Of Polish descent, Polec was an outside midfielder who, prior to being drafted, played senior football with Woodville West Torrens and was a key player in their 2010 finals series. Woodville-West Torrens coach Michael Godden described Polec as being "as good a junior as I've seen come through the system" and praised him for his skill, composure and work ethic.[2]
Polec missed games for both Port Adelaide and North Melbourne due to a recurrent injury to his foot.[3][4][5]
Polec was selected in the initial extended squad for the Lions in round 2 in the 2011 season, but was left out of the final team. He made his AFL debut against Melbourne in round 3.[6] In his first three seasons at Brisbane, he played in sixteen games. In September 2013, Polec requested a trade to a South Australian team,[7] and in October, he nominated Port Adelaide as his preferred club of destination.[8]
Polec officially joined Port Adelaide in October 2013.[9] Polec had an immediate impact at Port Adelaide, achieving a career-high thirty disposals in round 7 against Greater Western Sydney.[10]
2015 was not to be for Polec, suffering a stress reaction in his foot which developed into a navicular fracture, forcing him out for the season.[11] In early 2016, scans cleared Polec of the fracture and he was declared fit to resume full training.[12] On 13 September 2018, Polec advised Port Adelaide that he wished to be traded to North Melbourne.
In October 2018, Polec was traded to North Melbourne on a five-year contract for seasons 2019 to 2023,[13] however was delisted after the 2022 season following an ongoing foot injury that kept him out of the team throughout 2022.[14]
In September 2023, Polec was appointed as head coach of Hoppers Crossing Football Club in the Western Region Football League, on a two-year contract.[15]
