31 Facts About Majak Daw

Majak Daw was born on 11 March 1991 and is a former Australian rules footballer who played for the North Melbourne Football Club and the Melbourne Football Club in the Australian Football League.

Majak Daw became the first Sudanese Australian to be drafted to an AFL club when he was contracted to North Melbourne in the 2009 AFL Draft.

Majak Daw's drafting gained international attention; it was reported by the BBC, the Voice of America and Sudan Tribune.

Majak Daw was born in Khartoum, Sudan, the third of his parents' eventual seven children.

Majak Daw's family fled the Second Sudanese Civil War, living in Egypt for three years, then moved to Australia in 2003.

Majak Daw went to the 2009 Victorian Screening portion of the AFL pre-draft testing.

Majak Daw impressed with a 13.6 in the beep test and 3.03 seconds in a 20-metre sprint along with a standing jump of 70 centimetres.

Majak Daw was one of 11 young Australian rules footballers to be given 2010 Mike Fitzpatrick Scholarships awarded by the AFL Players Association and accepted the awards on behalf of the other players.

Majak Daw was picked up with the ninth pick in the 2010 rookie draft.

Majak Daw made his first appearance for North Melbourne in a pre-season NAB cup match against the Western Bulldogs on 20 February 2011.

Majak Daw made his first appearance for North Melbourne in a NAB Cup match on 20 February 2011.

On 4 June 2011, Majak Daw was racially abused by a Port Melbourne Football Club supporter while he was playing for the Werribee Tigers in the VFL.

Majak Daw was suspended from North Melbourne Football Club in February 2012 and remanded to the Werribee Tigers for an indefinite period for lying to the club and coach Brad Scott about a "night on the town" during a period in which he was recovering from knee surgery.

In 2013, Majak Daw had an excellent showing in the 2013 NAB Cup, which prompted calls for his inclusion in the Senior Side.

When tall forward Robbie Tarrant went down with a thigh injury, Majak Daw was brought in to replace him and make his debut in Round 4 against the Brisbane Lions.

Majak Daw held his spot and played the next week, scoring no goals but three behinds against Hawthorn.

In Round 7 against the Western Bulldogs, Majak Daw had a breakout performance in just his fourth career game, kicking a game-high 6 goals in North's 54-point win.

Majak Daw was delisted in October 2015; however, he was re-drafted in the 2016 rookie draft.

In 2016, Majak Daw won Mark of the Year after taking a specky against Collingwood.

Majak Daw sought this change because he thought it was his last chance at thriving in the AFL.

Majak Daw played his first game as a defender against Carlton in the AFLX series.

Later on in Round 3 against Melbourne, Majak Daw officially played his first game as a defender.

Majak Daw was delisted by North Melbourne at the end of the 2020 AFL season after a mass delisting by North Melbourne which saw 11 players cut from the team's list.

Majak Daw was recruited to the Melbourne Football Club in 2021, playing at VFL-level all that season.

Majak Daw struggled with injury during his time at Melbourne and did not play a senior game for them before announcing his retirement in June 2022.

Majak Daw had been previously arrested and interviewed over the allegations in May 2014.

Majak Daw denied the allegations, while North Melbourne stated that he would remain available for selection.

On 3 December 2015, Majak Daw was found not guilty on all counts.

On 18 December 2018, Majak Daw abandoned his vehicle on the Bolte Bridge and jumped into the Yarra River 25 metres below.

In July 2019, Majak Daw made a return for the North Melbourne VFL affiliate against Sandringham, the VFL affiliate of St Kilda.

Majak Daw made his AFL return on 1 August 2020 in a win against Adelaide, kicking one goal.