2025 Premier C Men’s Fixture
An updated Premier C Men’s fixture has been released to accommodate ground availability. See the updated fixture below. The Premier C Men’s competition was one of the most entertaining and
Old Xaverians’ ball-magnet Sam Fisher & brilliant Kew midfielder Dakota Villiva have been crowned the William Buck Premier Men’s & Women’s League Best & Fairest at the VAFA Awards Night at Carlton’s San Remo Ballroom.
More than 300 packed in to see Fisher awarded the prestigious Woodrow Medal as Premier Men’s best player, while Villiva received her second Shona MacInnes Medal for another standout Premier Women’s campaign.
Having missed the first three matches due to a strained hamstring, Fisher did all his polling between Rounds 4 and 14, collecting four perfect games and two 2-vote performances, edging in front of St Kevin’s spearhead Patrick Kerr at the end of Round 14.
It turned out to be a thrilling count that went all the way to the wire, given none of the Top 4 players polled in the final month. That was enough for Sam to claim the League’s highest individual honour with 16 votes, one clear of Kerr, who, in turn, finished one ahead of Old Scotch’s Isaac Conway and Old Brighton’s Hamish Dick, who tied for third.
It is Fisher’s second major League Best & Fairest, having won the WAFL’s storied Sandover Medal with Swan Districts in 2020.
Canberra-born and bred, 26-year-old Fisher is a young veteran of the game.
He started his football journey with the Eastlake Demons Under 12s and his road to the Woodrow took in stops at Ainslie, Marist, Canberra, the GWS Giants & Sydney Swans (where he spent one season on their AFL list in 2017), the Northern Blues (Carlton’s VFL affiliate), then over to Swan Districts for three seasons before joining Old Xavs this year.
An instinctive ball-winner and relentless worker, his first VAFA season saw him average 32 disposals, 17 contested possessions, 10 clearances and 6 tackles, and ranking in the Top 5 for an incredible 17 different stat categories, despite only playing 14 of a possible 18 games.
“I think I was pretty consistent as a whole,” said Fisher. “It was good playing with good players in a midfield that supports and elevates you, such as Stav (Marcus Stavrou), Hanners (Dan Hannebery) and Alex Spralja.
“VAFA grounds are generally smaller than in the WAFL, which forced me to win more of my own ball. That meant I had to win my share on the inside and then work on getting out into space. I was expecting that hard, contested footy – it’s the nature of Melbourne grounds and weather.
“The competition is extremely hard; full of big, experienced bodies. The good teams have genuine depth in mature bodies and that’s the biggest difference to other competitions I’ve played in.
“I’m 26 and there’s a large contingent of guys around my age. So many players are in their prime, so they’re strong over the ball with good fitness to go all day.
Fisher talked to a few clubs last summer and had a couple of close former team-mates who raved about Old Xavs.
“I played with Marcus Stavrou at the Blues and he left to commit to Xavs so young. Tom Hart and Fraser Pearce talked so positively about it too. Now living it myself, I can see why. It was one of the most enjoyable years of footy I’ve had with an amazing bunch of blokes. Everyone gets on so well and it’s great to play with good mates at a strong club with strong personal connections like that.
“I’ve loved my time. It couldn’t have been a better decision for me and there’s so many great people to thank – the likes of Matt Hannebery, Matt Cosgrave and Dan Donati were all instrumental in getting me to the club and have been 100% supportive ever since.
“I’ll be back there next year. It’s a high standard of footy – ‘Nutsy’ (Dan Donati) is a great coach and I’ve grown as a person. My work/footy balance has definitely improved.
“I work in property development and met the Managing Director of Perry Projects through the club. It’s been a great experience to work on some cool projects and because there’s so many others in the VAFA community working in the same industry, it’s been fantastic to build my personal network.”
Fisher is thrilled to win an award with such history and now has his sights set squarely on team success with Old Xavs.
“It’s extremely humbling. I’m very honoured but the greatest success is with your mates. My old team Swan Districts made the finals this year and winning a VAFA flag with a bunch of mates and sharing that success is definitely the goal. It’s something I haven’t experienced in my journey yet.
“Seeing Scotch win and knowing we beat them in the last round proves that our best is good enough. Hopefully next year we have a few blokes commit full-time to VAFA. We’ll get Jesse Palmer back, continue to develop and get closer as a group and I reckon we’re primed and ready.”
Having made an enormous contribution to Xavs both on and off field, Fisher also represented the Big V against the Perth Football League to cap a stellar season worthy of a Woodrow Medallist.
Dakota Villiva collected her second Shona MacInnes Medal as the William Buck Premier Women’s League Best & Fairest, then shocked the crowd with her revelation that she’d done so with a torn ACL that was injured mid-season and requires a reconstruction that will rule her out for all of 2025.
They say ‘history never repeats,’ but it has on this occasion, given Dakota won the Shona MacInnes Medal for Kew in 2022, then missed the entire 2023 season having torn her ACL during a practice match.
“Before doing my knee in 2023, I hadn’t had a single football related injury,” said Dakota.
Despite the extended lay-off, the 23-year-old rocketed out of the blocks in 2024, polling in 9 of her first 11 matches, then finished strongly to poll in her final four to finish on 31 votes, 14 clear of MUWFC’s Ange Roan on 17, with Old Scotch’s Mia Caffry third with 15.
“I’m honestly not 100% sure when I injured my knee,” Villiva recalls.
“I had scans in May just to check on it and everything was good. I tweaked it in the mid-season bye round playing other non-football related sport, so I reckon I did it then. I didn’t think anything of it and only recently had another scan of my knee and saw the damage. So I think I played the last 8-9 rounds without an ACL or meniscus.”
“This season has been a testament to Dak’s resilience,” said her coach, Emily Avery.
“After her first ACL injury, she’s bounced back stronger than ever. Her consistency week in, week out has been impressive. What’s really caught my eye is her improved aerial game. Her ability to win contested possessions and make crucial clearances has become a real asset once again to our team.”
Dakota grew up in Mildura and her path to the VAFA began with a few seasons with Gol Gol in the Sunraysia Women Football League.
“We didn’t have a girls’ football league in my area growing up so I didn’t start playing football until 2018 when I turned 17 and was old enough to play in the women’s league,” said Dakota.
“From there I went and played in the NAB League for Bendigo Pioneers and for Golden Square in Bendigo. Then no football due to COVID and I decided to move to Melbourne for uni in 2022 and ended up with Kew.”
Villiva starred in her first VAFA season, polling 20 votes to claim her first League Best & Fairest, then sat out all of 2023 before winning it again in her second season this year – a remarkable performance from an incredible player.
“2022 and 2024 were similar years for me. I was probably just a bit more consistent and confident this year as I knew what to expect from opposition and how they play, so I was able to alter my game to best benefit my team’s chances of success, whether that was staying in the midfield or spending time up forward.
“I think I enjoyed the 2024 season a bit more due to missing the previous year. I was keen to get back into the routine of seeing and playing with my mates every week.
“I really enjoy being at Kew Bears. We have three female teams, which means we have a bunch of great girls at the club at different levels, experience and knowledge in footy. I think that makes it a great environment to be in as there’s always players and coaches around to help you grow and learn, not only as footballers but as people. The support and friendships at the club make it really special.
Avery is full of praise for Dakota’s contribution on both sides of the fence.
“Dak’s fierce competitive spirit defines her game. She’s the engine that drives our midfield, constantly pushing the team. Her opponents find her incredibly challenging to defend against – she’s like a force of nature on the field.
“Dak engages with teammates and she brings exciting energy to the group. When the game’s on the line, she’s always the first to step up. She’s also the life of the party at club functions!”
“I love to highlight my appreciation to my teammates and the discipline, structure and support they provide which allows me to be able to play my game,” said Dakota.
“Without them backing me in every week, I wouldn’t be able to play my best football. I’d also like to show appreciation to my coaches, especially the midfield coaches.”
“Lastly I’d like to thank all the volunteers, committee members and others in the VAFA and Kew Football Club who allow all of us players the opportunity to play a great standard of football each season.
“I thought the competition evened out a bit more and having more competitive matches was good. I also enjoyed heading over to Perth for the Big V (Dakota was named best afield) as it brought a different perspective to how other players from opposing teams go about their footy.”
With the 2024 season now in the books, Dakota’s attention and energy will switch to her long road back to the footy field in 2026.
“I’m having surgery this coming Monday so will definitely be out all of next season. I don’t want to risk coming back earlier and doing it again.”
She’ll be well supported by her coach and team-mates, who are preparing to wrap their arms around their two-time Shona MacInnes Medallist.
“Our players, coaches, and the entire club are rallying behind her,” said Avery.
“Dak’s previous recovery process has inspired all of us, and we can’t wait to see her back on the field.”
2024 VAFA Best & Fairest Votes
An updated Premier C Men’s fixture has been released to accommodate ground availability. See the updated fixture below. The Premier C Men’s competition was one of the most entertaining and
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