Shai Bolton
Shai Bolton
Shai Bolton – 2025
Shai (Shay) was born 8 December 1998, and is a professional Australian rules footballer playing for the Fremantle Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL), having previously played for the Richmond Football Club.
He was initially drafted by Richmond in the second round of the 2016 draft and made his debut in round nine of the 2017 season, as the club’s youngest debutant in nine years. In 2018, he won the VFL’s Mark and Goal of the Year awards while playing reserves grade football. Bolton was a premiership player with Richmond in each of the 2019 and 2020 seasons, the first of which he also received a Rising Star nomination in.
Junior football and early life
Bolton was born in Katanning, Western Australia and grew up in the southern Perth suburb of Forrestdale before spending his teenage years in Mandurah. He comes from strong footballing stocks: his father, Darren Bolten, is a former Fremantle player (2 games) and Peel Thunder best & fairest winner.
In 2013, Bolton entered the elite talent pathway when he joined the Flying Boomerangs Indigenous Academy. He began playing underage football with WAFL club South Fremantle the following year. Bolton was sidelined for much of his 2015 season however after suffering stress fractures in his back. In his final season (2016) at the club, he averaged 17 disposals and two goals per game, including a seven-goal performance against East Perth.
He represented Western Australia at the 2016 AFL Under 18 Championships, kicking five goals in the tournament.
Bolton attended high school at Wesley College in Perth, leaving after completing his year 11 studies to focus on football. During his time at Wesley, he formed close friendships with future AFL players Sam Powell-Pepper and Quinton Narkle.
Prior to the 2016 national draft, Bolton was praised for his “blazing speed” and “natural instinct for the game.” He impressed recruiters in October’s pre-draft All Stars game at Punt Road Oval, recording 16 disposals, seven inside 50s and a goal. He placed second in the running vertical jump test at the national draft combine that year.
| Personal information | |||
| Born | 8 December 1998 (age 27) Katanning, Western Australia | ||
| Original team | South Fremantle (WAFL) | ||
| Draft | No. 29, 2016 national draft | ||
| Debut | Round 9, 2017, Richmond vs. Greater Western Sydney, at Spotless Stadium | ||
| Height | 176 cm (5 ft 9 in) | ||
| Weight | 77 kg (170 lb) | ||
| Position | Midfielder / forward | ||
| Club information | |||
| Current club | Fremantle | ||
| Number | 10 | ||
| Playing career1 | |||
| Years | Club | Games (Goals) | |
| 2017–2024 | Richmond | 135 (165) | |
| 2025– | Fremantle | 33 (40) | |
| Total | 168 (205) | ||
| Representative team honours | |||
| Years | Team | Games (Goals) | |
| 2025 | Indigenous All-Stars | 1 (0) | |
| 2026 | Western Australia | 1 (1) | |
| 1 Playing statistics correct to the end of round 10, 2026. | |||