Willie Wheeler is chasing a slice of history at Lavington Sports Ground on Sunday, when he bids to become the first player in almost a decade to win both the premiership and the Morris Medal.
Not since Joel Mackie did the double with Albury in 2015 has the league’s best and fairest got his hands on the SS&A Cup but few would bet against Wheeler ending that drought and going back-to-back with the Pigeons.
The ferocious on-baller polled 17 votes in Monday night’s count to head off the challenge of Isaac Muller, Tim Broomhead and Sam Murray and is now looking to beat Murray and his Wangaratta Rovers side to the biggest prize of all.
“It’s very humbling,” Wheeler said after stepping off stage at the SS&A Club.
“I’ve never won a league medal growing up so it’s a nice honour.
“But it’s definitely a team game and it’s a team effort to take pride in one of our players winning an award like this.
“When Leigh Masters won it (in 2022), we all were pretty happy for him as a group.”
The former Williamstown star is loving life at J. C. Lowe Oval, which has become a fortress in recent years as Yarrawonga has reached three consecutive grand finals.
“It’s a lot of fun there,” Wheeler smiled.
“It’s always easy to roll up on the weekend with the amount of good players we’ve got.
“It’s a great culture down there. Yarrawonga is a small community and I think it has that small-town vibe. It’s a small community where everyone knows their neighbours and I think that’s the key to it.
“Grand finals are why you play the game. I’ve lost a couple and we were lucky to win last year but we’ve forgotten about that already and we’re keen to cap off a really good year.”
Wheeler may be on the cusp of history but North Albury star Emily Browne has already made some this week, becoming the first netballer to claim four Toni Wilson Medals.
The inspirational midcourter led the Hoppers back into finals in 2024 and was also outstanding in the interleague clash against the GV League in Shepparton.
Browne admitted the magnitude of her achievement was still sinking in after Wilson hung the famous medal around her neck on Monday night.
“Honestly, I can’t quite put a feeling on it,” Browne said.
“Over the next couple of days, I’ll reflect with my family, friends and my club, sit down and actually see how it feels because at the moment, it’s pretty surreal.
“I’m just honoured at this moment in time.
“The girls I’ve been able to surround myself with at North are such fun, giggly people who are there to have a laugh but when it’s time to knuckle down and play hard, they do it.
“They’re just authentic people; what you see is what you get.
“You’ve got Grace Hay, who likes her own space, and then you’ve got Madi Lieschke, who will jump off a hurdle to make someone laugh.
“So you’ve got these two polar opposites but they’ll sit under the ring and shoot goals all day together.
“It doesn’t matter who you are, you’re always welcome and they’re so good at that.”
