SENIOR PRESENTATION NIGHT - PREVIEW

Sherwood Districts Australian Football Club will celebrate the 2021 season when the club holds its Presentation Night this evening from 6:00PM. 

The highlight of the evening in addition to the medal counts will be celebrating the clubs two premierships with the Senior Women’s securing the first ever senior women's premiership flag and the Woodsmen also bringing home the premiership. 

The Senior Women’s team continue to go from strength to strength in only their second season back in the competition, dropping only two matches in the home & away season and culminating the year with an emphatic 32 point win in the Grand Final against the previously undefeated Jindalee. It was an immense team effort from the Senior Women in 2021 with a whole of squad mentality required to fit 45 players into 22 spots per week requiring a high degree of sacrifice from many players. Parallel goals of development and enjoyment over pure outcome of the season meant that players were thrown into different positions and that in the end made the 22 highly dangerous such was their versatility and football IQ on the big day. It is difficult to predict with any degree of certainty just who will take out the Deirdre Jakavicius  Medal in 2021 with the immense depth of talent across the team in all line groups meaning that on any given match the 5-4-3-2-1 votes are expected to fluctuate. 

For the Senior Men the 2021 season ended in disappointment as they were gaining momentum with four rounds to go and looked to be a real danger side looking likely to play finals boasting wins against 4 of the Top 6, however the last 4 rounds of the season were cancelled due to Covid-19 which put a premature end of their season and cruelled any chance of seeing how far they could go. In a mystifying decision, AFLQ chose not to play a final 8 despite the obvious benefits to the premier competition in Queensland.

The Bill Peirce Medal count could be a tight affair with young utility Joshua Coombes a big chance after a superb season, particularly after moving into the ruck. He was a revelation as he filled the gap for the Pies and did all that was asked of him by coach Adrian Fletcher. 2020 Bill Pierce Medallist in centreman Will Fletcher had another strong season particularly early on in the year and small defender/midfielder Luke Mitchell will likely poll well given his consistent form. Others who may figure high in the voting are fullback Toara Marango, who was a tower of strength in defence. Skipper and 2019 Bill Pierce Medallist Luca Winton also had a fine season leading from the front finishing 3rd in the Grogan Medal, while Riley Greene was a consistent contributor across half back. Excitement machine Tom Baulch will pick up votes in matches he played but likely did not play enough matches to poll the votes to trouble the likely winners, while Jackson Allen was damaging but missed several games through injury.

In the Reserves the JB (John Burkill) Medal is a difficult one to pick with a number of likely prospects also spending time playing Senior Football. Veteran and 2017 Bill Peirce Medallist Drew Mitchell had a consistent season while ruck-forward Cam Ferguson played his best year for the club and made his senior debut as well. Tall young defender Hamish Campbell was also a model of consistency and determination all season and will figure prominently in the voting while forward Finn Collison provided a reliable route to goal most weeks. Sean Ryan and Lachie Davies played a number of quality matches but may suffer from not playing enough matches due to playing regular Senior football, a trade off we are sure they are happy with!

The Maurie McNamee Medal for Best and Fairest in the Colts will be a hotly contested race. The development of the playing group  was led by some really consistent performers. Tom Kearney, Jett Clarke, Lawson Campbell, Lachlan Harvey, Zane Barrett, Xavier Knight, Liam Hude and Will Cruice are just some of the names that could be in contention for the top prize. With a host of Lions Academy players inserting themselves at different points in the year and the development of some raw talent it will be exciting to see how the count turns out. Regardless of who wins awards this year, the coaches are extremely proud of the effort and dedication the group put into the year this year.  For the second year players moving into Senior footy, they should trust the things they have learnt this year and enjoy the challenge at applying them at the highest level of footy in Queensland. For players who will be returning, they will become the leaders of the group next year, as the team develops into one that not only will be competitive but put consistent wins together.

The Woodsmen / QFA team also had a comfortable 40 point victory in the Grand Final over Jimboomba in front of a strongly supported Sherwood contingent. The team contained a large number of the club’s legends with a sprinkling of new younger players and the veterans’ showing why they were top line players in their youth and still know how to play the game. 

The Nipperess Medal will be a contest between dual Bill Peirce medallist in Val Pope (2008, 2015), who is reminiscent of a well serviced Rolls-Royce, wingman Chris Davis had his best and most consistent season to date and will poll strongly, Captain-Coach and 2017 Bill Peirce Medallist Gareth Crawford was solid on ball in most games this year and ruckman Nick Barling and full forward Alex Dickfos were both influential players during the season. The reigning Nipperess Medal winner Luke Scott was an influential player, but did not play enough football to challenge, while Captain Reid Dobson and former winner Reid Dobson and his deputy Chris Brown should also challenge.

As is the norm in the Woodsmen, player availability dictates that team selection fluctuates on average 5-10 players per week so it must be noted that it was a genuine whole of squad effort to achieve the ultimate success in 2021.  

A number of other key awards will be handed out on the night, with the highlights the “BG Award” for the Senior Player who most embodies the spirit of Brett Gwyther through Courage & Committment, the Cherie Morrison Medal for Senior Women’s Players Player and the Schaffert/Garner Memorial Trophy for Most Consistent Senior Player.

Club awards such as the Barry “Phantom’ Johnstone Award for Senior Player of the Year, for the player from the entire Senior Squad who consistently goes above and beyond in their duties, the Russell Green Memorial Trophy for Coach of the Year and the Senior Club Person of the year will also be hotly contested. With a such a highly engaged playing group, it is a hot field for the ‘Phantom’ while we have two premiership coaches and a field of fantastic development work to make the Coach of the Year well earnt.