James Sicily

James Sicily
Sicily with Hawthorn in May 2026
Personal information
Full name James Sicily
Born (1995-01-06) 6 January 1995
Original teams Keilor (EDFL); Western Jets (TAC Cup)
Draft No. 56, 2013 national draft
Debut Round 2, 2015, Hawthorn vs. Essendon, at MCG
Height 188 cm (6 ft 2 in)
Weight 90 kg (198 lb)
Position Key Defender
Club information
Current club Hawthorn
Number 6
Playing career1
Years Club Games (Goals)
2014– Hawthorn 199 (77)
Representative team honours2
Years Team Games (Goals)
2020 Victoria 1 (0)
1 Playing statistics correct to the end of round 22, 2026.
2 Representative statistics correct as of 2020.
Career highlights
Sources: AFL Tables, AustralianFootball.com

James Sicily (born 6 January 1995) is a professional Australian rules footballer and the current co-captain of the Hawthorn Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL), alongside Jai Newcombe.

Early career

Sicily's junior career was spent playing for the Keilor Football Club.[1] In 2013, Sicily kicked 26 goals from 16 games for the Western Jets and represented Vic Metro at the National Championships.[2]

AFL career

Sicily was drafted by the Hawthorn Football Club with the fifty-sixth pick in the 2013 AFL draft.[1] In 2014, he was widely considered Box Hill’s best player in the losing grand final, kicking a team-high three goals, and finishing with 15 disposals and five marks.[3]

He made his AFL debut against Essendon in round 2, 2015 starting as the sub. He came on replacing the injured James Frawley in the first quarter and later kicked a goal. He went on to play three games for the year.[4]

In the absence of the injured Jarryd Roughead, Sicily was named in Hawthorn's team for the opening round of the 2016 AFL season, kicking 4 goals against West Coast in round 2 and kicking the match winning goal in round 3 against the Western Bulldogs.[5][6] He was named as the round 13 nominee for the Rising Star after kicking a career high five goals and recording 13 disposals and 5 marks.[7] 2016 was regarded as Sicily's breakout season.[5]

During the 2017 season, Sicily, who had previously been a forward, was shifted to the backline, after being dropped from the team while playing as a forward.[8] He impressed in that position, but nonetheless at the end of the season was still the subject of some uncertainty around his position in the team.[9] On August 22, 2017, Sicily signed a three-year contract extension keeping him at the club until 2020.[10]

Sicily was suspended for one match in the early stages of the 2018 season for kneeing Geelong captain Joel Selwood.[11] Notwithstanding this, Sicily was widely tipped to be on track for a nomination to the All-Australian team of that year before breaking bones in his wrist in Round 17, only returning during the finals series.[12] Despite this injury, Sicily had a season widely perceived as excellent,[12] and was considered to have potential to become one of the league's best defenders.[13]

Sicily had another good season in 2019, being selected in the extended All-Australian squad for that year, the only Hawthorn player to do so.[14] He was considered especially important to Hawthorn's defence.[15] At the end of the season, he re-signed with the club till at least the year 2022.[16]

Sicily missed the 2021 season as he was recovering from an ACL injury sustained during the 2020 season.

On 16 May 2022, Sicily announced that he had agreed to a 5-year contract extension with Hawthorn, tying him to the club until at least the end of 2027.[17]

In February 2023, Sicily was appointed the 38th captain of Hawthorn, with the 28-year-old succeeding the retired Ben McEvoy who served in the role for two seasons.[18]

In Round 11 2023, Sicily had a career high 43 disposals against St Kilda in the Hawks' 10-point win.[19]

In January 2026, James Sicily was appointed a co-captain with Jai Newcombe.[20]

On-field temperament

Sicily is widely regarded and known for having a short temper, something he himself has acknowledged.[21]

Statistics

Updated to the end of round 22, 2026.[22]

Legend
  G  
 Goals
  K  
 Kicks
  D  
 Disposals 
  T  
 Tackles
  B  
 Behinds 
  H  
 Handballs 
  M  
 Marks
  †  
 Led the league for 
the season
Season Team No. Games Totals Averages (per game) Votes
G B K H D M T G B K H D M T
2015Hawthorn21 3411919381131.30.36.36.312.73.71.00
2016Hawthorn21 22301816884252100431.40.87.63.811.54.52.03
2017Hawthorn21 19139204148352131220.70.510.77.818.56.91.21
2018Hawthorn6 1661264109373114260.40.116.56.823.37.11.68
2019Hawthorn6 2232352112464158320.10.116.05.121.17.21.58
2020[a]Hawthorn6 1121147501976290.20.113.44.517.95.60.80
2022Hawthorn6 2213418106524190†320.00.119.04.823.88.61.57
2023Hawthorn6 1924324177501189290.10.217.19.326.49.9†1.512
2024Hawthorn6 2297337136473167300.40.315.36.221.57.61.44
2025Hawthorn6 2363305144449153360.30.113.36.319.56.71.69
2026Hawthorn6 2011278150428144360.10.113.97.521.47.21.80
Career 199775028161235405114192980.40.314.26.220.47.11.552

Notes

  1. ↑ The 2020 season was played with 17 home-and-away matches per team (down from 22) and 16-minute quarters with time on (down from 20-minute quarters with time on) due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Honours and achievements

Team

Individual

References

  1. 1 2 D'Anello, Luke (22 November 2013). "Western Jets midfielder James Sicily drafted by Hawthorn". Herald Sun. Retrieved 29 March 2020.
  2. ↑ "AFL draft: James Sicily living the dream at Hawthorn". Brimbank Star Weekly. 25 November 2013. Retrieved 29 March 2020.
  3. ↑ "Sicily, Hanrahan impress in VFL decider". Hawthorn Football Club.
  4. ↑ Duxson, Nick (15 October 2015). "Season review: James Sicily". Hawthorn Football Club. Retrieved 29 March 2020.
  5. 1 2 Hill, Jeremy (15 October 2016). "Season Review: James Sicily". Hawthorn Football Club. Retrieved 29 March 2020.
  6. ↑ Twomey, Callum (10 April 2016). "Match report: Hawks hang on in dramatic finish with Dogs". Australian Football Club. Retrieved 29 March 2020.
  7. ↑ Guthrie, Ben (20 June 2016). "Match-winning Hawk nabs Rising Star nom". AFL.com.au. Bigpond. Retrieved 20 June 2016.
  8. ↑ Paine, Jackson (26 September 2017). "Season review: James Sicily". Hawthorn Football Club. Retrieved 29 March 2020.
  9. ↑ Buckland, Ryan (22 August 2017). "Hawthorn's off season won't be as interesting as you might think". The Roar. Retrieved 29 March 2020.
  10. ↑ "Sis signs on". Hawthorn Football Club. 22 August 2017. Retrieved 22 August 2017.
  11. ↑ "Hawk suspended over knee on Joel Selwood". 3AW News Talk. 3 April 2018. Retrieved 29 March 2020.
  12. 1 2 "Season snapshot: James Sicily". Hawthorn Football Club. 27 October 2020. Retrieved 29 March 2020.
  13. ↑ Carey, Wayne (10 May 2018). "James Sicily can become one of the great defenders". The Age. Retrieved 29 March 2020.
  14. ↑ "'19 Rewind: James Sicily". Hawthorn Football Club. 20 September 2019. Retrieved 29 March 2020.
  15. ↑ "Who Are Your Club's Most Important Defenders?". Seven News. 31 January 2020. Retrieved 29 March 2020.
  16. ↑ McKirdy, Lachlan (25 October 2019). "AFL 2019: James Sicily re-signs with Hawthorn on a long-term deal". Sporting News. Retrieved 29 March 2020.
  17. ↑ "James Sicily has some news to share..." hawthornfc.com.au. Retrieved 16 May 2022.
  18. ↑ "Sicily to captain Hawks in 2023".
  19. ↑ "2023 in Summary: James Sicily". hawthornfc.com.au. 22 September 2023. Retrieved 25 February 2026.
  20. ↑ "'Significant day': Hawks' historic first revealed after 'robust' process as epic draft rise continues". Fox Sports. 22 January 2026. Retrieved 25 February 2026.
  21. ↑ Waterworth, Ben (14 February 2018). "James Sicily admits he needs to control and manage temper on the field in 2018 AFL season". Fox Sports. Retrieved 29 March 2020.
  22. ↑ "James Sicily". AFL Tables. Retrieved 12 August 2026.
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