By Ant Wingard
Morningside ruckman Peter Mollison has rocketed into the top ten of the Syd Guildford Trophy following an influential performance in the Panthers’ shock win over Palm Beach Currumbin in Round 13.
Mollison shone in what is perhaps the biggest upset of the 2018 QAFL to date, polling eight votes in the Morningside win.
Having been named the starting ruckman in both the 2016 and 2017 QAFL Team of the Year, Mollison has gone from strength the strength in 2018.
He now sits in sixth position in the overall Syd Guildford leaderboard; higher than any other ruckman in the competition.
Mollison’s standout performance was bettered only by Panthers teammates Ashley Evans who polled a game-high nine votes.
John Anthony (five), Sam Godfrey (three), Zac Harrison and Josh Woolley (both two) also earned votes from the coaches in the 11-point affair.
Evergreen wingman Evan Panozza became the only player across Round 13 to poll the perfect ten votes following his best on ground performance in the Cats’ win over Mt Gravatt.
After winning the Broadbeach Best and Fairest in 2017, Panozza has worked his way into the season nicely and sits just outside the Syd Guildford’s top ten.
The remaining votes from the Cats’ clash with the Vultures were shared between the two clubs.
Broadbeach trio Xavier McMahon (seven), Benji Neal and Ryan Pantic (both two) joined Vulture pair Chris Murphy (seven) and Kailem Baker (two) to round out the votes.
Surfers Paradise midfielder Cassidy Haberfield returned to second spot on the Syd Guildford leaderboard after polling a game-high nine votes in the Demons’ win against Gold Coast rivals Labrador.
Haberfield is perhaps now in the box seat to win the award after current leader Campbell Wearne suffered a broken collar bone in the Panthers’ win over Palm Beach Currumbin.
The nine-vote performance draws Haberfield within five votes of Wearne as one of five Demons to poll votes this round.
Harrison Fraser (seven), Matt Doran (four), Connor Manning (two) and Joel Foster (one) were the other Surfers Paradise players to feature while Wayde Mills (six) and Dyson Budarick (one) were the only Tigers to do the same.
Votes were shared in the QAFL’s north-side derby as just 14 points separated Wilston Grange and Sandgate on Saturday afternoon.
The Gorillas victory saw Ryan Thomson poll a game-high seven votes in the contest which saw two Hawks poll six votes (Zac Beuchner & Jordan Maynard).
Gorillas pair Adam Hughes and Hamish Warren both claimed five votes for their efforts.
The Syd Guildford Trophy is awarded to the player judged the best in the competition by the QAFL’s nine coaches.
Voting is conducted by each coach post-game on a 5-4-3-2-1 basis. As such, the maximum amount of votes a single player can earn in a game is 10.
In a change from previous years, votes are cumulative. Updates of the Syd Guildford Medal voting will be published on the AFL Queensland website for the first 14 rounds of the season, however following Round 14, votes will go blind.
The winner will be announced at the Grogan Medal Dinner on September 16.
See the full Round 13 votes below:
Broadbeach v Mt Gravatt
10 – Evan Panozza (BB)
7 – Xavier McMahon (BB)
7 – Chris Murphy (Mt G)
2 – Kailem Baker (Mt G)
2 – Benji Neal (BB)
2 – Ryan Pantic (BB)
Morningside v Palm Beach Currumbin
9 – Ashley Evans (Morn)
8 – Peter Mollison (Morn)
5 – John Anthony (PBC)
3 – Sam Godfrey (Morn)
2 – Zac Harrison (PBC)
2 – Josh Woolley (PBC)
1 – Darcy Cameron-Reeves (Morn)
Labrador v Surfers Paradise
9 – Cassidy Haberfield (SP)
7 – Harrison Fraser (SP)
6 – Wayde Mills (Lab)
4 – Matt Doran (SP)
2 – Conor Manning (SP)
1 – Dyson Budarick (Lab)
1 – Joel Foster (SP)
Wilston Grange v Sandgate
7 – Ryan Thomson (WG)
6 – Zac Beuchner (Sand)
6 – Jordan Maynard (Sand)
5 – Adam Hughes (WG)
5 – Hamish Warren (WG)
1 – Nate Dennis (WG)
LEADERBOARD
51 – Campbell Wearne (Morn)
46 – Cassidy Haberfield (SP)
43 – Blake Erickson (BB)
38 – Thomas Thynne (PBC)
32 – Dyson Budarick (Lab)
31 – Peter Mollison (Morn)
29 – Nathan Beck (Morn)
28 – Jason Burge (PBC)
28 – Jarryd Douglas (PBC)
26 – Jayden Crawley (Mt G)
