Sanford Wheeler
Sanford Wheeler (previously known as Matthew Wheeler) (born April 6, 1970 in California, United States) is a former Australian rules football player for the Sydney Swans.
He is notable as being the first African-American born player in the history of the AFL and one of few players from the United States to play in the Australian Football League.
Matthew Wheeler migrated with his Australian father and African-American mother to Sydney, Australia at the age of 5. As a teenager, he began to take an interest in Aussie Rules and played his junior football for the Parramatta Aussie Rules club.
Recruited by the Sydney Swans as a rookie using their zone allocation, the athletic long haired Wheeler frequently exhibited dash and flair off the wing and as a rebounding defender although his disposal skills let him down and he had a tendency to sometimes get caught holding the ball.
Mid-way through his career, he changed his name to "Sanford".
Between 1989 and1994 he played 43 games and kicked 7 goals during the Swans darkest era.
- Forward to Don Pyke
- Up to USA
