[2] He was raised in Brisbane and attended St Joseph's College, Nudgee where he played for the school in Year (1996 to 1999)[3][4] Charman began playing Australian football at the age of 7 at Sandgate Football Club, encouraged by his father who was a member of Euroa's Team of the Century.

[2] However he chose to stick with football with Sandgate and his decision paid off as he was recruited by Brisbane with the 29th pick in the 2000 AFL Draft.

He played for Brisbane's reserves team in the winning 2001 AFLQ State League Grand Final.

[5][6] He became renowned for his crash and bash approach to ruckwork, similar to that of former teammate Clark Keating (former Brisbane Lions ruck coach).

[7] In late 2011, Charman joined NRL side the North Queensland Cowboys as a part-time kicking and catching coach.