The 1996 Best and Fairest



The 1996 Essendon Best and Fairest was held on Friday 4th October at Mooney Valley Racecourse, the same venue as last year. The event was booked out weeks in advance, with over one thousand people in attendance. The main result of the night came as no surprise, with James Hird winning his third Best and Fairest in a row, to go with the Brownlow Medal he won only a couple of weeks ago. The first awards of the night went as follow:

Cheer Squad Award: Chris Daniher
After a great season, Chris deserved such an award as recognition. The cheer squad don't receive much recognition either, but this award is held in high regard by the players as they respect the time and effort that the cheer squad members put in each week.

Reserve Awards:

Best Club Man: Danny Morgan
Danny won this award yet again, which is voted for by the trainers and medical staff around the club.

Coach's Award: Blake Caracella Bomber Thompson presented this award, remarking on Blake's dedication and willingness to improve all the time, saying that he expects him to make his league debut very soon.

Best and Fairest award:
1st Gary Moorcroft
Gary played superbly this year in the twos, after being delisted at the end of last season. He stayed on with the club on the supplementary list, and worked hard to achieve this award.
2nd Darren Fraser
Darren is another supplementary list player who had an outsanding year, gathering numerous possessions each week in the seconds. He wasn't there to accept the award, so his brother Mark who also plays for the club received it on his behalf.
3rd Danny Morgan
Danny again spent most of the year in the reserves, and his third placing shows what a consistent player he is. As captain of the reserves for most of the year, he is really just waiting for the right opportunity to gain regular selection in the seniors.

Then after main course was served, the senior awards were given:

Senior Awards:

Best First Year Player: Scott Lucas
Scott played over half the season in the seniors after making his debut this year. He showed much promise in 1995, and was able to take the extra step needed to make it into the senior team. Along with other youngsters like Matthew Lloyd and Justin Blumfield, he is part of the next wave of young Bombers coming through.
Most Improved Player: Ben Doolan
Ben certainly showed the doubters this year, with a great performance which landed him fourth spot in the overall Best and Fairest count. He improved his fitness last pre-season, and it showed as he gathered a heap of possessions all year long to make his mark at the club, only missing one game for the year.
Best Club Man: Chris Daniher
Chris is the last of the four Daniher brothers to play for the Dons, and this year he stepped up to be counted in his own right. He played much of the season on the ball, and the rest of the time he tagged out some of the biggest names in the AFL. He is one of the most likeable guys around the club and hence he received this award.

The W.S. Crichton Award for the Best and Fairest Player:

 1st James Hird
No surprise here. James won his third medal in a row, streeting the field by a massive 127 votes. He has already moved into champion standing, at only 23 years of age. A Brownlow Medal less than two weeks ago confirmed this. As I said last year, this won't be James' last Best and Fairest award, as he looks to bigger things in the future with the Bombers.
2nd Mark Mercuri
It's not often that the Brownlow and Best and Fairest voting coincide, but that was the case with the first two placings this year. Mark finished with the second highest number of Brownlow votes by an Essendon player this year, and took out second place in this award. He had a very good year again, representing Victoria, and getting the Bombers out of trouble when they need it most (remember Footscray in round 22?). Mark has definitely grown since the year he rose to fame in 1993, and is one of the classiest players at Bomberland.
3rd Joe Misiti
Joe returned to form this year, and joined Mark as the second local boy to do well in the award, both hailing from Keilor Park. Joe really worked on his fitness this year and was able to get possession after possession around the ground consistently. His form is vital to the success of the team, and here's hoping he can go even one better next year.

Here's how the top ten finished in the 1996 Best and Fairest at Essendon:
PlayerVotes
James Hird411
Mark Mercuri283
Joe Misiti227
Ben Doolan224
Dustin Fletcher180
Gary O'Donnell164
Gavin Wanganeen159
Darren Bewick133
Mark Harvey126
Sean Denham123
Well, that's the end of another season. Just to summarise the night, one of the highlights of the night was that it served partly as recognition for Mark Bomber Thompson's career at Essendon. He retired after he decided he couldn't come back from injury, and proceeded to coach the reserves into a Grand Final. So many people who took the stage thanked Bomber for his work around the club over the years, and recognised what a true champion he was. At times it seemed like he received even greater applause than James Hird, which given James' performance this year, is no mean feat. Well done Bomber, we salute you as the true Essendon hero that you are.

So in finishing, the next big event is the National Draft which will take place on 25th October. I'll have a full report on events as they unfold. The Dons have already delisted Darren Wheildon, but as yet nothing further has happened around the club.

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