The West Coast Eagles will stage the club’s night of nights, the John Worsfold Medal, at Crown Perth’s Grand Ballroom on Friday evening.
In addition to the crowning of the Club Champion, the Eagles will honour the Chris Mainwaring medallist for Best Clubman, name the Emerging Talent winner and celebrate the career of retired champion Josh Kennedy.
The event will be streamed live from 7.30pm at westcoasteagles.com.au.
Under the voting system for the Club Champion Award, the five members of match committee rate each player’s performance out of three, meaning they can poll up to 15 votes per game.
Below, westcoasteagles.com.au has profiled some of the leading contenders to finish top-five in the 2022 John Worsfold Medal count.
Tom Barrass
Elevated his game to a new level in the back half of the 2022 season, stepping up in Jeremy McGovern’s absence to not just restrict some of the AFL’s best power forwards but to dominate matches from full-back. Barrass’ intercept marking and contested one-on-one work was a sight to behold after the mid-season bye. His stunning form was highlighted by career-highs for disposals (30) and marks (18) against Hawthorn in round 18, and a personal best nine intercept marks in the round 22 RAC Derby. Given the flood of inside 50s he often faced, Barrass’ feats were remarkable and the 26-year-old received recognition as the only Eagle in the All-Australian squad.
Jamie Cripps
A torn pectoral suffered during West Coast’s horror pre-season injury run cost the hard-running forward the opening month of the season, but Cripps soon found his feet and played a significant role for the remainder of a trying campaign. The 30-year-old enjoyed a purple patch after the mid-season bye, booting eight goals in three games and averaging better than 18 disposals. He was outstanding in a hard-fought round 16 loss to Richmond at the MCG, booting three goals from 24 disposals, with 11 inside 50s, and Cripps finished the year strongly with three deadeye set shot goals at Geelong in his 200th game in blue and gold. He ended the campaign with 22 majors from 17 games, averaged nearly 14 touches per game as well as four inside 50s and tackles (rated elite for his position) to underline his value to Adam Simpson’s best 22 and his efforts won't have gone unnoticed by the match committee.
Jack Darling
Played every game bar the opening round and built into the season gradually before hitting his stride in round 11 with four majors and as many contested marks against the Western Bulldogs. From there, the powerful key forward didn’t look back and rediscovered the consistency that has seen him place top-five in the Club Champion voting on five previous occasions. Darling’s best was brilliant, highlighted by a bag of six-straight goals against Gold Coast in round 20 at Metricon Stadium as the Eagles fell agonisingly short of a third victory. Finished the season with 34 majors – the 10th season of his career he has kicked at least 30 goals - and averaged nearly 1.8 contested marks per match.
Liam Duggan
The availability crisis gripping the club early in the year saw Duggan play his first game since undergoing knee surgery in round two against North Melbourne, but he hit the ground running with a strong 18-disposal, seven-mark performance in a fighting defeat. Duggan probably saw more of the ball than the team would like during the season playing across half-back, and he averaged 20.4 disposals per game – nearly four more touches than his career average – however his steadying presence in defence alongside Shannon Hurn and Tom Barrass was critical. The 25-year-old’s best performance was arguably the round 22 RAC Derby when he had 30 disposals and laid five tackles, relishing the physicality of a ferocious crosstown clash. Ended the year playing all-but two matches and could regularly poll well given his consistent effort from week-to-week.
Shannon Hurn
Now 320 games into his magnificent career, the backline stalwart continued to set an incredibly high standard for others to follow during his 17th season in blue and gold. Hurn played 19 games in 2022, missing three clashes between rounds 9-11 with a calf niggle but otherwise provided the unerring reliability and rebound that has been a hallmark of his football. Rarely beaten, the 34-year-old was supreme in the back half of the season as the Eagles found a more competitive brand and he averaged 26.2 disposals and 6.5 rebound 50s across the last seven matches. Runner-up in the John Worsfold Medal in 2009, and third twice before in ’12 and ’18, the former skipper looms as a contender for another podium placing on Friday evening.
Tim Kelly
It was a stop-start season for the smooth-moving midfielder – who missed five games due to injury, suspension, illness and Health and Safety Protocols - but when Kelly was on the park he rarely failed to deliver an impactful performance through the engine room. Few Eagles, possibly except retiring eight-goal hero Josh Kennedy in his final game, reached greater heights in a single match than Kelly’s 40-disposal, two-goal effort in a losing side against Richmond at the MCG in round 16, shortly after a 38-possession, one-goal display against the Western Bulldogs. When Kelly played well he was outstanding and the 28-year-old is likely to poll strongly in enough games to be towards the top five of the Club Champion count.
Josh Kennedy
Nobody will forget the retiring champion’s eight-goal haul in his farewell game and Kennedy’s influence during both the Eagles’ wins in 2022 shouldn’t be overlooked either. The big bag in front of more than 50,000 adoring fans at Optus Stadium in round 21 will go down in West Coast folklore and it would be surprising if ‘JK’ didn’t poll maximum votes for that performance. The 35-year-old should go close to top marks for his five-straight majors in the round 15 triumph over Essendon and three-straight goals which were critical to upsetting Collingwood in round four. The champion full-forward’s 37 majors was the 10th year in a row he has booted at least 34 goals, and he pipped Darling for a club record eighth goalkicking award.
Jack Redden
While personnel around him chopped and changed, Redden was one midfield constant this season, helping to hold the engine room together in 21 appearances. On only five occasions did the selfless midfielder register fewer than 20 disposals, and he started the season in fine fashion with 28 disposals against Gold Coast in the season-opener. His performances in Queensland against former side Brisbane (29 disposals) and the Suns (23 and two goals) were also particularly noteworthy. Redden claimed fourth spot on the John Worsfold Medal leaderboard in 2021 from 18 matches and could be well-satisfied with another strong campaign averaging 21.7 disposals, five tackles and 3.5 clearances per game, which should have him in the mix for a top-five placing.
Luke Shuey
The skipper’s injury woes before the mid-season bye were well-documented, with Shuey sidelined for five of the opening 12 matches, however he overcame his body battles on the run home and put together a strong finish to the campaign. The two-time John Worsfold medallist averaged 21.4 disposals for the season and will likely receive high marks for his inspirational efforts in clashes with North Melbourne (23 disposals, eight clearances) in round two, Adelaide (27 and 10) on the road and against Richmond (26, 11) at the MCG. Shuey’s defensive work also won’t go unnoticed and he averaged 6.5 tackles per game in the final seven games as the Eagles ramped up their contested brand of football the club hopes to bring into next season.
