By David Nagel
Surely, we can trust the senior coaches and support staff in the West Gippsland Football Netball Competition (WGFNC) when they fill out the best players list at the completion of every game this year!
They’re all decent and honest blokes, each and every one of them, and there would be no keeping players off the impact list in order to hide their solid form from opposition scouting.
Of course, the above statements are all tongue-in-cheek – we know of at least one current senior coach in the WGFNC who has made an art-form of hiding his best players from opposition spies over the years.
In a league where filming games is at the club’s discretion – which will surely change in the near future – every available piece of information is important.
But what if we do take the votes given each week – by the coaches and support staff – at face value?
If we do, we get a strong understanding – the best understanding at our disposal – of the key players that have been the most consistent and had the biggest impact this year.
The list…well it’s chock full of classy and hard-working types that really won’t surprise anyone.
Reigning league best and fairest winner, Phillip Island dynamo and former North Melbourne and Melbourne utility Cam Pedersen, and Nar Nar Goon star Trent Armour, lead the way with 28 votes after just seven rounds of the season.
Pedersen is one of only two players that has polled three best on grounds this year, joined by Kooweerup midfielder Mitch Cammarano, who sits in equal third position with Garfield hard-nut Jayden Goumas on 27 votes.
Armour is one of only two players to have caught the coach’s attention in all seven games this season, alongside Kilcunda-Bass star Darcy Atkins who sits proud and alone in fifth place with 26 votes.
Exciting Inverloch-Kongwak ruckman Clinton McCaughan (24 votes), Kooweerup veteran Tim Miller (22) and Dalyston’s Brad Monson and Kooweerup’s Trav Bindley on 21 votes round out the top-nine players of the year.
Bunyip-recruit Dylan Quirk is joined by Inverloch-Kongwak prime mover Corey Casey and classy Nar Nar Goon half back Ryan Bromley on 20 votes to round out a very impressive top dozen.
Of the players to have polled 10 or more votes this season, only Jack Griffiths (Warragul Industrials), Max Walton (Phillip Island) and Ryan Sparkes (Inverloch-Kongwak) join Armour and Atkins to poll in all games they have played this year.
Walton has played six games this season and Walton three, while Sparkes has taken to the field only two times for the Sea Eagles this year.
Of the 12 clubs in the WGFNC, Tooradin-Dalmore has the lowest-ranked best player with defender Brad Lenders leading the way with 13 votes.
The following number of players from each club have polled votes this season: 21 – Dalyston, Kilcunda-Bass, Korumburra-Bena and Tooradin-Dalmore, 20 – Cora Lynn, 19 – Bunyip, 18 – Kooweerup and Phillip Island, 16 – Inverloch-Kongwak and Nar Nar Goon, 14 – Garfield and Warragul Industrials.
Note: Clubs have the option of giving votes to six players each week, but on 11 occasions this year clubs have only given five players their tick of approval.
We gave votes from six down to two on those occasions.
Bunyip (Rd2 and 3), Cora Lynn (Rd2), Dalyston (Rd5), Garfield (Rd1), Inverloch-Kongwak (Rd1, 2 and 5), Kooweerup (Rd5), Nar Nar Goon (Rd1) and Warragul Industrials (Rd3) are the teams that felt six players were too many to highlight.
Cora Lynn only selected four players in round five.
VOTES
28 Trent Armour -Nar Nar Goon
28 Cameron Pedersen – Phillip Island
27 Jayden Goumas – Garfield
27 Mitchell Cammarano – Kooweerup
26 Darcy Atkins – Kilcunda-Bass
24 Clinton McCaughan – Inverloch-Kongwak
22 Tim Miller – Kooweerup
21 Bradley Monson – Dalyston
21 Travis Bindley – Kooweerup
20 Dylan Quirk – Bunyip
20 Corey Casey – Inverloch-Kongwak
20 Ryan Bromley – Nar Nar Goon
19 Ben Fitzpatrick – Korumburra-Bena
19 Brendan Hermann – Nar Nar Goon
19 Eamon Trigg – Nar Nar Goon
19 Shane Brewster – Warragul Industrials
18 Jackson Dalton – Bunyip
18 Daniel Helmore – Garfield
18 Nathan Voss – Kooweerup
18 Corey Micari – Warragul Industrials
18 Jack Griffiths – Warragul Industrials
17 Robert Hill – Cora Lynn
17 Brendan Walsh – Dalyston
17 Max Blake – Phillip Island
17 Michael Debenham – Warragul Industrials
16 Adam Honeysett – Dalyston
16 Clay Tait – Dalyston
16 Thomas Hams – Inverloch-Kongwak
16 Jack Soroczynski – Kilcunda-Bass
16 Nathan Muratore – Kilcunda-Bass
16 Taylor Gibson – Kilcunda-Bass
15 Ryan Hillard – Garfield
15 Zac Soutar – Garfield
15 Jaymie Youle – Phillip Island
14 Jeb McLeod – Bunyip
14 Shem Hawking – Inverloch-Kongwak
14 Jordan Hill – Korumburra-Bena
13 Matthew Lello – Korumburra-Bena
13 Bradley Lenders – Tooradin-Dalmore
13 Will Jolley – Warragul Industrials
12 Matty O’Halloran – Bunyip
12 Christopher Johnson – Cora Lynn
12 Ethan McDonald – Kooweerup
12 Darcy Hargrave – Korumburra-Bena
12 Josh Hill – Korumburra-Bena
12 Trent Noy – Nar Nar Goon
12 Zak Vernon – Phillip Island
12 Joshua Mulheron – Tooradin-Dalmore
12 Steven Robb – Tooradin-Dalmore
11 Ryan Quirk – Bunyip
11 Jaxon Briggs – Cora Lynn
11 Nathan Gardiner – Cora Lynn
11 Michael Marotta – Dalyston
11 Michael Wallace – Garfield
11 Bailey Galante – Kooweerup
11 Max Walton – Phillip Island
11 Dylan Paarlberg – Tooradin-Dalmore
10 Agape Patolo – Bunyip
10 Nathan Walsh – Dalyston
10 Joseph Verleg – Garfield
10 Campbell McKenzie – Inverloch-Kongwak
10 Ryan Sparkes – Inverloch-Kongwak
10 Daniel Pearce – Phillip Island
10 Damien Lawrence – Warragul Industrials
TOP-5 AT EACH CLUB
VOTES CLUB/PLAYER
BUNYIP
20 Dylan Quirk
18 Jackson Dalton
14 Jeb McLeod
12 Matty O’Halloran
11 Ryan Quirk
CORA LYNN
17 Robert Hill
12 Christopher Johnson
11 Jaxon Briggs
11 Nathan Gardiner
9 Ryan Spierings
9 Thomas Stiglich
DALYSTON
21 Bradley Monson
17 Brendan Walsh
16 Adam Honeysett
16 Clay Tait
11 Michael Marotta
GARFIELD
27 Jayden Goumas
18 Daniel Helmore
15 Ryan Hillard
15 Zac Soutar
11 Michael Wallace
INVERLOCH-KONGWAK
24 Clinton McCaughan
20 Corey Casey
16 Thomas Hams
14 Shem Hawking
10 Campbell McKenzie
10 Ryan Sparkes
KILCUNDA-BASS
26 Darcy Atkins
16 Jack Soroczynski
16 Nathan Muratore
16 Taylor Gibson
9 Matija Sigeti
KOOWEERUP
27 Mitchell Cammarano
22 Tim Miller
21 Travis Bindley
18 Nathan Voss
12 Ethan McDonald
KORUMBURRA-BENA
19 Ben Fitzpatrick
14 Jordan Hill
13 Matthew Lello
12 Darcy Hargrave
12 Josh Hill
NAR NAR GOON
28 Trent Armour
20 Ryan Bromley
19 Brendan Hermann
19 Eamon Trigg
12 Trent Noy
PHILLIP ISLAND
28 Cameron Pedersen
17 Max Blake
15 Jaymie Youle
12 Zak Vernon
11 Max Walton
TOORADIN-DALMORE
13 Bradley Lenders
12 Joshua Mulheron
12 Steven Robb
11 Dylan Paarlberg
9 Liam Adams
WARRAGUL INDUSTRIALS
19 Shane Brewster
18 Corey Micari
18 Jack Griffiths
17 Michael Debenham
13 Will Jolley
