Kepler Bradley Biography

Kepler Bradley calls an end to his career saying his body can no longer cope with the rigours of AFL football.

"I'm nearly 29 now and I haven't really played in the past two years after my knee reconstruction," Bradley said.

"I've tried to come back this year as soon as my body would let me, but I've done about five hamstrings on the way. Just with the pace of the game now, how fast it is, it looks like the game has gone past me.

"I played WAFL on the weekend and my body was a bit sore. That was the final nail in the coffin that it wasn't meant to be."

Kepler Bradley signs a one-year contract extension to continue playing football for Fremantle in 2014.

Kepler Bradley suffers a suspected ruptured ACL after hyper-extending his knee whilst having a shot for goal halfway through the second quarter against Richmond in round 5.

"Kepler has done an ACL. We're pretty confident," Fremantle coach Ross Lyon said post-match.

"As you'd imagine, he's not over the moon about it. An ACL in footy isn't ideal, but we'll support Kepler and rehabilitate him."

Freo utility Kepler Bradley says he must make the most of his opportunities to play at AFL level after struggling with form and injuries recently.

"I haven't been back for about 12 weeks now, so to run out there and hear the crowd again, it's a big change to WAFL footy," he said.

"I love it. Whenever you get a chance to play AFL footy, you don't know when your last game's going to come, so I just cherish every moment I get.

"I got dropped for reasons so I've just been trying to get back and work on the things I was told to work on - play as a tall, lead at the footy and take marks, and if I don't mark the ball, try and bring it to ground and provide opportunities."

Kepler Bradley says he hopes to prove himself as a forward in 2012 with the Dockers.

"Last year for the first 10 games I was a key forward and I go into this season with pretty much the same mindset," Bradley said.

"I'm probably one of the older guys now, so it'd be nice to nail down a spot in the forward line and help the young guys come through.

"Being 26 and having played 100 games I've got a bit of experience, so I just want to go out there this year and show that and get a kick."

Freo coach Mark Harvey has given Kepler Bradley a ringing endorsement after his four-goal performance against North Melbourne.

"He's a good sidekick for Aaron [Sandilands], isn't he?" Harvey said after the game.

"A lot of focus goes on Aaron, but he's part of the show. The way he's playing he is [part of our best side]. We're constantly working on his game and we're starting to see some results of that now."

Fremantle has re-signed Rhys Palmer, Dean Solomon, Kepler Bradley, Tim Ruffles and Ryan Crowley.

"Rhys is the reigning NAB AFL Rising Star and an important part of our long-term future. We are delighted that he has committed to Fremantle through to the end of 2011," General manager of player management Brad Lloyd said.

"Following his surgery earlier in the season, Rhys has been working very diligently on his rehabilitation and we are really looking forward to having him back out on the field next season."

Kepler Bradley suggests that the Bombers may regret delisting him and teammate Mark Johnson after being picked up by the Dockers with picks 69 and 55 of the 2007 national draft respectively.

"They didn't do the trades for us, so hopefully me and 'Johnno' can prove them wrong," Bradley said.