Zach Merrett
Essendon
AFL career
274 games97 goals
- Debut
- R1 2014 v NTH21 Mar 2014
- Most recent
- R24 2026 v PAD23 Aug 2026
Stats
AFL
2026 | ESS | 23 | 14.3 | 13.0 | 27.3 | 4.6 | 1.5 | 0.7 | 4.7 | 0.4 | 0.3 | 104 | 108 |
2025 | ESS | 22 | 15.2 | 12.5 | 27.8 | 3.7 | 1.5 | 0.4 | 4.4 | 0.4 | 0.5 | 103 | 108 |
2024 | ESS | 23 | 15.7 | 12.6 | 28.3 | 4.3 | 1.5 | 0.6 | 5.0 | 0.6 | 0.7 | 109 | 115 |
2023 | ESS | 22 | 15.3 | 13.5 | 28.8 | 5.1 | 2.0 | 0.6 | 5.5 | 0.4 | 0.5 | 113 | 116 |
2022 | ESS | 19 | 15.6 | 14.5 | 30.1 | 3.9 | 1.9 | 0.6 | 4.3 | 0.3 | 0.3 | 107 | 112 |
2021 | ESS | 23 | 15.7 | 15.8 | 31.5 | 4.2 | 1.8 | 1.1 | 4.9 | 0.2 | 0.3 | 111 | 115 |
2020 | ESS | 16 | 13.8 | 12.4 | 26.3 | 4.3 | 0.9 | 0.8 | 3.4 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 93 | 116 |
2019 | ESS | 23 | 14.7 | 13.6 | 28.3 | 3.9 | 1.8 | 0.5 | 5.4 | 0.3 | 0.4 | 107 | 105 |
2018 | ESS | 22 | 12.8 | 14.0 | 26.8 | 3.1 | 1.9 | 0.6 | 6.0 | 0.2 | 0.3 | 101 | 100 |
2017 | ESS | 22 | 17.4 | 12.6 | 30.0 | 4.3 | 1.7 | 0.4 | 5.5 | 0.4 | 0.4 | 116 | 108 |
2016 | ESS | 22 | 15.9 | 14.0 | 29.9 | 5.0 | 1.4 | 0.5 | 6.2 | 0.3 | 0.3 | 118 | 111 |
2015 | ESS | 17 | 10.9 | 11.5 | 22.4 | 3.5 | 1.2 | 0.6 | 5.8 | 0.2 | 0.2 | 91 | 88 |
2014 | ESS | 20 | 8.5 | 6.7 | 15.2 | 3.4 | 0.9 | 0.2 | 4.0 | 0.6 | 0.1 | 68 | 64 |
State Of Origin
2026 | VIC | 1 | 10.0 | 10.0 | 20.0 | 3.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 2.0 | 0.0 | 73 | 77 |
PAD | MS | R24 | 18 | 14 | 32 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1.1 | 123 | 120 | 19 | 0 |
SYD | MCG | R23 | 8 | 16 | 24 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0.0 | 71 | 72 | 21 | 0 |
GEE | GMHBA | R22 | 15 | 14 | 29 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 0.0 | 95 | 114 | 21 | 4 |
ADE | MS | R21 | 12 | 16 | 28 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0.0 | 87 | 109 | 29 | 0 |
HAW | MCG | R20 | 7 | 15 | 22 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 0.0 | 97 | 101 | 23 | 0 |
GWS | MS | R19 | 17 | 18 | 35 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 1.0 | 123 | 145 | 13 | 1 |
BRL | Gabba | R18 | 4 | 7 | 11 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0.0 | 35 | 49 | 7 | 0 |
STK | MS | R17 | 13 | 15 | 28 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0.0 | 116 | 120 | 9 | 2 |
NTH | MS | R16 | 15 | 7 | 22 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 1.0 | 96 | 102 | 1 | 4 |
MEL | MCG | R14 | 19 | 13 | 32 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0.0 | 123 | 109 | 10 | 2 |
CAR | MCG | R13 | 23 | 10 | 33 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0.0 | 126 | 91 | 1 | 5 |
WCE | OS | R12 | 13 | 15 | 28 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 1.0 | 109 | 97 | 16 | 0 |
RCH | MCG | R11 | 18 | 18 | 36 | 12 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 1.0 | 148 | 126 | 17 | 0 |
FRE | MCG | R10 | 11 | 15 | 26 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 0.1 | 96 | 103 | 13 | 0 |
GWS | ENG | R9 | 20 | 11 | 31 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0.0 | 111 | 105 | 20 | 1 |
BRL | MS | R8 | 13 | 15 | 28 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 1.1 | 111 | 98 | 30 | 0 |
COL | MCG | R7 | 10 | 12 | 22 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0.0 | 62 | 104 | 16 | 0 |
GCS | PFS | R6 | 22 | 12 | 34 | 9 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 8 | 1.1 | 151 | 150 | 16 | 4 |
MEL | AO | R5 | 17 | 14 | 31 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1.0 | 109 | 127 | 14 | 2 |
WBD | MS | R4 | 15 | 15 | 30 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0.0 | 122 | 116 | 25 | 1 |
NTH | MS | R3 | 6 | 4 | 10 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 9 | 1.1 | 71 | 87 | 10 | 0 |
PAD | AO | R2 | 17 | 8 | 25 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0.0 | 100 | 107 | 24 | 0 |
HAW | MCG | R1 | 17 | 15 | 32 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1.1 | 112 | 139 | 25 | 0 |
Bio
Recruited from the Sandringham Dragons with pick 26 in the 2013 National Draft, Zach Merrett arrived at Essendon during a period of significant off-field turbulence but immediately secured his place in the senior side. Initially playing alongside his older brother Jackson, Zach quickly surpassed family expectations to become one of the league's most consistent ball-winners. While he started his career utilising his pace on the outside and forward of centre, he developed into a premier two-way midfielder known for his precise left-foot distribution, high football IQ, and ability to find space in heavy traffic.
Merrett's loyalty and durability became cornerstones of the Bombers' lineup through a decade of transition, resulting in multiple Crichton Medals and All-Australian selections. His journey to the captaincy was not linear, having been dropped from the leadership group in 2020 before refining his approach to leadership and ultimately succeeding Dyson Heppell as skipper in 2023. Now a veteran with over 250 games to his name, Merrett remains the driving force of the Essendon engine room, setting the standard for a developing list striving for finals success.
Profile
- Born
- 03 Oct 1995 (age 31y 16d)
- Height
- 183 cm
- Weight
- 85 kg
Teams
- Traded to Hawthorn for 2027 on a 4-year deal to 2030
Fantasy
Honours
- All-Australian(3×) 2017, 2021, 2023
- 22 Under 22(3×) 2016, 2017, 2018
- Essendon B&F(7×) 2016, 2019, 2021, 2023, 2024, 2025, 2026
- 2nd
- 2020, 2022
- 3rd
- 2018
- Top 10
- 2015, 2017
- Essendon captain(3×) 2023, 2024, 2025
- Brownlow Medal
- Top 10
- 2016, 2022
Family
- Brother:Jackson Merrett
- Great-uncle:Thorold Merrett
Bio
1 revisionRecruited from the Sandringham Dragons with pick 26 in the 2013 National Draft, Zach Merrett arrived at Essendon during a period of significant off-field turbulence but immediately secured his place in the senior side. Initially playing alongside his older brother Jackson, Zach quickly surpassed family expectations to become one of the league's most consistent ball-winners. While he started his career utilising his pace on the outside and forward of centre, he developed into a premier two-way midfielder known for his precise left-foot distribution, high football IQ, and ability to find space in heavy traffic.
Merrett's loyalty and durability became cornerstones of the Bombers' lineup through a decade of transition, resulting in multiple Crichton Medals and All-Australian selections. His journey to the captaincy was not linear, having been dropped from the leadership group in 2020 before refining his approach to leadership and ultimately succeeding Dyson Heppell as skipper in 2023. Now a veteran with over 250 games to his name, Merrett remains the driving force of the Essendon engine room, setting the standard for a developing list striving for finals success.