Geraldton Guardian Mid West Sports Awards finalists announced, celebrating city’s diverse sporting culture

The finalists for the Geraldton Guardian Mid West Sports Awards have been announced with nominations stretching across the sporting spectrum reflecting the diverse talent across the region. It will be a tough job for the judging panel of the awards with a quality field of nominees among all the categories. The hottest field will be the junior sports star of the year which should be wide open now that Jed Hagan has moved on after winning it for the past three years. Singling out any nominee risks doing a disservice to other worthy contenders, but the achievements of the entire field are too numerous to list completely. Twenty-one candidates have been nominated with few having a longer CV than Abby Green. A venerable jack-of-all-trades when it comes to sports, Green is a decorated equestrian rider while also an all-star in hockey, women’s club champion for the Rovers and part of the WA Country Women’s 11 cricket squad. She’s not the only multi-sport talent on the list with Adam Bradbury (cricket, football and basketball), Jy Thurston (softball and football), Kodi Giltrow (cricket and Football) and Nevaeh Hill (athletics and football) all being recognised for their contributions across multiple codes. There is also a sibling rivalry with Charlotte and Sarah Pilsneniks both nominated for cheer and dance but those who stick to the one sporting code are no less deserving of their nods. Tayah Palmer could not have been more dominant in the GNWFL this year, Frauke Rawlings and Eric Kyanga have had big years and boxing, and Isla Mulligan went on the international stage representing Australia in water polo. Christy Bestry is also nominated in a bid to become the first back-to-back female winner of the award since Emma Hancox in 2009. In the senior category, there are nine nominees across 10 different sports with Olivia Bidwell repsresting three of those. The joint winner of the women’s best and fairest in the GNWFL is also recognised for leading the scorer’s charts in the Midwest Soccer Association and is also women’s cricketer of the year. Callum Williamson won just about everything there is to win on the speedway tracks in the past year as did Paul Christmass in croquet. Kobi Toomath continues to fly the flag for Geraldton waterpolo with Emma Smith joining her after dominating the local competition. Libby Shuttlewood is there after helping to lead Aztecs to another title as Johny Narkle gets the nod for his efforts in basketball both in the local league and for the Buccs. Eliza Hebiton has been recognised for another outstanding year in dressage/equestrian while Shayne Wass from the Noth Midlands Hockey Association is there after a best-and-fairest season. In the team of the year award, Aztecs are no surprises after an undefeated season for the second year in a row as Pumas junior one team also had their own perfect season. Cardinals Women’s Hockey team may have another award to celebrate after their seventh straight premiership. There are four football teams up for the honour as Chapman Valley Women’s are recognised for a breakthrough premiership after dominating all season as are Rovers for their premiership success. The country week women’s side is also named after taking third place in the most recent edition while Coorow Latham Football Club went back-to-back in the North Midlands league. The Buccaneers have been honoured after winning the minor premiership this season before falling agonisingly short in the NBL1 West final. Towns Cricket club round out the list after winning both the T20 and over league competitions in the past season. Tickets for the awards nights are still on sale with early bird tickets closing tonight at 11:30 pm and available through the Mid West Sports Federation website. 2022 FINALISTS JUNIOR SPORTS STAR OF THE YEAR Abby Green (equestrian, cricket, football, hockey) Adam Badbury (cricket, football, basektball) Alyssa Piper (hockey) Caitlin Mundy (hockey) Charlotte Pilsneniks (cheer & dance) Christi Bestry (athletics) Eric Kyanga (boxing) Frauke Rawlings (boxing) Harry Evans (basketball) Isla Mulligan (water polo) Jasmine Johansen (football) Jy Thurston (softball, football) Kodi Giltrow (cricket, football) Lachy Toomath (water polo) Neveah Hill (athletics/AFL) Paige Carslake (soccer) Ricky Edwards (motocross) Sarah Pilsneniks (cheer & dance) Tayah Palmer (football) Tom Dobson (basketball) Zeke Forrester (soccer) SENIOR SPORTS STAR OF THE YEAR Callum Williamson (speedway/sprintcar) Eliza Hebiton (equestrian) Emma Smith (water polo) Johny Narkle (basketball) Kobi Toomath (water polo) Libby Shuttlewood (netball) Olivia Bidwell (cricket, soccer, AFL) Paul Christmass (croquet) Shayne Wass (hockey) ADMINISTRATOR OF THE YEAR Alison Cooper (hockey) Denise Bell (softball) Emma Streich (soccer) Lauren Norris (touch football) Nerolie Gerreyn (basketball) Paula Steenson (clay target & soccer) Rod Owen (football) ATLAS INCLUSION AWARD Champion Bay Surf Lifesaving Club Geraldton Masters Swimming Club Geraldton Surf Lifesaving Club — Starfish Nippers CLUB OF THE YEAR Chapman Athletic Soccer Club Fenix Geraldton Buccaneers Morawa Netball Club Rovers Cardinals Hockey Club COACH OF THE YEAR Darren Merchant (soccer) Dayle Joseph (basketball) Gary Clark (athletics) Jake Peacock (boxing) Jane Marriott (polocrosse) Leannne Fiorenza (netball) Nathan Johansen (football) Paul Valenti (hockey, softball) OFFICIAL OF THE YEAR Aimee Hagan (water polo) Chris Collins (cricket) David Wann (touch football) Hailee Horsman (netball) Jarrod Purcher (basketball) Jaya Piper (hockey) Ronnie Toomath (water polo) SPORTS PERSONALITY OF THE YEAR Annette Cooper (basketball) Carlo Licastro (soccer) Clint Yeates (cricket) James Gardiner (football) Rob Christoffersen (golf) TEAM OF THE YEAR Aztecs Senior 1 Netball Team Cardinals Women A-grade Hockey Team Chapman Valley Women’s Football Team Coorow Latham Football Club Fenix Geraldton Buccaneers GNFL Womens Country Championship Team Pumas Junior 1 Netball Team Rover Football Club Towns Cricket Club