It’s the time of year where history is made – where team titles are won, but also individual accolades awarded for those who have risen above the fray.
The award of the Johnny Warren and Julie Dolan Medals marks the point at the end of the season where the finest player in each of the A-Leagues is feted for what they have done on the pitch this season, joining a roll call of champions who have trodden that turf in the past.
History is the operative word, because these awards go back decades: the first Julie Dolan Medal was awarded in 1998 at the end of the second season of the Ansett Summer Series, the first national football league for women.
Eight years previously the first Johnny Warren Medal for the finest player in the NSL was presented to Zeljko Adzic (then of Melbourne Croatia, these days thought to be found tending vineyards back in Croatia).
Both awards continued into the A-League and what was the W-League and over the years the recipients have tended to be prestigious: Mark Viduka, Damian Mori and Thomas Broich for the men, Jo Peters, Sam Kerr and Heather Garriock for the women. Ahead of the annual Dolan Warren Awards for 2022, previous winners of the two medals reflect for KeepUp what the honour meant to them.
Sharon Black, SA Sports Institute
(Inaugural Julie Dolan Medal winner, 1997-98)
“It was the first season for me in the new summer series – we’d had national championships before, where we played a number of games in a week, but this actually felt like a proper tournament, although short, and we played a couple of games a weekend. It was just an absolute honour.
“Playing in that league was something that restarted my career, because we had players training together and playing together. Actually having the (summer) series was something that really reignited my career, but also my passion. And so then winning the Julie Dolan medal was, I guess, the icing on the cake. I was just really enjoying my football at that time.”
Paul Trimboli , South Melbourne
(Johnny Warren Medal winner 1992-93, 1997-98)
“I was lucky enough to have a personal relationship with Johnny and he’d been a great supporter of mine throughout my career and was always very complimentary and enjoyed the way I played the game, which was great because he was such a revered and respected figure.
“So to win an award that was named in his honour was fantastic. We play football to win trophies as a team. But there’s also a great satisfaction in being acknowledged on an individual level that you’ve maintained a certain level of performance. Back then it was an award that was voted by your peers, so to have that sort of respect from your contemporaries, and the guys you competed against week to week, was also something I’m very proud of.”
Ashleigh Sykes, Canberra United
(Julie Dolan Medal winner, 2015-16)
“I was pretty surprised (to win the medal) to be honest, because we had quite a competitive league and some awesome players playing it at the time. Whilst I thought I had a good season and played well, there was some kind of slight impostor syndrome, thinking that I wasn’t up to the same standard as some of the players in the league at the time.
“Melbourne City at that time had Kim Little playing for them and Jess Fishlock. So it’s pretty exciting for me to be considered alongside some of those players.
“(Julie’s) always been promoting the women’s game alongside plenty of other champions in the past. And now I get to be one of them, although I wouldn’t consider myself the same standard as some of them. It’s a little slice of history.”
Milos Ninkovic, Sydney FC
(Johnny Warren Medal, 2016-17, 2020-21)
“In 2016-17 there were so many great great players around the league. They were great memories. I always said that for me the most important thing is to win things with the team because that’s the award for every player, for staff, medical staff, coaching stuff. Johnny Warren is an individual award so it’s always nice when you win best player in the league.
“(Last year) I didn’t even think about it because first of all, my main goal was to win the (A-League) trophy with my team. We were in the Grand Final, I was injured and I didn’t play the semis so I was thinking about just how I can recover and play the Grand Final.
“In the end I only played the last 10 minutes… so that’s why I was surprised to win (his second Johnny Warren Medal).”
