Six weeks of international travel failed to impact Shaun Atley’s 2022 Goulburn Valley league season and he was rewarded on Saturday evening with the Rochester club’s senior football best and fairest award.
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Atley, 30, returned to the Tigers after 234 AFL games with the Kangaroos and stormed home in the count to win by 19 votes from Chris Jansen. He polled 282 votes from his 12 games, while Jansen finished on 261 votes from 15 games.
Atley spent six weeks travelling Europe with his wife between rounds seven and 12 and when he rejoined the count in round 13 he was in fourth place — 28 votes behind eventual runner-up Chris Jansen.
Atley, who he will join his wife in Sweden later this month, polled votes in all of the Tigers’ final six home-and-away games — and its final — to win from Jansen, Jordan Harper and tough tackling mid-fielder Adam McPhee.
Playing alongside his two younger brothers, Joe and Jacob, for the first time Shaun Atley’s round 13 return to Rochester was rewarded with a “perfect game’’ against Rochester.
Three vote cards were distributed for every game, with five players awarded a maximum of 10 and minimum of six votes on a weekly basis.
Jansen didn’t poll a vote in the final three home-and-away rounds, missing the last half of the Tigers round 16 match with United and then sitting out both the final home-and-away rounds.
He took the lead, from prolific running winger Jordan Harper, in the count after polling votes 85 (of a possibly 90) votes between round 13-15.
At that point Jansen had 233 votes and Atley was on 199 votes.
A perfect game from Hugh Hamilton, when he kicked a bag of seven goals, in round 16 and Mitch Cricelli’s 15 disposal-five goal round 17 game meant the Jansen and Atley were tied with one home-and-away game — and the final to be played.
Shaun Atley polled 27 votes in the round 18 win against Shepparton Bears and followed that up with 22 votes in the final — Jansen polling 19 — to claim the win.
Harper held on for third, polling in only one of the final seven games, with 172 votes and McPhee also slowed considerably toward the end of the season — finishing fourth with 164 votes.
Mitch Cricelli’s 44 goal season was rewarded with fifth position (162), while Hugh Hamilton was sixth — polling top votes in the final — with 150 votes.
Behind the top six were Nathan Kay (117), Steve Stroobants (116), Mitch Bright (107) and Joe Atley, who played just four games, was 10th with 94 votes.
Bright won the Gary Appleby Most Determined, Cricelli most consistent and Fraser Cleary most improved.
- A thrilling vote count in the Quinlan family A-grade netball best and fairest was won by Bridgette Holt after she polled best on court in the final home-and-away match of the season.
After 17 rounds she and teenager superstar Teal Hocking were both on 29 votes.
Hocking polled one vote to take the lead, albeit momentarily, as defender Holt picked up maximum votes for a two vote win.
Holt and Hocking missed best on court honours in only six of the 18 matches for the season, Morgan Dingwall and Maddie Egglestone twice earning that distinction, while Tess Ringin and Ellie Cuttriss earned top votes in one game.
Cuttriss was third in the award with 15 votes, while Egglestone rounded out the top four placegetters with 10 votes.
The award is named in honour of Lorraine Quinlan and her daughters Christine Hooppell and Jennifer Auld.
Lorraine Quinlan coached the A and B-grade teams to premierships, while Hooppell holds the Goulburn Valley leaguye record of 525 games and Auld won six A-grade best and fairests.
- Sam Frawley was named the reserve grade best and fairest in another close count, winnng the award by seven votes from Broden Evans.
Five goals in the final home-and-away round, along with four goals in round 17, saw Frawley come from the clouds to overtake Evans in the count in the second last game of the season.
Evans played only 10 games with the reserves team, having made seven senior appearances alognside brother, Blake, this season. He played in the senior team in its losing elimination final match with Mooroopna.
In the opening three rounds of the season Evans polled 88 of a possible 90 votes and by round six led the count by 59 votes from Seamus Henderson, Kyle Waters and Xavier Hoopell.
Frawley was third in the count, behind Evans and Hooppell, after 13 rounds and from that point surged to a 202 vote total — beating Evans (195), Hooppell (153), Jarrad Kyne (122) and Rick Windridge (114).
Xavier Hooppell was most consistent, Ethan Hooppell most determined and Ash Webb most improved.
- Darby Wileman led the under-18 best and fairest count from start to finish, but was particularly dominant in the opening seven rounds.
He twice polled a maximum 30 votes and led by almost 100 votes from Declan Pearse after seven rounds.
Wileman ended the season with 326 votes, with runner-up Reed Hocking having a great finish to the season.
Hocking polled three “perfect games’’ in the second half of the season, closing the gap in the count significantly with half a dozen games remaining.
He finished with 272 votes and third in the award was Charlie Palmer.
Declan Pearse won the coach’s award, Kian Verral most improved and Wileman also picked up the best utility award.
- Ray Pearson held off a fast finishing Nate Rasmussen to win the Tigers’ under-16 football best and fairest by a single vote.
Pearson led the count by 44 votes after 11 rounds, but from that point Rasmussen was named the Tigers best player in all three of its remaining home-and-away matches.
With one round remaining Pearson held a four-vote lead from Rasmussen. The pair were the top two performers in that match, Rasmussen needed a perfect game to tie the count after Pearson polled 26 votes.
He scored 29 votes and finished on 216 votes, with Hugh Kerlin (198) third and Toby Woodfine fourth on 117 votes.
Hunter Wileman won the coach’s award and Woodfine was named most consistent.
- Goulburn Valley league medallist Annie Hughes won the Clare Ferguson and Laura Riordan B-grade best and fairest award.
She polled 39 votes to win the award from Linda Rasmussen (20) and Jamie Dingwall (12). Lil Ward won the coach’s award.
Hughes was the Tigerettes best in 10 of its 18 games, while Rasmussen was best on three occasions.
- Ash Flanagan dominated the Sue Fuller B-Reserve best and fairest vote count, best on court in 10 of her matches for the season.
She led the count by 10 votes after six rounds, by 13 after round 12 and eventually won by 18 votes from Stacy Bacon.
Ella McPhee (16) was third in the count, with Naomi Riordan and Aluyse Stroobants next best. Naomi Riordan was player’s player, Ella McPhee most improved and Hannah Egglestone received the coach’s award.
- Ava Cottam won the under-17 netball best and fairest by 16 votes from Kaitlyn Joyce.
In the under-15 count, the Anita Ward best and fairest was won by Payton Tiller in a close count.
She beat Grace Moyle by three votes after Moyle had led the count 12 rounds into the season. Moyle didn’t poll from that point and Tiller finished with 24 votes, beaten Moyle by three votes.
Other awards were won by, Under-17: Leila Palmer (coach’s award), Matissa Martin (Future Tiger), Charlee Roulston (Barry Moon Rising Star). Under-15: Marli Cottam (coach’s award), Maddie Howard (coach’s award).
Kyabram Free Press and Campaspe Valley News editor