Marcus Ashcroft

Marcus Ashcroft (born 25 September 1971) is a former professional Australian rules footballer. He played 318 games for the Brisbane Bears and Brisbane Lions, winning three AFL premierships with the Lions in 2001, 2002 and 2003. The Marcus Ashcroft Medal, awarded to the player judged best on ground in the QClash football match played between the Brisbane Lions and Gold Coast Football Club, is named after him.

Early life Ashcroft was born in Melbourne and raised on the Gold Coast from age three. Later that year, Ashcroft would become the only Queenslander to be drafted in 1988 as the Brisbane Bears recruited the 17-year-old through their zone access.

AFL career Ashcroft was recruited to join the Brisbane Bears in 1988 when the club was in just its second season in the VFL and made his debut in Round 9 of the following year against North Melbourne at the MCG, collecting 8 disposals and taking 4 marks.

Ashcroft played over 150 consecutive games amongst his 318 career appearances (including 145 goals). He was at various points a key part of the leadership group although he never captained the club.

Ashcroft became the first Queenslander to play 300 AFL games in 2003, but his milestone match would not be remembered for the right reasons, as they suffered their first defeat of that season against the Sydney Swans at the Sydney Cricket Ground. He retired at the end of that season, winning his third straight AFL premiership medallion in the process.

Post-playing career

Gold Coast Suns: 2008–2017 Following the formation of the Gold Coast Suns in 2008, Ashcroft was appointed as an assistant coach and then promoted to football manager the following year. Ashcroft resigned from his position as football manager in October 2017.

Touch Football Australia In March 2025, Ashcroft was appointed chief executive officer of Touch Football Australia.

Statistics

318 145 138 3532 2316 5848 1154 594 0.5 0.4 11.1 7.3 18.4 3.6 1.9

Personal life Ashcroft is the father of current Brisbane Lions players, Will Ashcroft and Levi Ashcroft.

Marcus Ashcroft's uncle is former AFL player John Townsend.