Lockington-Bamawm United ruckman Tyler Phillips became just the fifth Heathcote District League footballer to claim back-to-back Sam Cheatley medals on Wednesday night in a runaway league best-and-fairest win.
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Phillips reaffirmed his status as one of the dominant forces in the HDFNL by polling 34 votes in the Cheatley vote count, 15 ahead of joint runners-up Braden Patmore (Heathcote) and Dylan Klemm (North Bendigo).
It stands as the highest final vote tally in 20 years, and of a possible 16 games, Phillips polled in 14, with a remarkable eight best-on-ground performances underscoring his dominance.
It was a poignant win, however, as Phillips paid tribute to late club trainer Chris ‘Chook’ Fowler, a key figure for Phillips and highly-regarded presence at LBU and the local area.
“This one means a lot to me,” Phillips said.
“Chris was our club trainer, and he was my personal trainer. We did a lot of stuff together and he wanted me to win this as much as I was just going out there and playing footy.
“He wanted me to go back-to-back, so to do that was pretty special.
“League best-and-fairest’s aren’t something you play for, but to actually win it, the first thing I thought was what would Chook say right now and his reaction to it all.”
Phillips also heaped praise on his family and trainer Shannon Fink for their support during the season.
“Chris was a massive help to me early in the year. Once he passed, Shannon Fink stepped into that role and he’s been awesome as well,” Phillips said.
In 2021, Phillips was the first Cheatley Medallist out of LBU since Adrian Dohnt in 2010, and he is the first back-to-back winner since North Bendigo’s Josh Gitsam (2012, 2013).
Phillips credits a consistent approach and his teammates support for his renewed success.
“I’ve just been trying to be as consistent as I can be. I feel I’ve done that, but I’ve just been focused on the team aspect and taking the game one week at a time,” he said.
“Being the minor premiers helps a lot and having that support from my teammates has been really good.”
Beyond the individual accolades, Phillips is seeking a higher honour as the Cats prepare to face Mount Pleasant out at Gunbower Reserve this Saturday for a place in the HDFL grand final.
After a week off owing to their status as minor premiers, LBU now begin their chase for their first premiership since 2014, and Phillips admits the club is buzzing on the eve of the clubs’ first final since 2019.
“It’s our 22 players against them, and we’ll play our brand to get the win,” Phillips said.
“We try not to focus too much on what they are, we’ll focus on what we do at the moment.
"We’re buzzing big time. Even last Thursday at training, I think there were two missed targets for the whole night.
“It’s a great feeling with everyone in finals and the fact that we’re playing footy after having one year of not playing at all and then a half year last season.
“Getting this finals feeling back has everyone up and about.”
Phillips wasn’t the only back-to-back league medallist on the night, with Heathcote’s Brooke Bolton also adding a second straight Esther Cheatley medal to her collection.
Bolton’s 29 votes saw her salute in a canter ahead of Elmore’s Tahnee Cannon (21) and White Hills Alyssa Cole (20).
In other results, Heathcote’s Liam Edwards took out the Reserves gong, while under-18 football honours went the way of Colbinabbin’s Jude Ryan.
Elmore’s Madison Keating was judged the A-reserve competitions best player and B-grade honours went the way of Huntly’s Darcee Mann, while clubmate Stacey Saddlier took out B-reserve.
In the junior netball ranks, Heathcote’s Telani Bibby was named the under-17s best player with Mount Pleasant’s Madalyn Nihill judged the under-15 best-and-fairest.