By David Nagel
Over the Christmas period, the News’ sports team will be re-sharing some of the most popular stories from over the course of 2024.
Thank you for supporting our newspapers over the course of the year. We hope you enjoy the selection and have a wonderful holiday period, however you choose to celebrate.
Phillip Island star Hayden Bruce has rightfully etched his name into the WGFNC record books after winning the 2024 league best and fairest award on Thursday night.
Conducted online, the medal count became a race in two over the concluding rounds of the season with Bruce and Nar Nar Goon captain Trent Armour clearing out from a chasing pack, which included Cora Lynn star Jimmy Munro and 2023 league medalist Dale Gawley from Kilcunda-Bass.
Bruce polled a huge total of 36 votes, finishing one ahead of Armour who had a great season for the Goon.
Bruce, the star-performer of the Phillip Island midfield, had the award at his mercy last year until breaking his cheekbone in the round-14 clash against Warragul Industrials.
His collision with his brother-in-law and teammate Jack Taylor saw him miss the last four games of the season, at which point he held a three-vote lead over Gawley.
This is not the first time that Bruce has tasted league best and fairest success, having twice achieved the feat while playing his junior football at Beaumaris.
He won the under-12 medal in the Moorabbin Saints Junior Football League in 2010 and collected the CR Newbury Medal for his outstanding season in the VAFA under-19s in 2017.
He lost grand finals in his last two seasons at Beaumaris, to St Kevins and Old Xaverians in 2016 and 2017 respectively, but immediately made amends upon his arrival at Phillip Island in 2018.
He only played a handful of games that year, but played in the Bulldogs thumping grand final victory over Kooweerup, before playing in back-to-back flags after a thrilling four-point victory over Cora Lynn in 2019.
Bruce’s penchant for the big stage saw him awarded the best on ground medal in the Bulldogs’ 2019 triumph.
Through a combination of Covid and injury, the electrifying left-footer would only play seven games from 2020 to 2022, but made a massive mark last year before his cheekbone injury; and played in every game this year.
Bruce is the most exciting midfielder in the WGFNC, hurting opposition through the middle of the ground and up forward.
He kicked 21 goals during the home-and-away season; kicking goals in 13 games this year.
Bruce becomes the third left footer to win the award, joining inaugural winner Andy Soumilas (2017) and Gawley (2023) on that exclusive list of champions.
Bruce and Gawley have won the last two league medals after finishing runner-up the previous season.
That rite of passage will now fall on the shoulders of Goon skipper Armour, who fell agonisingly short of his first league medal after a fantastic season at Spencer Street.
Armour brings a lethal combination to the table, with his elite work ethic only matched by his hardness at the footy and his ability to read the game.
Armour first wins the hard ball, then distributes cleaner than any player under pressure to create a plethora of opportunity for his side.
Only once this year – against Tooradin-Dalmore in round 15 – has the Goon had fewer scoring shots than its opponent…and Armour is the major reason why.
It would be fitting if he took the same rite of passage that took Gawley and Bruce to their medal winning years when he lines up for the Goon in 2025.
Munro finished outright third after a sensational season for the Cobras, while Gawley now has a second, first and fourth placing to his name over the last three years after collecting 25 votes this season.
Cora Lynn’s Billy Thomas was hot on Gawley’s heels in the ruck department, polling 22 votes in a career-best season to finish alone in outright sixth place.
Splitting Gawley and Thomas was gun Tooradin-Dalmore midfielder Lewis Hill, who polled 23 votes; 12 better than his 11 votes and thirteenth-placed finish from last year.
Rounding out the top-nine was Dalyston coach Mitch Hallahan (20), Kooweerup skipper Nathan Voss (15) and Korumburra-Bena coach Josh Hopkins (14).
In equal tenth position were Matt Buntine (Tooradin-Dalmore), Paul Pattison (Inverloch-Kongwak) and Cora Lynn full-forward Nathan Gardiner; who polled 12 votes despite kicking a century of goals this year.
Gardiner polled 16 votes in his fifth-place finish in 2023.
2024 WGFNC LEAGUE BEST AND FAIREST
TOP-20 – SENIORS
Hayden Bruce Phillip Island 36
Trent Armour Nar Nar Goon 35
James Munro Cora Lynn 28
Dale Gawley Kilcunda-Bass 25
Lewis Hill Tooradin-Dalmore 23
Billy Thomas Cora Lynn 22
Mitch Hallahan Dalyston 20
Nathan Voss Kooweerup 15
Josh Hopkins Korumburra-Bena 14
Matt Buntine Tooradin-Dalmore 12
Nathan Gardiner Cora Lynn 12
Paul Pattison Inverloch-Kongwak 12
Ethan Park Inverloch-Kongwak 11
Kuiy Jiath Warragul Industrials 11
Max Walton Phillip Island 11
Travis Tuck Kilcunda-Bass 9
Will Hams Inverloch-Kongwak 9
Ben Eddy Kilcunda-Bass 8
Travis Ogden Warragul industrials 8
Nathan Muratore Kooweerup 7
Nic Visser Warragul Industrials 7
OTHER WINNERS
Reserves
Jarrod Hamling Nar Nar Goon 21
Thirds
Ding Dieng Garfield 28
Fourths
Charlie Fisher Phillip Island 30
Veterans
Nathan Brown Nar Nar Goon 9
WGFNC SENIOR MEDAL WINNERS
2017 Andrew Soumilas Inverloch-Kongwak
2018 Brendan Kimber Phillip Island
2019 Cam Pedersen Phillip Island
2021 Cam Pedersen Phillip Island
2022 Brent Macaffer Tooradin-Dalmore
2023 Dale Gawley Kilcunda-Bass
2024 Hayden Bruce Phillip Island
