Banfield was recruited from North Ringwood made his way into the Essendon team having played under-19s football at the club.
He participated in the Essendon reserves 1983 premiership and after being unable to establish himself in the seniors, won a PIE Best & Fairest in 1986.
Brisbane picked up Banfield for their first ever VFL season in 1987 and he took part in their inaugural appearance in Round 1 starting in the back pocket.
Banfield continued to play for West Adelaide under the coaching of Neil Kerley in 1992 and 1993, but his team failed to recapture their late 1991 form and missed the finals in both years, finishing 6th and 8th respectively.
This earned him the job of St Kilda's assistant coach, firstly to Stan Alves and then to Tim Watson.