Damien Hitchens came to the Pirates in 1993 and immediately established himself as an integral part of the team. The Clubs 1993 Rookie of the Year made his mark as an outstanding Strong Safety and arguably one of the most accurate Place Kickers in Pirate History.

 

As a Strong Safety he was a vital link in Defensive Coach Dan Coles schemes, and he was equally comfortable coming up to defend the run as he was dropping back into pass coverage. He was close to the top in every defensive statistical category during his seven year career with over 240 tackles, 21 interceptions, and 39 batted passes.

 

Damien also scored just over 200 points during his career, the majority of which came in his role as Place Kicker.

 

As a Place Kicker he was cool under pressure. His booming Kick Offs often put the Pirates in good field position, and he was virtually automatic with his conversion attempts. He was always confident with his Field Goal attempts, and perhaps his most memorable kick was a 52 yard success in the final seconds of a game against the A.C.T. Astros that allowed the Pirates to record a 3-0 win.

 

In 1998 he also saw action as Quarterback, and at one time held the record for the Most TD Passes in a Single Game - 6 versus the Sydney City Barbarians in September of that year.

 

Theres no doubt that Damien was a huge asset to the Club, and he will be remembered as one of the finest players to ever wear the Silver and Black.

Damien Hitchens (1993 to 1999)

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