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Platten's career began in the SANFL, where he won a Magarey Medal with Central District, and also with Hawthorn, where he played in four premierships and won the 1987 Brownlow Medal. Platten remains a popular and respected figure at both clubs and is also an inductee in both the AFL and SANFL Halls of Fame.
Platten was born in South Australia. He began his career with Central Districts in the SANFL: a junior with the Centrals; he commenced in the junior ranks in 1979 and made his league debut in 1981.
Platten immediately made an impact with Centrals, becoming a full State Representative in 1982, and continued to be a regular in the state team throughout his career. Platten's greatest achievement at Centrals was his 1984 Magarey Medal win.
Platten was recruited to Carlton but after a protracted legal case eventually joined Hawthorn for the 1986 season. Keeping the number 44 on the back of his guernsey, he went on to play for the Hawks from 1986 to 1997, playing 258 games and kicking 228 goals. Nicknamed "The Rat" because of his diminutive frame and unruly tangle of curly hair, he was a distinctive if unlikely-looking footballer. Despite this, he enjoyed a career that saw him firmly established as one of the best players of the 1980s and early '90s. He was a gutsy rover who won a Brownlow Medal in 1987, tying with Tony Lockett. He played in four VFL/AFL premierships with Hawthorn, in 1986, 1988, 1989, and 1991, and a State of Origin Carnival Championship for South Australia in 1988.
In 1998, Platten retired from the Hawthorn Football Club and made a dramatic return to Central District along with Gilbert McAdam, another of the Bulldogs' all-time greats. Platten kicked the match-winning goal of his comeback match against Glenelg at Elizabeth Oval, however, injury plagued his long-awaited comeback and he retired from football all together after sustaining a knee injury mid-season. His return to Elizabeth Oval was not the success it was hoped for but was a joyous event for long-time Centrals fans regardless. Platten was a notable attendee at Centrals early 2000s premiership successes, an achievement he was never to enjoy with his boyhood club.
Platten played 107 games for Central District in the SANFL, for a career total of 365 games in elite football, and was also the club's best and fairest in 1984 and 1985, as well as its leading goalkicker in 1981 and 1985. He won the All-Australian selection five times: from 1985 to 1988, when the team was selected based on interstate carnival performances, and in 1992 when the team was selected based on AFL premiership performances.
South Australia 26.16 (172) defeated Victoria 17.14 (116), at Football Park, 16 May 1983
Western Australia 24.14 (134) defeated South Australia 16.14 (110), at Subiaco Oval, 4 June 1983
Victoria 16.12 (108) defeated South Australia 16.8 (104), at Football Park, 15 May 1984
Western Australia 14.14 (98) defeated South Australia 14.13 (97), at Football Park, 9 June 1984
South Australia 19.13 (127) defeated Western Australia 14.17 (91), at Football Park, 2 June 1993, crowd: 21,487
South Australia 16.13 (109) defeated Victoria 14.13 (97), at the MCG, 5 June 1993, crowd: 31,792
