William Edward Dowling (born 1 July 2004) is a professional Australian rules footballer who was selected by the Football Club as the number 43 pick in the 2022 AFL draft. He previously played for in the SANFL at amateur level.
AFL career Dowling was picked up by at pick number 43 in the 2022 national draft from the Football Club.
He shone bright in the SANFL for Adelaide, but struggled to move forward into the senior side due to the strong midfield group of Jordan Dawson, Rory Laird, and Matt Crouch. In July 2023, Dowling added to his rookie contract by signing on until the end of 2026.
After an impressive run of form, and an injury to fellow on-baller Matt Crouch, Dowling's long-awaited debut was announced on 4 June 2024, two days prior to 's round 13 game against at the Adelaide Oval. Dowling debuted with 17 disposals, one goal, and nine marks, to finish as the sixth-highest rated Crow of the night (according to AFL Fantasy) in a disheartening loss for the club. After Dan Curtin, Dowling was the second Crow to make his AFL debut in 2024.
Dowling's opportunities at AFL level in 2025 were few as the Crows won the minor premiership. He made a single appearance in the round 24 match against , kicking two goals, but was left out of the squad for the finals series.
In 2026, Dowling capitalised on a late-season opportunity in the round 21 match against , kicking three goals from 18 disposals on the wing and earning coaches' votes in his 12th senior appearance.
Statistics Updated to the end of round 22, 2026.
| 2023 || || 31 | 0 || — || — || — || — || — || — || — || — || — || — || — || — || — || — || 0 |- | 2024 || || 31 | 9 || 4 || 1 || 95 || 58 || 153 || 48 || 17 || 0.4 || 0.1 || 10.6 || 6.4 || 17.0 || 5.3 || 1.9 || 0 |- | 2025 || || 31 | 1 || 2 || 0 || 6 || 8 || 14 || 2 || 0 || 2.0 || 0.0 || 6.0 || 8.0 || 14.0 || 2.0 || 0.0 || 0 |- | 2026 || || 31 | 3 || 3 || 3 || 23 || 21 || 44 || 15 || 11 || 1.0 || 1.0 || 7.7 || 7.0 || 14.7 || 5.0 || 3.7 || 0 |- class=sortbottom ! colspan=3 | Career ! 13 !! 9 !! 4 !! 124 !! 87 !! 211 !! 65 !! 28 !! 0.7 !! 0.3 !! 9.5 !! 6.7 !! 16.2 !! 5.0 !! 2.2 !! 0
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