M | H | D | T | Cl | WAFL | Gm | G | B | K | M | H | D | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | 0 | WCE | 4 | 0 | 2 | 8 | 3 | 6 | 14 | 10 |
News[]
28/11/16: Young basketballers sign on as rookies
References[]
https://www.wafl.com.au/player/patrick-bines
- ↑ Olgun Uluc, Fox Sports (17 August 2018), "Australian national team star Patrick Bines gives up basketball to chase AFL dream, signs with West Coast Eagles": https://www.foxsports.com.au/afl/teams/west-coast-eagles/australian-national-team-star-patrick-bines-gives-up-basketball-to-chase-afl-dream-signs-with-west-coast-eagles/news-story/de56e6feb334e469616f8f12a7166815
- ↑ Jon Ralph, The West Australian (18 April 2022), "Patrick Bines left with broken heart and body after an innocuous on-field incident changed his life forever": https://thewest.com.au/sport/afl/former-eagle-patrick-bines-no-stranger-to-the-dark-side-of-footy-after-an-innocuous-on-field-incident-changed-his-life-forever-c-6487181