Stephen Jurica

Who is Stephen Jurica?

Stephen Jurica is a former Australian rules footballer who played with Richmond in the Australian Football League during the 1990s.

A South Fremantle recruit, Jurica was just 17 when he was signed by Richmond. He came into the Richmond team halfway through the 1995 AFL season to replace injured key forward Matthew Richardson and performed credibly. In the now famous draw against Essendon, Jurica kicked five goals and later in the season kicked four goals in a win over Collingwood to win a 1995 AFL Rising Star nomination. He ended the season playing in a qualifying final and finished with 21 goals for the year.

Despite some impressive performances in his debut season, Jurica was delisted after adding just five further games in 1996 and 1997.

Jurica, who now works as a barrister, won the North Ballarat Football Club's "Best and Fairest" award in 2003.