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Send your congratulations to Chris, Marc and Brendan, and all the other 2008 award winners.
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Carlton Captain Chris Judd has taken out the 2008 John Nicholls Medal from Marc Murphy and Brendan Fevola in front of over 1100 guests at Crown, Palladium. Judd polled 472 votes to win the award ahead of Marc Murphy (417), and Brendan Fevola (373).
It is a wonderful achievement by Judd in his first year at Carlton. Judd joined Carlton at the end of the 2007 season in a trade with West Coast and was appointed Captain prior to the start of the 2008 season.
He played 21 games during the season having over 500 disposals, including a league leading 231 contested possessions. Judd also led Carlton in tackles (82) and in clearances (103) and kicked 15 goals for the season.
Winning the prestigious John Nicholls Medal adds to the long list of playing honours he has achieved since making his AFL debut in 2002. The Carlton Best & Fairest adds to the two West Coast Best & Fairest Awards, 2004 Brownlow Medal, 2005 Norm Smith Medal and AFLPA Most Valuable Player Award in 2006.
Runner up Marc Murphy played all 22 games for the season and was the leading possession winner for Carlton with 542 disposals. In his third season with Carlton Murphy is an important part of the Carlton midfield and clearly benefitted from the inclusion of Chris Judd and return of Nick Stevens in 2008.
Brendan Fevola who finished third in the voting also played 22 games and he kicked a career high 99 goals in 2008, the second most in a season by a Carlton player in AFL history. It is the third time in six years that Fevola has finished runner-up or third.
John Nicholls, Carlton Legend and winner of the Best & Fairest Award a record five times, presented the medal named in his honour to Chris Judd following the counting of votes.
Five members of the Carlton Match Committee independently submit their votes after each round. Each may give votes to as many as eight players. The maximum votes a player may receive is ten (maximum of 50 votes per game).
Other Award winners announced prior to the counting of votes in the John Nicholls Medal were:
Best First Year Player – Matthew Kreuzer
Must be a first year AFL player and Matthew, who turned 19 in May, played 20 games in his first season after making his debut in round three. Matthew was Carlton’s first selection, number one overall, in the 2007 draft last year and missed the first two games of the season due to injury.
This Award was presented by Carlton Assistant Coach Brett Montgomery.
Best Clubman – Andrew Carrazzo
Last year’s John Nicholls Medallist was voted the Best Clubman by his peers and Match Committee. Andrew also finished fourth in the John Nicholls Medal.
This Award was presented by Carlton Assistant Coach Gavin Crosisca.
Past Players Encouragement Award – Shaun Grigg
Shaun has played 25 senior matches, including 20 in 2008. He was Carlton’s 2nd round selection, number 19 overall, in the 2006 NAB AFL National Draft and was a Rising Star nominee in round 19 this season.
This Award was presented by Carlton Assistant Coach Mark Riley.
Women of Carlton – Player Ambassador of the Year Award – Michael Jamison
The Women of Carlton introduced this Award in 2004 to reward the players for their on field achievements as well as their work within the community and the manner in which they represent the Club on and off the field.
The Top Ten in the 2008 John Nicholls Medal:
1st Chris Judd 472
2nd Marc Murphy 417
3rd Brendan Fevola 373
4th Andrew Carrazzo 316
5th Bryce Gibbs 288
6th Nick Stevens 287
7th Jarrad Waite 267
8th Kade Simpson 202
9th Heath Scotland 201
10th Bret Thornton 197
The Top Ten in the 2007 John Nicholls Medal:
1st Andrew Carrazzo 218
2nd Heath Scotland 212
3rd Jarrad Waite 144
4th Ryan Houlihan 142
5th Kade Simpson 126
6th Brendan Fevola 94
7th Brad Fisher 90
8th Adam Bentick 86
9th Bryce Gibbs 74
10th Andrew Walker 58
Voting for the John Nicholls medal in 2007 was on a 5 / 4 / 3 / 2 /1 system with five members of the Carlton Match Committee independently submitting their votes after each round.
