Chris O’Keefe scored three votes in the final round to claim this year’s Barry Priest Medal. 81278_16 Picture: KRISTIAN SCOTT
By ADEM SARICAOGLU
ADD the 2012 Barry Priest Medal to Chris O’Keefe’s already impressive list of achievements.
The Spotswood playing coach was the winner of the Western Region Football League’s top individual honour on Friday night after polling 25 votes, four ahead of Altona’s Travis Lunardi and six ahead of Deer Park rising star Kevin Klix.
O’Keefe described the win as a “very humbling experience”.
“It really is a big thrill to be able to say that you’re a Barry Priest Medallist,” O’Keefe said.
“I’ve come close a couple of times and got beaten twice by one vote a couple of years in a row.
“From a personal point of view it is a really great honour to win one of these.”
O’Keefe has enjoyed a lot of success in his five years with the Woodsmen, and while he was thrilled with his new Barry Priest, the classy midfielder admitted last month’s one-point grand final loss to Altona still burns deep.
“It’s one of those ones which I’m sure that I’ll look back on when I finish up my playing days and remember fondly, but as I said on the stand I would much prefer to have the premiership medallion that we missed out on a few weeks ago over this one,” he said.
“Everywhere I look I see 12.18 (Spotswood’s score line in the grand final), I read the papers the week after and the web TV show and it’s certainly one that’s going to haunt me until next year when we can get out there and do something about it.
“To throw it away a little bit was devastating and it’s something that I will certainly use for next year, and I’m sure all the players will as well.”
O’Keefe grew up in Bungaree and rose through the junior ranks in the TAC Cup with the North Ballarat Rebels and before joining the VFL’s Roosters, where former coach Gerard FitzGerald had a great impact on O’Keefe’s development.
“He’s a terrific person and he is a peoples’ person and understands everyone is different and understands how to get the best out of every individual,” O’Keefe said of FitzGerald.
“He’s an amazing guy and certainly helped me through my time at North Ballarat when he was there and especially (in) my first couple of years.
“He’s a good man.”
Other winners on the night included Parkside’s Robert Ford, who won division two’s Allan Smith Medal, while Albion youngster Kym Taylor was named the Rookie of the Year.
