ONE week after the Peter Jackson VFL’s J.J. Liston Trophy celebrated three winners, the Morrish Medal topped it with an historic four-way dead-heat in the TAC Cup’s highest individual honor.
Bendigo Pioneers Jacob Chisari, Eastern Ranges’ Ben Cavarra, Geelong Falcons’ George Cameron (pictured) and Gippsland Power’s Josh Scott provided the first quadruple tie in the Morrish history.
Only twice before – 2008 when the Power’s Jarryd Blair and Murray Bushranger Fabian Priest dead-heated and again two years later when Gippsland’s Dyson Heppell and Sandringham Dragon’s Jackson Sketcher couldn’t be separated – has the Morrish Medal posted multiple winners.
But, never before has the TAC Cup toasted four players as Morrish winners.
In a thrilling finale to the vote count, Cameron moved to 16 votes after 11 rounds, and set what would be the winning total for the rest of the competition to chase.
Cavarra made his move with a best-on-ground game against Murray in Round 15, but at the end of the next Round the landscape changed dramatically.
With Chisari adding his sixth two vote game and Scott collecting two votes, Cameron for the first time since Round 11 wasn’t alone in first place.
Significantly, Chisari and Scott did not play in the final game. Chisari played for Bendigo Gold in the VFL while Scott didn’t play that weekend, which left Cameron the chance to break the deadlock.
But, Cameron didn’t attract the umpires attention in Geelong’s 41-point win against Dandenong.
While Eastern suffered a 47-point loss against Calder in the final home and away round of the season, Cavarra was a stand-out for the Ranges and gained the umpire’s three votes.
It catapulted him into a four-way ownership of the most crowded Morrish dias and into TAC Cup history.
It was a result that saw Scott become the first leading goal kicker to win a Morrish.
Scott’s success also provided Gippsland with a competition equal-leading fifth Morrish with Northern Knights.
He joins Matthew Stolarczyk (1999), Jarryd Blair (2008), Dyson Heppell (2010) and Nick Graham (2012) as Power Morrish winners.
For Chisari, the win gave Bendigo its first Morrish success since Nathan Brown won the medal in 1996.
It had been a longer wait for Cameron’s Geelong. The Falcons’ last Morrish winner was Paul Hood in 1995.
Cavarra, last year’s Ranges’ best and fairest and a member of Vic Metro’s team during the NAB AFL Under 18 Championships, joined former Eastern player Matthew Bate as the club’s Morrish winners.
Chisari and Scott polled in the most games – eight – with Cameron and Cavarra registering the most three-vote games – four.
The Bendigo rover played in the most games of the quartet – 15 – while Cameron played 14 and Cavarra and Scott 13.
Cameron, Chisari and Scott all played in the VFL during the season.
J. Chisari
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Bendigo Pioneers
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16
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B. Cavarra
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Eastern Ranges
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16
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G. Cameron
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Geelong Falcons
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16
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J. Scott
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Gippsland Power
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16
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C. Petracca
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Eastern Ranges
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13
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M. Gibbons
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Murray Bushrangers
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13
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J. Turner
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Northern Knights
|
13
|
J. Kennedy-Harris
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Oakleigh Chargers
|
13
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Click the document below for the full club by club voting.
Last Modified on 12/09/2013 11:11