Matthew Lloyd

Now available in paperback, Matthew Lloyd was born into a football family, and it was clear early in his career that he had the ability to surpass his father's legacy. For a while it looked he would head to Carton as well, but Essendon conjured up a complex deal to secure the talented 16-year-old in the 1994 preseason draft. This of a young footballer who taught himself a process to become the most accurate shot for goal in the AFL after a tirade from one his coaches. It is how a boy with natural ability became the captain of the Essendon Football Club, a premiership player, and a life member of the AFL. And now it is about the transformation into devoted father and a multimedia expert on AFL when it looked like his career was cut short before its time. It's the story of a testy relationship with his final coach and the bone crunching hit that saw him finish his time as a player on suspension. It looks at how he considered a future with other clubs before deciding to retire on his terms. Above all, it is a brutally honest account of an astonishing career from a man who is a straight shooter in more ways than one.