Jaxon Prior

Jaxon Prior (born 4 June 2001) is a professional Australian rules footballer who currently plays for the Essendon Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL), having previously played for the Brisbane Lions.^[1]

Jaxon Prior
Personal information
Date of birth	(2001-06-04) 4 June 2001 (age 23)
Original team(s)	West Perth (WAFL) Sorrento-Duncraig JFC
Draft	No. 59, 2019 national draft
Debut	Round 2, 2021, Brisbane Lions vs. Geelong, at Kardinia Park
Height	188 cm (6 ft 2 in)
Weight	79 kg (174 lb)
Position(s)	Defender
Club information
Current club	Essendon
Number	25
Playing career1
Years	Club	Games (Goals)
2020–2024	Brisbane Lions	39 (11)
2025–	Essendon	10 (0)
Total		49 (11)
1 Playing statistics correct to the end of round 11, 2025.
Sources: AFL Tables, AustralianFootball.com

AFL career

Prior, a half back, is the son of former Essendon and West Coast footballer Michael Prior.^[2] He played his junior football with Sorrento-Duncraig and was recruited out of West Perth, having been named in the 2019 WAFL Colts team of the year.^[3]

Brisbane Lions

Prior was selected by the Brisbane Lions with the 59th pick of the 2019 national draft.^[4] Prior made 18 appearances in his debut season in 2021. His 12 games in 2022 included the Lions' two-point elimination final win over Richmond. He was re-signed at the end of the 2022 season for another two years.^[5]

Prior was delisted by the Lions at the end of the 2024 AFL season^[6]

Essendon

Following his delisting from Brisbane, Prior was picked up by Essendon on the first day of the Supplemental Selection Period for the 2025 season.^[7][8] This linked him up with the club in which his father, Michael, played 81 matches for between 1994 to 2000.

Prior quickly made his club debut in round 1 against Hawthorn at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.^[9]

AFL statistics

Updated to the end of 2024.^[10]

Legend

G	Goals	K	Kicks	D	Disposals	T	Tackles
B	Behinds	H	Handballs	M	Marks

Season	Team	No.	Games	Totals							Averages (per game)							Votes
				G	B	K	H	D	M	T	G	B	K	H	D	M	T
2020[a]	Brisbane Lions	45	0	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
2021	Brisbane Lions	20	18	6	4	116	44	160	45	24	0.3	0.2	6.4	2.4	8.9	2.5	1.3	0
2022	Brisbane Lions	20	12	4	3	104	34	138	38	23	0.3	0.3	8.7	3.2	11.5	3.2	1.9	0
2023	Brisbane Lions	20	5	1	1	36	7	43	14	11	0.2	0.2	7.2	1.4	8.6	2.8	2.2	0
2024	Brisbane Lions	20	4	0	0	30	7	37	18	5	0.0	0.0	7.5	1.8	9.3	4.5	1.3	0
Career			39	11	8	286	92	378	115	63	0.3	0.2	7.3	2.4	9.7	3.0	1.6	0

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.