By Daniel Atamian
It’s not uncommon for a team to have multiple players feature in their division’s Team of the Year or to win individual accolades, however there is something special to smile about when you think of how truly special the group is from the Coburg Lions Premier Division side to have had six players and their coach selected in the 2022 Team of the Year and to take out the major individual league awards also.
The night’s awards for the Premier Division began with the presentation of the leading goal kicker for season 2022 with the award going to the Burgers’ very own crafty forward pocket Teagan Brett who; after playing in 13 out of a possible 14, walked away with the award after scoring 23 goals for the season, edging out Mornington’s Sophie Butterworth (20 goals) to claim the title of leading goal scorer. On winning her award Brett said that she “Definitely felt grateful to be honest. There are some absolute gun forwards in this competition and like you said it was a very close finish towards the end, so it literally could have gone either way. I’m just thankful for my teammates, they put it in a lot of hard work and effort before I even see the ball half the time, so I feel like I’m just lucky enough to get a bit of reward for their efforts”.
As the night processed the next announcement made was the 2022 Premier Division Team of the Year representatives which saw six Coburg players and their coach; Liam Cavanagh, selected to the side that featured the best of the best within this year’s Premier Division competition, the side included the following Coburg players:
- Dacia Abela (Back Pocket)
- Maddie Edwards (Wing)
- Brittney Gray (Rover)
- Rachel Burton (Centre Half Forward)
- Teagan Brett (Forward Pocket)
- Natasha Phipps (Forward Pocket)
- Liam Cavanagh (Coach)
When asked of what it meant to be named as the coach for the Team of the Year and to have the six Coburg players listed to the team, Coach Cavanagh said “Obviously we have some pretty big focus on team success at the moment, but I do think it’s a really nice moment of recognition for a strong season. I’m really proud of the girls, they have all worked so hard on their craft this year & deserve to be celebrated. Having said all of that, these things means a hell of lot more if their achieved in a premiership season – so that’s what we will be putting our energy into for now”.
As the night drew to a close it was time for the main event where the league’s Best & Fairest player was announced and won by none other than Natasha Phipps who took out the award with 14 Votes only to be trailed by her teammate Brittney Gray on 13 Votes.
When asked about winning the award Phipps stated “I’m feeling very humbled. Though it’s an individual award I think it’s reflective of the team, culture and environment we’ve created at Coburg where an inexperienced player can develop into the league best and fairest in 18 months. I’m so grateful for the support I receive from the club and the passion that my teammates, coaches and support staff put in to developing our program and women’s football as a whole.”, and though Gray did not win the award she mentioned that “Nothing makes me happier than coming runners up Tash. Everything starts with an amazing Ruck and we have the best the league.”
We would like to congratulate all the award recipients once again and wish them all the best as they prepare for their grand final on this Sunday against Seaford at Skybus Stadium, Frankston for a 3:00pm start.
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