Giteau surprised as he takes out the John Eales medal
By Samantha Broun, 23 Oct 2009 Samantha Broun is a Roar Rookie
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- Chris Latham, Matt Giteau, Rugby Union, wallabies
Matt Giteau of Australia, right, is tackled during the rugby union international match between England and Australia at Twickenham stadium, London, England, Saturday Nov. 15, 2008. AP Photo/Matt Dunham
Wallabies flyhalf Matt Giteau has received a timely tonic for recent woes, winning the John Eales Medal, Australian rugby’s highest individual annual award.
Giteau became only the second back to win the honour in its eight-year history, replicating former Test fullback Chris Latham’s success in 2006.
The star playmaker has admitted disappointment at being overlooked by coach Robbie Deans for the Wallabies vice-captaincy and is also believed to be under pressure to keep his prized No.10 jersey with new vice-captain Berrick Barnes in consideration.
Giteau was surprised he took out the award.
“I didn’t expect it. I was actually a little bit surprised to be nominated in the top five,” he said.
“Huge honour, very happy with it.
“As a player you are always your harshest critic. To be fair I thought I didn’t have one of my strongest Tri-Nations but lucky the boys gave me some points.”
Being voted the Wallabies best player of the past year by his teammates should be a handy boost for the 72-Test star’s frame of mind heading into next week’s Bledisloe Cup Test in Tokyo then the grand slam quest in Europe.
Giteau received 190 votes, well ahead of injured lock Nathan Sharpe who was second (162), while last year’s winner George Smith (161) was third, ahead of form prop Benn Robinson (132) and utility back Adam Ashley-Cooper (106).
The medal was voted on by Wallabies players on a 3-2-1 basis after each Test from the start of the 2008 Spring Tour to Europe through to the end of the 2009 Tri Nations series last month.
Notably Robinson, a favourite to take out the John Eales Medal, was rewarded for an outstanding season by being crowned Wallaby of the Year.
The front-rower won the public vote after fans selected online their top performing player out of a nominated top five.
Unsurprisingly, Wallabies young gun James O’Connor was named Rookie of the Year following his meteoric rise to the Test ranks during last year’s Spring Tour.
Adam Ashley Cooper, who provided the most exciting moment as the Wallabies struggled to a 1-5 record in the Tri-Nations, was awarded Try of the Year for his effort against the Springboks in Cape Town.
The 1991 World Cup winning captain Nick Farr-Jones was recognised for his services to the game with the Joe French Award.
Under 20s Player of the Year went to prop James Slipper and Stuart Dickinson was recognised as Referee of the Year.
Australian women’s team star Debby Hodgkinson was a dual winner, taking out the Sevens Player of the Year and the Women’s Player of the Year awards.
The Sevens Player of the Year award was introduced this year and named in honour of Shawn Mackay, the former Australian Sevens captain who was tragically killed after being struck by a car while on tour with the Brumbies in South Africa during the 2009 Super Rugby season.
The award was presented to Hodgkinson on Thursday night by Mackay’s father John.
© AAP 2012Australian Rugby Awards 2009
John Eales Medal: MATT GITEAU
Australia’s Choice – Wallaby of the Year: BENN ROBINSON
Joe French Award: NICK FARR-JONES
Rookie of the Year: JAMES O’CONNOR
Try of the Year: ADAM ASHLEY-COOPER
Women’s Player of the Year: DEBBY HODGKINSON
Sevens Player of the Year – Shawn Mackay Award: DEBBY HODGKINSON
Volunteer of the Year: STEVE GANN
Under 20s Player of the Year: JAMES SLIPPER
Referee of the Year: STUART DICKINSON
The 2009 Hall of Fame inductees – JON WHITE, the late Dr ALEC ROSS and the late TONY MILLER.Previous winners of the John Eales Medal
2002 – George Smith
2003 – Phil Waugh
2004 – David Lyons
2005 – Jeremy Paul
2006 – Chris Latham
2007 – Nathan Sharpe
2008 – George Smith
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October 23rd 2009 @ 9:39am
Jameswm said | October 23rd 2009 @ 9:39am | Report comment
Do they breed paranoia into you in Canberra?
I said the negative Brumby attitude and put it in inverted commas – that means it has a special meaning.
Obviously the culture they had when they were winning was great, but after that the senior players (Gregan and others) coasted, didn’t put their body on the line and they got together to sack a successful coach because he was stirring things up, including threatening them and their place in the side.
I am a huge fan of Giteau but he doesn’t deserve this award, and Nathan Sharpe’s second place is a joke.
October 23rd 2009 @ 10:52am
Gudfala said | October 23rd 2009 @ 10:52am | Report comment
Not paranoia just realism. By what measure was Nucifora successful? They won a tile by ignoring him – so you can’t give him any credit for that. And I think his record since then speaks for itself.
October 23rd 2009 @ 9:48am
OldManEmu said | October 23rd 2009 @ 9:48am | Report comment
As I am prone to do, I am going to go into bat for Sharpe here.
If one is going to shit-can the John Eales medal then one is in the proces going to shit can the credibility of the entire Wallaby playing ranks to the extent that when they are asked at the end of each match “Who got your players player votes” their response involves a mixture of incompetence, dishonesty, The Old Mates Act and sheer stupidity.
Pfffft – if you believe that you truly are living on another planet.
Why would the Wallaby players do anything other than vote in accordance with what they observe during the game? Why indeed? The answer is “No reason” and therefore I believe that anyone who is having a go at the credibility of the John Eales medal process and in turn the integrity of the players truly has their head up their bum.
And finally, yet again the people who constantly attack Sharpe as being a do nothing loser, need to re-assess thier motives. He is a fine player who has been a loyal servant to Australian Rugby and he has more to offer yet. The men that he goes into battle with recognise this and they better than any single other person, are in the best position to judge.
That is all I have to say about that!
October 23rd 2009 @ 10:46am
Vented Relief said | October 23rd 2009 @ 10:46am | Report comment
Totally agree. We look weak in the second row without him on this tour.
October 23rd 2009 @ 11:59am
Who Needs Melon said | October 23rd 2009 @ 11:59am | Report comment
I don’t agree. I think you’ll see some newcomers trying to ‘make it’ which is infinitely preferable to watching the continual fade of once reasonable players. Time will tell.
October 23rd 2009 @ 1:03pm
fox said | October 23rd 2009 @ 1:03pm | Report comment
I agree with your reasons for not agreeing!
October 23rd 2009 @ 12:59pm
Bulldog said | October 23rd 2009 @ 12:59pm | Report comment
Hear Hear Old Man Emu – totally agree. I wish the Nathan Sharpe lynch mob that seem to habitate this site would give themselves an upper cut along with a reality check. Good on ya Gits and Sharpie.
October 23rd 2009 @ 2:00pm
Justin said | October 23rd 2009 @ 2:00pm | Report comment
Excellent post, full agree with the sentiment.
October 23rd 2009 @ 3:54pm
Cattledog said | October 23rd 2009 @ 3:54pm | Report comment
Back to ya fishing trawler OME! LOL But agree entirely with your post…as I agree with young slips winning the U20 award.
October 23rd 2009 @ 10:21am
Blind freddy said | October 23rd 2009 @ 10:21am | Report comment
These comments on Brumby culture are simply ridiculous. you appear to have taken the media spin hook line and sinker without knowing what really happened. Perhaps the public does not know what is going on in the team (or what went on at the Brumbies 2004) as well as the players.
October 23rd 2009 @ 11:25am
JK said | October 23rd 2009 @ 11:25am | Report comment
Congrats to Git’s,obviously the public see something different and I am one of the them, but it does take more and the players acknowledge that, wether it be at training or just the talk on the field (or sadly behind the goalposts this season) I think it’s overall contribution and that’s what he’s been rewarded for.
In his defence he was humble and realistic in his acceptance, As for Sharpey well……….. on a side note since Robbo did’nt win I have to ask ,what does a prop have to do to win?
October 23rd 2009 @ 12:07pm
Daniel J said | October 23rd 2009 @ 12:07pm | Report comment
He isn’t the only one surprised.
October 23rd 2009 @ 12:46pm
Greg Russell said | October 23rd 2009 @ 12:46pm | Report comment
I would like to back up OME.
In the AFL there are player-of-the-year awards decided by the players, the umpires (the Brownlow) and the coaches. EPL football has even more, with awards from the media and from the fans. All of these constituencies are important, but it’s hard to go past that the one decided by players is surely the most meaningful. AFL illustrates this well, with G Ablett Jr – whom we all know to be the best player – winning the players award for the last three years, but taking until this year to win the Brownlow. To put it bluntly, for all the prestige of the Brownlow, it did not go to the right player in 2007 and 2008.
Andrew Logan recently did a profile of Craig Wing. In it was the surprising admission that Craig Fitzgibbon was the player he most liked playing with. Who would have picked that? The point is that in any football team there are guys like Fitzy whose value is not nearly fully appreciated by those off the field. Nathan Sharpe is another such player.
And as OME says, to suggest that the players somehow colluded on their voting is pie-in-the-sky stuff.
October 23rd 2009 @ 1:07pm
Redb said | October 23rd 2009 @ 1:07pm | Report comment
Greg,
That maybe the perception, but Ablett polled well in the Brownlows of 2007 and 2008 where he missed 4 weeks due to injury and would have won if he played more games.
The MVP players award picked a clear winner in Ablett this year but had Reiwoldt at a distant 5th which is out of touch with reality. There was a perception that players dont like him. No system is perfect where subjective opinions are given.
Dont forget also that the Brownlow is from umpires votes in each and every game, whereas players cant possibly watch every game in the AFL season.
Redb
October 23rd 2009 @ 1:53pm
ohtani's jacket said | October 23rd 2009 @ 1:53pm | Report comment
So the players don’t realise how much Giteau sucks? Great.
October 23rd 2009 @ 12:57pm
Greg Russell said | October 23rd 2009 @ 12:57pm | Report comment
I would also like to point out that the players whom the Wallaby players themselves value most highly are Giteau, Sharpe and Smith. Let’s look at what’s happening with these three right now:
* All three have been passed over for leadership responsibilities.
* Giteau is to be moved from 10, and the coach is seemingly unhappy with him.
* Indications are that Smith will be dropped for the Tokyo test.
* Sharpe is injured, and there are suggestions that he might be getting punted along with Baxter and Waugh.
I find this situation extraordinary. Either the players as a body are fools in evaluating the performances of each other, or else Deans is making some serious errors. The whole basis of democracy is that when it comes to common sense, what 15 people say is far more likely to be correct than what 1 differing individual says. Rugby is not relativity, and Deans is not Einstein.
While it’s true that Smith and Giteau could have had better international seasons, any reasonable assessment of the Wallabies in 2009 (and years before that, for that matter) is that it’s the players of lesser ability in the team who are the biggest problem. It beats me that people want to blame the few world-class players in the team for the fact that the back three cannot catch high balls, the halfback cannot pass, the tight-head cannot scrummage, and so on.
October 23rd 2009 @ 1:46pm
PastHisBest said | October 23rd 2009 @ 1:46pm | Report comment
“The whole basis of democracy is that when it comes to common sense”
However Greg, selecting and coaching a rugby is NOT a democracy.
“Rugby is not relativity, and Deans is not Einstein.” …and neither am I. This makes no sense to me.
October 23rd 2009 @ 2:14pm
PastHisBest said | October 23rd 2009 @ 2:14pm | Report comment
That should be…”selecting and coaching a rugby ‘team’ is…”
October 23rd 2009 @ 3:58pm
Cattledog said | October 23rd 2009 @ 3:58pm | Report comment
Makes sense to me, Greg!
October 23rd 2009 @ 1:12pm
Ed said | October 23rd 2009 @ 1:12pm | Report comment
Even if he’s not playing at his best as Giteau has publicly said, he is still our best attacking player and a poor mans giteau is still close to world class.
He had a great spring-tour last year and an average tri-nations by our standards, yet he was still the leading try score ffs.
It’s not his fault that Deans plays him at 5/8th. I don’t doubt he likes playing there but, who doesn’t?
October 23rd 2009 @ 1:14pm
Jameswm said | October 23rd 2009 @ 1:14pm | Report comment
I’m one of the Notso Sharpe lynch mob.
The guy does not give you the heavy contact, spends too long in the backs, doesn’t offload, doesn’t put in heavy hits, is not clever during play, loses go-forward momentum, is easy to tackle and is a yard slower than a statue.
He might be a very good line-out general – I’m not in a position to judge that. He is skilful in the air on lineouts and from kickoffs.
He was fit late in the TN series this year and Deans deliberately omitted him.
I’m afraid I can’t see what exceptional (or even consistently helpful) things he’s done in the past 12 months apart from calling lineouts, so if he’s been our 2nd best or most influential player, we are in serious trouble.
I’m not taking anything away from Gits and as the headline says, even HE was surprised about winning it, and seemed embarrassed about it.
As for the Brumbies culture thing – look how Gregan played on for too long and stayed in the Wallabies. They used to say how he looked after himself well and that’s why he rarely missed a game – the reason is he shied away from contact for longevity. For some reason no one had the guts to drop him. I used to be a huge fan/supporter of his, but he really lost me those last 2 years of his career.
Gudfala – tell me about the Brumbies’ record since Nucifora left.
October 23rd 2009 @ 1:29pm
Bulldog said | October 23rd 2009 @ 1:29pm | Report comment
Jameswm – I am willing to take the opinion of guys who play with Sharpie on the field week in week out over the opinions of anonymous bloggers on this site who may or may not know jacksh&t about rugby.
The fact that Sharpe is getting surgery rather than tour indicates to me that he was not fit for the back end of the TN.
October 23rd 2009 @ 2:01pm
Gudfala said | October 23rd 2009 @ 2:01pm | Report comment
How is their record since Nucifora left at all relevant to his performance as a coach?
So you are arguing that there is a Brumbies culture of shying away from contact? Apart from Gregan (who doesn’t actually play anymore) who do you think that applies to? Mortlock? Yeah – he’s always scared of contact? Smith??
October 23rd 2009 @ 2:13pm
PastHisBest said | October 23rd 2009 @ 2:13pm | Report comment
“Gudfala – tell me about the Brumbies’ record since Nucifora left.”
Absolutely James. They went from the penthouse (where they didn’t have the coach they wanted), to the outhouse (with the coach they wanted), in one year.
October 23rd 2009 @ 2:37pm
reds fan said | October 23rd 2009 @ 2:37pm | Report comment
What an average collection of players in that top ten. Quite illustrative of why we aren’t winning many tests.
190 Matt Giteau
162 Nathan Sharpe
161 George Smith
132 Benn Robinson
106 Adam Ashley-Cooper
101 James O’Connor
90 Stephen Moore
74 Ben Alexander
69 Drew Mitchell
66 Mark Chisholm
Two of those will leave a lasting legacy. One of them might once they play more tests. The rest are very pedestrian.
October 23rd 2009 @ 3:27pm
Chris said | October 23rd 2009 @ 3:27pm | Report comment
How on eath did Berrick Barnes not make the top ten?
October 23rd 2009 @ 4:07pm
JK said | October 23rd 2009 @ 4:07pm | Report comment
Maybe if your a QLD’r you are excluded, interesting that none of the “new leadership” made the top ten. Did Rocky play enough games?
October 23rd 2009 @ 4:25pm
reds fan said | October 23rd 2009 @ 4:25pm | Report comment
Nah the counting starts from the start of each spring tour… so this voting started from the HK Bledisloe last year, up to the defeat in Wellington is Sept this year.
October 23rd 2009 @ 4:30pm
Hoy said | October 23rd 2009 @ 4:30pm | Report comment
I can’t take these votes too seriously.
HTF did Chisolm make the top ten. He played what… 3 games this year, and maybe 5 last year on spring tour?