As a junior, Mansell was a member of the Tasmanian State Academy and joined the North Melbourne Next Generation Academy as a 16 year old in the program's inaugural 2016 intake.[2] He trained with North Melbourne's AFL squad regularly as part of the program.[3]
In 2017 Mansell played state representative football with the Tassie Mariners .[4] In the same year, he made his senior Tasmanian State League debut with North Launceston and was a member of the club's premiership winning side in their grand final win over Laurderdale that September.[1]
Mansell suffered a significant quad injury in early 2018, hampering his output during the national academy series season with the Mariners.[5] Mansell was eventually selected to represent Tasmania as a member of The Allies side at the 2018 AFL Under 18 Championships, but missed two games as a result of the earlier quad injury.[6][5] He returned to TSL football later in the year, and featured in another grand final win with North Launceston.[7] At the end of the season, Mansell was invited to attend the Tasmanian AFL draft combine.[8]
After going undrafted in both the 2018 national and rookie drafts, Mansell was eligible to be signed by North Melbourne as a category B rookie under Next Generation Academy rules, but was ultimately overlooked.[9][10]
As an overage player in 2019, Mansell joined the newly re-formed Tasmania Devils side in the Victorian-based NAB League Boys competition, where he placed fourth in the club's best and fairest.[11][12] He played state-league football once again for North Launceston that season, winning a third-straight TSL premiership.[13] Mansell was once again eligible to be drafted in 2019 (including with priority academy access by North Melbourne), but was again looked over at the national and rookie drafts.[14]
Mansell relocated to Adelaide in 2020, playing senior SANFL football with Woodville-West Torrens.[15][16] He became a key player across the course of the season and featured in a finals series that included a premiership.[17][18] He contributed a strong 19 disposals, eight marks and five tackles while playing as a half-back in the club's grand final victory over North Adelaide.[19]
Despite his strong season, Mansell was again overlooked by AFL clubs at the 2020 national and rookie drafts.[20]
In the days following the 2020 draft, Mansell was offered a chance to train with Richmond under a trial period basis.[21] Mansell impressed during his trial and in February 2021, was signed by the club under the AFL's pre-season supplemental selection rules.[22]
Mansell began playing practice matches with Richmond reserves squad from late-February 2021 and into the opening weeks of the AFL season.[23][24] Following an impressive match against the Collingwood reserves in early April, Mansell was selected to make his AFL debut in the club's round 4 match against Port Adelaide at the Adelaide Oval.[25][23]
Player profile
Mansell plays as a shutdown small-defender and as a rebounding half-back.[21][26]
