The Goulburn Valley League season is in the books, but one order of business remains before all eyes turn to 2027.
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All 12 clubs have conducted their presentation nights and anointed their best-and-fairest winners in the senior football and A-grade netball ranks.
With back-to-back winners, first-time medal recipients, and record-extenders, the GVL’s finest have finished the year with a flourish.
So, who walked out the door with extra silverware around their neck?
Benalla
Senior football: Mark Marriott
A-grade netball: Claire Marriott
It was a Marriott double at Benalla’s presentation night.
Dominant ruckman Mark Marriott backed up his runner-up finish in the Morrison Medal with a legacy-establishing third consecutive John Martiniello Medal, etching his name into Saints’ history.
Claire Marriott played a starring hand in defence for the Saints and was a runaway winner with 45 votes, winning by 16 ahead of Alex Davies and an impressive feat considering she played just 12 games for the season.
Echuca
Senior football: Tom Evans
A-grade netball: Ash Hare
The youngest senior football winner on this list hails from the reigning premier.
Twenty-year-old Echuca midfielder Tom Evans proved a class above to claim his maiden best-and-fairest, one made all the more special after the Murray Bombers claimed the 2026 flag.
Echuca also enjoyed a strong year on the netball court, and Ash Hare, no stranger to an A-grade medal, went back-to-back in the Murray Bombers’ top netball prize to take her career tally of club best-and-fairest’s to nine.
Euroa
Senior football: Jacob Gleeson
A-grade netball: Mia Sudomirski
Speaking of best-and-fairest’s in a premiership season, Euroa’s Mia Sudomirksi was bestowed the honour after the Pies’ flag exploits.
Sudomirski stood on the premiership dais for a second time, and after a stellar season in the attacking third ended the Euroa vote count on the top step ahead of prolific goal-shooter Bec Colwell.
Meanwhile, Jacob Gleeson was a standout on the footy field in a tough campaign for Euroa, the consistent Pies midfielder breaking through for his maiden senior best-and-fairest.
Kyabram
Senior football: Kaine Herbert
A-grade netball: Jazmin Clark
The tireless Kaine Herbert also notched his first Kyabram best-and-fairest after running second twice, averaging 28 touches and seven clearances as his Bombers progressed to the preliminary final.
The Bombers A-grade side endured a difficult season, but the signs are evident they can pull themselves back up the ladder with the talent at their disposal, Jazmin Clark announcing herself as one to watch by taking out the A-grade best-and-fairest.
Mooroopna
Senior football: Keelin Betson
A-grade netball: Caitlin McLachlan
The Betson brother’s reintroduction to the Cattery went a long way to Mooroopna returning to finals.
But it was contested ball machine Keelin that stood atop the Cats vote count, taking top honours ahead of runners-up Liam Betson, Isaac Dowling, and Coby James.
On the court, a gallant Cats’ charge to the A-grade final was propped up by the second-best defence in the league, and Caitlan McLachlan’s lockdown exploits in the defensive goal-ring saw her top the A-grade vote count for her first best-and-fairest since 2023.
Mansfield
Senior football: Sam Thomson
A-grade netball: Alex Ball
Ball became the first Eagle in 13 years to win the league’s Wellman Medal as the GVL’s best player, and the frontcourt dynamo made it a double dose of medals when she claimed Mansfield’s major A-grade prize.
Sam Thomson’s season was also highly regarded at the nest, claiming the senior football best-and-fairest ahead of last year’s Morrison Medallist Callum Brown.
Rochester
Senior football: Ryley Ferguson
A-grade netball: Tia Webb
First-year Tigers ruckman Ryley Ferguson strung together a dominant 2026 campaign that saw him named in Rochester’s best players in 14 of his 17 games, more than serviceable in the air and at ground level.
Meanwhile, Rochester’s Tia Webb finished fifth in the GVL A-grade goal-shooting with 540 for the campaign, the A-grade skipper and league representative proving herself an excellent target in the goal-ring to take out the Quinlan Medal.
Seymour
Senior football: Dylan Cook
A-grade netball: Ally Black
Consistent ball-getter and contested bull Dylan Cook was a major focal point through the middle of the ground, finishing equal-fifth in the Morrison Medal and adding the Gary Brown Medal to his collection.
Bendigo Strikers bound Ally Black is another Lions star to find herself near the top of the GVL vote count, finishing runner-up in the Wellman Medal count for 2026.
She flipped the script in the Seymour edition, however, finishing two votes clear of Elle Nexhip.
Shepparton Swans
Senior football: Ethan Warburton
A-grade netball: Harriet Gall
Warburton’s move to Princess Park proved a fruitful one, establishing himself as one of the GVL’s key intercepting defenders, an efficient mover of the ball, and eventually the Swans senior best-and-fairest for 2026.
Harriet Gall sent a reminder of her quality after a season off the court due to injury, marshalling the Swans’ midcourt and taking out the A-grade best-and-fairest ahead of Gabby Moore.
Shepparton
Senior football: Luke Smith
A-grade netball: Kim Borger
Luke Smith beat Morrison Medallist Ash Holland to the punch in the Bears’ vote count, and the reason why is clear – 52 goals, 28 disposals a game, and a Barry Connolly Medal as the best player in GVL finals made Smith a standout.
Kim Borger departs the Bears as its inaugural premiership coach, a two-time Wellman Medallist and a four-time A-grade best-and-fairest after claiming her third consecutive gong.
Shepparton United
Senior football: Angus Hicks
A-grade netball: Sophie Garner
Dynamic midfielder Angus Hicks made his long-awaited return to Deakin Reserve and reminded the GVL of his capabilities, finishing third in the Morrison Medal and unsurprisingly taking out the Demons’ best-and-fairest by 17 votes from Brodie Newman.
Sophie Garner also made a splash in the Dees’ centre third in her return season, the athletic midcourter taking out the club’s A-grade award with Abby Gilmore the runner-up
Tatura
Senior football: Tom Sullivan
A-grade netball: Molly Boyle
Sullivan was a shining light in another tough season for the Bulldogs, the prolific midfielder averaging 28 disposals and named in his side’s best in 13 games.
Molly Boyle’s Bulldogs legacy grew further with her second consecutive A-grade best-and-fairest and fourth overall, winning by a single vote over Elsie Boyer in a thriller.