Willie Rioli

William Rioli (born 4 June 1995) is a professional Australian rules footballer playing for the West Coast Eagles in the Australian Football League (AFL). He was drafted by the West Coast Eagles with their third selection and fifty-second overall in the 2016 national draft.[1] He made his debut in the fifty-one point win against the Western Bulldogs at Etihad Stadium in the round two of the 2018 season.[2] Coming from the Rioli family, which has a long history in Australian rules football, he is the first cousin of Dean Rioli (Essendon Football Club), Cyril Rioli (Hawthorn Football Club) and Ronnie Burns (from his mother's side), first cousin once removed of current Richmond Football Club player Daniel Rioli and the nephew of Maurice Rioli.[3]

Willie Rioli
Rioli playing for West Coast in July 2019
Personal information
Full name Willie Rioli Jr.
Date of birth (1995-06-04) 4 June 1995
Place of birth Tiwi Islands
Original team(s) Glenelg (SANFL)
Draft No. 52, 2016 national draft
Debut Round 2, 2018, West Coast
vs. Western Bulldogs, at Etihad Stadium
Height 175 cm (5 ft 9 in)
Weight 80 kg (176 lb)
Position(s) Forward
Club information
Current club West Coast
Number 44
Playing career1
Years Club Games (Goals)
2018– West Coast 38 (46)
1 Playing statistics correct to the end of 2019.
Career highlights
  • AFL premiership player: 2018
  • Emerging Talent Award(WCE):2018
Sources: AFL Tables, AustralianFootball.com

Doping scandal

In September 2019 Rioli received an indefinite provisional suspension under the AFL and Australian Sports Anti-Doping Authority anti-doping code for an alleged adverse analytical finding for urine substitution.

Rioli publicly admitted to having smoked marijuana with other club members the night before his drug test, and is accused of attempting to swap his tainted urine with a clean sample in a Gatorade bottle.[4] He was subsequently issued with an indefinite suspension from the AFL, and ruled out from competing with the West Coast Eagles in that year's finals series.[5]

As of January 2021 the investigation is still ongoing, with the findings of the AFL expected to be announced in late 2021 pending further hearings.

Statistics
Statistics are correct to the end of the 2018 season[6]
Legend
 G  Goals  B  Behinds  K  Kicks  H  Handballs  D  Disposals  M  Marks  T  Tackles
Season Team No. Games Totals Averages (per game)
G B K H D M T G B K H D M T
2018† West Coast 442428141829027277631.20.67.63.811.33.22.6
Career 2428141829027277631.20.67.63.811.33.22.6

References
  1. Chadwick, Justin (28 November 2016). "Newest Rioli lost 16kgs and now 'plays like Cyril'". AFL.com.au. Telstra Media. Retrieved 1 April 2018.
  2. Duffield, Mark (29 March 2018). "Willie Rioli named for shock West Coast Eagles debut against Western Bulldogs". PerthNow. Seven West Media. Retrieved 1 April 2018.
  3. Quatermaine, Braden (4 February 2018). "West Coast Eagles fan favourite Willie Rioli embraces name game". PerthNow. Seven West Media. Retrieved 1 April 2018.
  4. Morris, Tom (12 September 2019). "West Coast star Willie Rioli out of the finals, banned for substituting urine sample on ASADA drug test". Fox Sports. News Corp Australia. Retrieved 12 September 2019.
  5. Ryan, Peter (12 September 2019). "Rioli provisionally banned under anti-doping code". The Age. Fairfax Media. Retrieved 12 September 2019.
  6. "AFL Tables - Willie Rioli - Stats - Statistics". afltables.com. Retrieved 8 May 2019.
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