[2] Born in Mount Isa, Queensland, to Western Australian mother and father Ray a dairy farmer of Kaitaia in New Zealand.

[6] He joined East Fremantle Football Club and represented Western Australia in the 1997 edition of the AFL Under-18 Championships, where he earned All-Australian honours.

He played nine senior matches and averaged over 12 disposals during his debut season and took out the Club’s Best First Year Player award.

In 1999, he consolidated himself as an automatic senior selection and built a reputation for winning the ball in contested situations.

He collected 20 possessions and kicked two goals against Geelong in Round 9 which earned him an AFL Rising Star Nomination; he ultimately finished third in the award behind Sydney’s Adam Goodes and Adelaide’s Brett Burton.

Over the following four years, Black and the Lions contested four Grand Finals, winning the premiership in 2001, 2002 and 2003, and finishing runner-up in 2004.

[11] At the beginning of 2007, Black was named as one of the four Lions co-captains, replacing the retiring captain Michael Voss.

In 2009, new coach Michael Voss named Jonathan Brown as the sole captain of the club, and Black remained in the leadership group.

[18] Shortly after announcing his retirement from the AFL, Black signed on as an assistant coach at the Lions for two years.

[20] He subsequently resigned from his role as a coach at the Brisbane Lions to focus on growing the Academy program.