Increasing in prestige each year, the MVP Award is the only peer-voted accolade in the football industry, recognizing the individual achievements, prowess and overall value to the team of the nominees.
Griffen’s ranking by his peers amongst the game’s elite only further confirms his stellar 2013 season, which last week saw him included in the 40-man All-Australian squad.
Ranked tenth in the AFL for total possessions from his 20 games (averaging 29 per game), and second for inside 50m, Griffen consolidated his billing amongst the competition’s premier midfielders.
Griffen was the league’s eighth ranked clearance player, behind teammate Tom Liberatore.
Liberatore and All-Australian squad ruckman Will Minson joined Griffen as nominees for the MVP award.
In other awards presented Tuesday night, Western Bulldogs captain Matthew Boyd was awarded the Education and Training Excellence Award.
Geelong’s Joel Selwood took out both the Best Captain and Most Courageous Awards.
Selwood was named the Best Captain, ahead of Gary Ablett Jnr and Jobe Watson, whilst he also won the Robert Rose Most Courageous Player Award, ahead of Swans’ midfielder Daniel Hannebery and Adelaide’s Rory Sloane.
Best First Year Player went to Jaeger O’ Meara who was a clear winner over Oliver Wines and Brad Crouch.
The Grant Hattam Trophy for Excellence in Sports Journalism, presented by Kelly Hazell Quill Lawyers, for their #DISCOVERED story which focused on Jeremy Cameron’s life away from football.
Top -10: AFL Players’ Association Most Valuable
Gary Ablett Jnr 1479
Joel Selwood 475
Jarryd Roughead 378
Scott Pendlebury 321
Kieren Jack 201
Ryan Griffen 177
Daniel Hannebery 174
Patrick Dangerfield 172
Dane Swan 137
Nathan Fyfe 118
AFL Players’ Association MVP Voting
The process to determine this year’s MVP began with each team voting for three teammates that, in their view, have displayed the best overall value to their own team.
In a second round of voting, all AFL players must vote in a 3, 2, 1 preference from the list of 51 nominees (three players from all clubs excluding their own) to determine the MVP.
