Could another Goulburn Valley product win the AFL’s coveted Goal of the Year prize?
Last season, number one draft pick and Tongala sensation Harley Reid won the award with a devastating dagger on the run from 50m, snaring the Phil Manassa Medal and $50,000 in the process.
It was a fair old sweetener for the first-year star - and to Tongala Football Netball Club, which received a $10,000 donation through the NAB scheme.
But another young gun from the region is now in the running for the 2025 award, with Shepparton Swans export Josh Rachele rousing the crowd with a stunning major on Friday.
The Adelaide livewire kicked truly from a set shot just inside the 50m arc during the second quarter, splitting the big sticks on the narrowest of angles from outside the boundary line.
That sprinkling of stardust from the mercurial small forward lifted the Crows to a five-point win over Brisbane while Rachele was rewarded with a Goal of the Year nomination to boot.
The major prize winner will be announced at the end of the home and away season, where Rachele and Shepparton Swans could be in for a major windfall.
