Brisbane Lions star Emily Bates has capped off a standout season by winning her first AFLW Best and Fairest trophy – and her coach has celebrated with a “shoey”.
Announced at a gala AFLW awards function at Melbourne’s Crown Palladium on April 5, the Lions vice-captain prevailed* by one vote over Crow Anne Hatchard after a nailbiting* count.
Bates, a star midfielder, surprised the audience by revealing that coach Craig Starcevich had promised to do a “shoey” if she was named the competition’s best player.
Sure enough, Starcevich, who was sitting in the crowd, untied his black shoe, filled the footwear with juice and downed it to the delight of the Brisbane table and cheering crowd.
It took three votes in the final round for Bates to prevail over Hatchard with 21 votes in what was a thrilling finish.
“I’m in shock but I’m very happy,” the Queenslander said after accepting the award.
“I know my name had been bandied* around but I honestly didn’t expect that, I didn’t think I was a chance.
“Never in my wildest dreams did I think I’d win an award like this.”
She dedicated* the victory to her father, Lloyd Bates, who introduced her to football but never got to see her scale the heights of the AFLW.
“I just want to make mention of my dad, who got me playing footy when I was young,” she said.
“He’s the reason I started playing footy and I just followed his footsteps at Yeronga Football Club. I always had a footy in my hands and he coached the men’s team there.
“He passed away when I was 15 and never got to see me get drafted or anything like that, so this would definitely be for him and I wish he was here to see it today, but I’d know he’d be really proud.”
Earlier in the evening, North Melbourne AFLW star Emma Kearney made history by being named in the All-Australian team for the sixth consecutive* year.
Kearney, who was named in the backline, has now made the team of the year every season in the competition’s six-year existence. Kearney was also named the team’s captain.
Meanwhile, Carlton’s Mimi Hill was crowned the winner of the Rising Star award.
Hill won the award with 43 votes, narrowly beating Gold Coast’s Charlie Rowbottom (42 votes) and North Melbourne’s Mia King (33 votes).
Fremantle’s Ebony Antonio won the goal of the year, while North Melbourne’s Tahlia Randall took home the mark of the year award for her spectacular grab in round six.
GLOSSARY
- prevailed: triumphed, succeeded, overcame, overcame competition
- nailbiting: expression conveying a very close contest or result
- bandied: loosely discussed in an informal, casual way
- dedicated: devoted, in honour of someone
- consecutive: successive, one after the other
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QUICK QUIZ
- What did coach Craig Starcevich do at the gala to celebrate Emily Bates’ award win?
- What did it take for Bates to prevail?
- Who did Bates dedicated the award to and why?
- What is the name of the football club where Bates got her start?
- How many times has Emma Kearney made the All-Australian team?
LISTEN TO THIS STORY
CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES
1. Write a story
Write a story that starts with: “Never in my wildest dreams did I think I’d …”
Time: allow 20 minutes to complete this activity
Curriculum Links: English
2. Extension
Create a design for a new AFLW Best and Fairest trophy. You trophy should symbolise the qualities of the best and fairest AFLW players
Time: allow 25 minutes to complete this activity
Curriculum Links: English; Health and Physical Education; Personal and Social Capability
VCOP ACTIVITY
Read this!
A headline on an article – or a title on your text – should capture the attention of the audience, telling them to read this now. So choosing the perfect words for a headline or title is very important.
Create three new headlines for the events that took place in this article. Remember, what you write and how you write it will set the pace for the whole text, so make sure it matches.
Read out your headlines to a partner and discuss what the article will be about based on the headline you created. Discuss the tone and mood you set in just your few, short words. Does it do the article justice? Will it capture the audience’s attention the way you hoped? Would you want to read more?
Consider how a headline or title is similar to using short, sharp sentences throughout your text. They can be just as important as complex ones. Go through the last text you wrote and highlight any short, sharp sentences that capture the audience.
