By David Nagel
What do these all-time legends of Australian Rules football have in common…Gary Ablett Snr, Ron Barassi, Kevin Bartlett, Wayne Carey, Alex Jesaulenko, Leigh Matthews and ‘Mr Football’ Ted Whitten?
Despite their brilliance and ever-lasting impact on the game these superstars of football were never fortunate enough to have the ultimate symbol of individual excellence draped around their neck – the Charles Brownlow Medal.
Those immortal names – but their inability to claim the games’ greatest individual honour
– would indicate that winning a Brownlow, or a community football equivalent, is an extremely difficult thing to do.
On average, depending on the number of teams in a league, between 300 and 450 players might pull on the boots and saddle up in a particular competition each year.
Winning just one of those awards, voted by umpires and that only spring to life once the all-important ladder positions have been decided, is an amazing achievement.
Well how about winning five!
The Gazette has done its homework, and a total of 334 league best and fairest awards have gone up for grabs across the major competitions in our readership.
The Ellinbank and District Football League (EDFL) has been acknowledging its best and fairest player since 1938, while the Yarra Valley Mountain District Football League (YVMDFL), now AFL Outer East, has records that date back even further to 1930.
The West Gippsland Football League (WGFL), now West Gippsland Football Netball Competition (WGFNC), has records of its winners dating back to 1944, although there was a gap between 2005 and 2016.
The WGFL finished in its original form in 2001, although the West Gippsland Latrobe Football League (WGLFL) kept the Breheny Medal as its highest individual prize from 2002 to 2004.
The WGFNC has revived some great memories of the glory days of West Gippsland football since it was reintroduced as a competition in 2017.
And a few clubs from the former South West Gippsland Football League (SWGFL) – which began in 1954 – have been part of the local landscape since way before that competition began.
Beaconsfield, Berwick, Cranbourne, Doveton, Hampton Park, Keysborough, Narre Warren, Rythdale-Cardinia (ROC/Officer) and Tooradin-Dalmore – formed strong bonds and created great rivalries through those generations that still burn strong today.
The SWGFL ended in 1994, but a few of those original clubs have since transitioned through the MPNFL, Casey Cardinia (CCFL) and South East Football Netball League (SEFNL) – from 1995 to 2018 – before finding a current home in AFL Outer East.
With that history lesson out of the way, it’s time to scour the lists of league best and fairest winners from across the region and see who the mightiest players have been.
And one player stands out from a pack of 62 glorious superstars who have won multiple honours along the way.
Andy Soumilas, the champion midfielder of his generation, tops the list of great players with five league best and fairest awards – and they came a staggering 13 years apart!
The classy left-footer started his medal haul playing for Garfield in 2004, winning the Breheny Medal in West Gippsland Latrobe, before repeating the dose in 2005, in the same league, but with a different prize – the Trood Award and Rodda Medal.
Soumilas won the same prize in 2011, playing for Drouin in the Gippsland League, before returning to Garfield and claiming the Alf Walton Medal in 2013 – presented to the best player in the Ellinbank League.
A remarkable career was capped off in 2017, when Soumilas made it a unique Breheny Medal double, winning the last Breheny presented in 2004, and the first Breheny awarded after the rejuvenation of West Gippsland football 13 years later!
Soumilas would go on to play in a premiership for Inverloch-Kongwak that year under the coaching of his brother Ben.
Only two other champions from our region have had four medals draped around their necks.
Another exquisitely talented left-footer, the mercurial Dan O’Loughlin, won back-to-back Breheny Medals for Pakenham in 2000-01, before claiming a Norm Walker Medal in the MPNFL, once again with the Lions, in 2003.
O’Loughlin would cap off a tremendous era of individual success by claiming another Norm Walker Medal with Tooradin-Dalmore in 2006 in the Casey Cardinia Football League.
Soumilas and O’Loughlin are joined on the gold, silver and bronze medal dais by a ground-breaking player from the Yarra Valley league in the 1950’s – Healesville’s James Wandin.
Wandin was the first Aboriginal to play for the St Kilda Football Club in the then VFL, in 1952 and 1953, before returning to Healesville as a playing coach and winning four league best and fairest awards in 1954, ’57, ’58 and ’59.
James Wandin was also a hugely influential figure away from the football field, being the ngurungaeta (tribal leader) of the Wurundjeri clan until his death, aged 72, in February 2006.
Wandin was a tall player for his generation, standing six feet tall, and dominated for Healesville at centre half forward.
A total of 13 other champions thoroughly deserve legend status around these parts, winning a remarkable three league best and fairest awards.
Current-day Korumburra-Bena coach Paul Alger won three on the trot with Nyora – in 1991, ’92 and ’93 – while Rythdale-Cardinia’s Gil Savoury also won three consecutive medals from 1955 to 1957.
The running power of Berwick champion Madi Andrews, the sheer athleticism of Beaconsfield ruckman Scott Meyer, and the sheer will to compete and desperation of current-day Phillip Island star Brendan Kimber, prove that it can take many different skills to make a three-time league best and fairest winner.
And also up on a pedestal are the 47 remaining legends that have won two awards throughout their careers.
It’s not very often that names like Cleary, Drake, Gabriel, Hillard, Holland, Lenders, Miller, Scalzo and Young have to take a back seat – but on this very rare occasion even they would dip their lids and acknowledge the remarkable achievements of 15 absolute legends of the game.
Turn the page to Football 10 and 11 for a full list of West Gippsland Football League/Competition Breheny Medal winners…along with a 2015 interview with four Breheny medallists, Steve Bassed, Tom Cleary, Joe Lenders and Peter Lieshout.
Next week we take a look at Norm Walker medallists – South West Gippsland Football League – from days gone by.
5 LEAGUE MEDALS
Andy Soumilas 2004 – Garfield (WGFL), 2005 – Garfield (WGLFL), 2011 – Drouin (Gippsland), 2013 – Garfield (EDFL), 2017 – Inverloch-Kongwak (WGFNC)
4 LEAGUE MEDALS
Dan O’Loughlin 2000, 01 – Pakenham (WGFL), 2003 – Pakenham (MPNFL), 2006 – Tooradin-Dalmore (CCFL).
James Wandin 1954, 57, 58, 59 – Healesville (YVMDFL)
3 LEAGUE MEDALS
Paul Alger 1991, 92, 93 – Nyora (EDFL)
Madi Andrews 2015, 17, 18 – Berwick (SEFNL)
Rob Andrews 1961 – Nar Nar Goon (WGFL), 1966, 67 – Longwarry (WGFL)
Brendan Kimber 2012, 13 – Cora Lynn (EDFL), 2018 – Phillip Island (WGFNC)
David McMaster 1985, 86, 91 – Lang Lang (WGFL)
Scott Meyer 2013, 14, 16 – Beaconsfield (CCFL/SEFNL)
Wayne Morris 1975, 76, 78 – Warburton Millgrove (YVMDFL)
Billy Morrison 1971, 72, 74 – Tooradin-Dalmore (SWGFL)
William Murnane 1945, 47, 51 – Longwarry (WGFL)
Ray Rouget 1935, 38, 39 – Wandin (YVMDFL)
Gil Savory 1955, 56, 57 – Rythdale-Cardinia (SWGFL)
Patrick Sharp 2007, 09,10 – Woori Yallock (YVMDFL)
David Wade 1983, 84, 88 – Narre Hallam (SWGFL)
2 LEAGUE MEDALS
A Bateman 1990, 93 – Yarra Glen (YVMDFL)
Brian Cash 1957, 59 – Garfield (WGFL)
Mark Cecere 2011, 18 – Seville (YVMDFL)
J Chapman 1968, 73 – Woori Yallock (YVMDFL)
Tom Cleary 1983, 84 – Garfield (WGFL)
Russell Cowan 2008 – Powelltown, 2010 – Yarra Glen (YVMDFL)
Billy Drake 1958, 62 – Pakenham (WGFL)
Wayne Esler 1968, 69 – Kooweerup (WGFL)
B. Farrugia 2003 – Mt Evelyn, 2005 – Warburton Millgrove (YVMDFL)
Russell Gabriel 2009, 2015 – Doveton (CCFL/SEFNL)
A Goodwin 1985, 86 – Wandin (YVMDFL)
P Halit 1960, 61 – Millgrove (YVMDFL)
Johnnie Harrison 1951, 52 – Mt Evelyn (YVMDFL)
Jack Hazendonk 2018, 19 – Poowong (EDFL)
Dean Hendrikse 1999, 2001 – Nilma Darnum – (EDFL)
Darren Hillard 1990, 95 – Pakenham (WGFL)
Tye Holland 2014 – Longwarry, 2016 – Warragul Industrials (EDFL)
Ken Leeson 1950, 52 – Lang Lang (WGFL)
Joe Lenders 1977, 78 – Garfield (WGFL)
Peter Lindsay 1985, 91 – Narre Hallam (SWGFL)
J Long 1996, 97 – Yarra Junction (YVMDFL)
Chris MacLagen 1998, 99 – Silvan (YVMDFL)
John Martello 1968, 69 – Cranbourne (SWGFL)
Beau Miller 2007, 2011 – Tooradin-Dalmore (CCFL)
Allan Nicholson 1947, 49 – Strezlecki (EDFL)
N. Oakley 2006, 07 – Alexandra (YVMDFL)
Peter Oakes 1977, 78 – Chelsea Heights (SWGFL)
T Ollington 1944, 46 – Lang Lang (WGFL)
Kurt Oswald 1975 – Hampton Park (SWGFL), 1982 – Garfield (WGFL)
Charlie Pierrehumbert 1961, 63 – Buln Buln – (EDFL)
C Richards 1984, 87 – Healesville (YVMDFL)
Wayne Robertson 2012, 14 – Yarra Junction (YVMDFL)
Keith Robins 1976, 79 – Chelsea Heights (SWGFL)
A Rogers 1955, 56 – Drouin (WGFL)
Brad Scalzo 2008 – Narre Warren (CCFL), 2016 – Warragul (GFL)
Jim Smith 1976, 77 – Poowong (EDFL)
Ron Smith 1948, 49 – Longwarry (WGFL)
Max Stormer 1949 – Wesburn, 1955 – Seville (YVMDFL)
George Sutherland 1933, 34 – Millgrove (YVMDFL)
L Telford 2016, 17 – Yarra Glen (YVMDFL)
Scott Tregoning 2008, 09 – Olinda Ferny Creek (YVMDFL)
Scott Wightman 1982, 87 – Nyora (EDFL)
Scott Wighton 1983, 84 – Nyora (EDFL)
Alex Winterton 1956,57 – Ellinbank (EDFL)
Lincoln Withers 1997 – Garfield (WGFL), 2002 – Pakenham (MPNFL)
Daryl Young 1972, 73 – Pakenham (WGFL)
