Record tally for Parrot’s Noah Bradley in league fourth’s award
Talented Leongatha Under 16 midfielder, Noah Bradley, has capped off a stellar year individually and for his team, which has won through to next Saturday’s grand final at Traralgon, by winning the league’s best and fairest award. And he did it with a record tally.
TALENTED Leongatha Under 16 midfielder, Noah Bradley, has capped off a stellar year individually and for his team, which has won through to next Saturday’s grand final at Traralgon, by winning the league’s best and fairest award.
And not just winning it, Bradley has taken out the ‘Shaw Carter Medal’ with a record tally of 42 votes having been judged ‘best on ground’ by the umpires in no fewer than 10 of the 18 rounds this season.
In a virtual vote count carried out on Sunday, Bradley collected votes in 16 rounds, including 10 ‘three votes’ for best on the ground and six ‘two votes’ for second best, failing to vote only in Round 2 against Bairnsdale and Round 13 against Traralgon.
Coincidentally both of those games finished in draws against the other top contenders for the premiership in the fourths this year.
In fact, Bradley was selected second best for the Parrots that day but the umpires gave the votes to two Bairnsdale players, Archer Crawley (3) and Bailey Lieuwen (1), and Leongatha’s Louis Read (2) in what must have been a split decision on the day.
Although Bradley was named among the best in the draw with Traralgon in Round 13, their opponents in Saturday’s grand final, he didn’t collect either the 1, 2, or 3 from the day.
By winning the Shaw Carter Medal for the League’s Fourths Best and Fairest player he joins some illustrious company including in recent years Maffra’s Sam Berry (Adelaide) and Sale’s Will Hams (Essendon).
The league’s veteran statistician Paul Carter has confirmed the tally of 42 votes is a record.
He should know. The Shaw Carter Medal in part honours his father Tom Carter.
“Yes, it is a record, beating Jackson McMahon ‘s 39 voters for Traralgon in 2013. McMahon currently plays full forward for Traralgon Seniors,” said Paul Carter at the weekend.
“The award is named after Simon Shaw, a star footballer with Yallourn who tragically died young. Also, it’s named after my father Tom Carter who had a long association with the Latrobe Valley Football League as well as serving as publicity officer with the senior LVFL in the early 70s then with Moe and Newborough.
“Dad was also president of the Mid Gippsland league in the 60s for a few years.”
Among those to poll votes were: Noah Bradley 42 (Leongatha), Luca Desio 28 (Bairnsdale), Sullivan Jennings 28 (Traralgon), Jack Thomas 22 (Moe), Brody Mason 18 (Sale), Charlie Coates 15 (Maffra), Archer Crawley 13 (Bairnsdale), Bailey Lieuwen 13 (Bairnsdale), Frazer Livingstone 13 (Leongatha), James Haley 13 (Warragul), Oliver Sullivan (Sale) 13 and Ryder Gieschen 13 (Maffra).
So, it’s congratulations to Leongatha’s Noah Bradley but now all attention turns to the Traralgon Recreation Reserve next Saturday, September 19 at 8.30am when Leongatha and Traralgon do battle for the Under 16 premiership.
