From hilarious acceptance speeches, to last minute rushes and matching blazers – the 2023 Dolan Warren Awards had it all. KEEPUP takes you through all the great moments from the A-Leagues night of nights.
MISSED ANY OF THE ACTION? Every award winner from the 2023 Dolan Warren Awards
JOHNNY WARREN MEDALLIST: Simon Hill’s beautiful tribute to Johnny Warren Medal winner Craig Goodwin
JULIE DOLAN MEDALLIST: A Julie Dolan Medal winner in rarefied air: How you win Australia’s top gong in 13 games
BUY TICKETS TO THE GRAND FINAL
Redders’ hilarious acceptance speech
From the moment Andrew Redmayne’s name was read out as the winner of the Isuzu UTE A-League Save of the Year, there was complete mayhem inside The Star casino function room.
Baggy green hats, “pink eye” and beers. It was all happening.
It started before Redmayne even said a word in his acceptance speech as one of the night’s hosts Tristan McManus went down to chat with his teammates Rhyan Grant and Max Burgess.
Grant had a baggy green hat in hand – a memento received for reaching 250 Isuzu UTE A-League matches this term – but the latter refused to don the cap as he didn’t want to mess up his hair!
“What is going on over there?” Exclaimed bewildered host, Tara Rushton. When the attention turned to the stage, Redmayne perhaps shared a little too much.
“I’ve got a bit of pink eye at the moment, from my daughter,” Redmayne told Tara Rushton on stage.
“No, no, no, it’s not pink eye,” he quickly moved to clarify. “She stuck a finger in there and it got infected. Anyway… we’ll move on!”
Then, the attention turned back to Burgess, as Redmayne made sure to let the room know he would shout the Sky Blues midfielder a couple of beers before the night was over.
“There’s one on our table who needs a couple more beers tonight,” Redmayne said.
Rushton responded: “Can you tell us who that is?”
The answer came: “Burgo (Burgess). He certainly got a haircut but he won’t tell anyone he did. I’ll shout him a couple beers tonight!”
Goodwin and Arnie rep Socceroos blazers
Planned or not planned? We may never know, but Craig Goodwin and his Socceroos boss Graham Arnold were definitely on the same wave length when it came to the fashion department.
Both Arnold and Goodwin rocked up at the awards with their Socceroos 100 year anniversary blazers with their respective cap numbers on the inside.
Sensational.
Veart’s classic gag after receiving top coaching gong
Adelaide United coach Carl Veart’s most impressive achievement may be the fact he won the A-League Men’s Coach of the Year – but he saved his best for when he was off the stage.
After making his way through the backstage area, Veart was asked what by KEEPUP what his off-season looked like and the Reds boss responded in sensational fashion.
“Two weeks in Thailand by the pool bar!”
Classic Carl.
Rojas scoops up fan award – after mad rush!
As the second part of the night got underway, Maria Rojas got caught completely off guard.
The Melbourne City striker had just been announced as the Liberty A-League Fan Player of the Year by host Tristan McManus, but Rojas was still in the bathroom when her name was called out.
After a little bit of a wait, Rojas was escorted on stage by teammate Melissa Barberi – who hurriedly grabbed her out of the bathroom – in order to collect her award.
“I always appreciate what people have to say, and the love,” Rojas said. “I’m from Chile, and being here, my second home, it’s amazing.
“Thank you so much for all the support (this) season. What can I say? Thank you so much!”
Maclaren’s special tribute after receiving fifth Golden Boot
It’s been another history making season for Jamie Maclaren.
The Melbourne City sharpshooter took home his fifth (fourth in a row) Isuzu UTE A-League Golden Boot after firing home 24 regular season goals, which also took him to the top of all-time A-Leagues scoring charts.
Maclaren’s amazing achievement was cemented at Thursday night’s Dolan Warren awards, days out from where he will compete for the Championship in the Grand Final against Central Coast Mariners.
And his speech showcased just how exciting of a time it is in Maclaren’s life right now – beyond just his football career.
“This season has been pretty special for us at Melbourne City,” he said.
“This award is great, but I’m going to be a father soon, and the award, she’s sitting over there at the moment,” he gestured to his wife Iva in the crowd. “I can’t wait.”
