Jack O'Donnell
St Kilda
AFL career
33 games27 goals
- Debut
- R2 1968 v MEL20 Apr 1968
- Most recent
- R8 1970 v GEE23 May 1970
Stats
Bio
Recruited from Xavier College, Jack O’Donnell was an early member of a renowned sporting dynasty, joining the Saints as the nephew of former player Kevin O’Donnell and preceding his dual-international cousin Simon. A capable forward with a strong pair of hands, he showed genuine potential as a goal-kicker in the years immediately following St Kilda’s 1966 premiership. While he became a regular fixture in the side by 1968, his career is largely defined by its tragic and premature conclusion. After injuring his knee landing from a high mark over Collingwood’s Ross Dunne in 1970, O’Donnell contracted a severe golden staph infection during the subsequent surgery. The debilitating complications forced him into retirement at just 23 years of age, leaving him as a significant "what could have been" story for the Moorabbin faithful.
Profile
- Full name
- Jack M. P. O'Donnell
- Born
- 08 June 1947
- Died
- 13 Nov 2018 (aged 71y 158d)
- Height
- 184 cm
- Weight
- 81 kg
Teams
Family
- Cousin:Simon O'Donnell
Bio
1 revisionRecruited from Xavier College, Jack O’Donnell was an early member of a renowned sporting dynasty, joining the Saints as the nephew of former player Kevin O’Donnell and preceding his dual-international cousin Simon. A capable forward with a strong pair of hands, he showed genuine potential as a goal-kicker in the years immediately following St Kilda’s 1966 premiership. While he became a regular fixture in the side by 1968, his career is largely defined by its tragic and premature conclusion. After injuring his knee landing from a high mark over Collingwood’s Ross Dunne in 1970, O’Donnell contracted a severe golden staph infection during the subsequent surgery. The debilitating complications forced him into retirement at just 23 years of age, leaving him as a significant "what could have been" story for the Moorabbin faithful.