Malone enters NEAFL MVP top 10 after dominant display

Redland ruckman Craig Malone’s breakout NEAFL season has continued after another starring performance saw the 26-year-old giant move into the NEAFL MVP Award top 10 leaderboard.

Malone, who stands at a commanding 198cm and 115kgs, polled eight votes after 70 hit-outs and 19 hit-outs to advantage – both top 10 NEAFL records.

He was beaten only by emerging Sydney University midfielder Jake Bartholomaues, who was awarded the maximum 10 votes after 21 disposals, six clearances, nine inside 50s and three goals as the Students won a quality contest by 20 points.

There was little movement at the top of the leaderboard after only three matches in Round 7, with Malone the only addition to the top 10.

Aspley livewire Billy Murphy attracted eight votes after his six goals against NT Thunder on Saturday night, with the voting dominated by Hornets players after their 79-point victory.

GIANTS midfielder Nick Shipley polled 10 votes after a starring role against Southport on Sunday, running amok with 41 disposals, nine clearances and four inside 50s, with teammate Zach Sproule earning eight votes after his five-goal haul.

The NEAFL Most Valuable Player Award is presented to the player uniquely judged the best in the competition by a combination of umpire and coaches votes.

The votes are submitted post-game cast on a 5-4-3-2-1 basis. As such, the maximum amount of votes a single player can earn per match is 10 – courtesy of the maximum five votes from both umpires and coaches.

The progress of the MVP voting is published on the NEAFL website for the first 12 rounds of the season, but withheld from that point on until the winner is revealed at the end of season awards night.

NEAFL MVP VOTES – Round 7

Sydney University v Redland
10: Jake Bartholomaues (Sydney Uni)
8: Craig Malone (Redland)
5: Matt Hammelmann (Redland)
3: Will Sierakowski (Sydney Uni)
3: Lewis Stevenson (Sydney Uni)
1: Sam Cunnington (Redland)

NT Thunder v Aspley
8: William Murphy (Aspley)
5: Jono Giles (Aspley)
4: Jordon Arnold (Aspley)
4: Jasper Craven (Aspley)
3: Matthew Payne (Aspley)
2: Jono Freeman (Aspley)
2: Jake Spencer (Aspley)
2: Daniel Weetra (NT Thunder)

GIANTS v Southport
10: Nick Shipley (GIANTS)
8: Zach Sproule (GIANTS)
5: Jye Caldwell (GIANTS)
5: Josh Williams (Southport)
1: Tyler Roos (Southport)
1: James Peatling (GIANTS)

NEAFL MVP LEADERBOARD – Round 7

36: Matt Shaw (Southport)
27: James Rowbottom (Sydney)
24: Colin O’Riordan (Sydney)
24: Tyler Roos (Southport)
23: Ben Keays (Brisbane)
22: Alex Smout (Canberra)
22: Craig Malone (Redland)
21: Adam Gulden (Sydney Uni)
20: Abraham Ankers (NT Thunder)
19: Ryan Bastinac (Brisbane)

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