Emerging star Will Day has taken out Hawthorn’s highest honour, awarded the Peter Crimmins Medal, following a stunning 2023 campaign.
Day’s win marks not only his maiden best and fairest, but also the youngsteJames Worpel r’s first podium finish.
In an extremely close count, Day (125 votes) polled just two votes ahead of of runner-up Jai Newcombe (123) and third-placed Conor Nash (114).
Coming off the back of impressive seasons, (110) and James Sicily (101) also cracked the ton to finish fourth and fifth respectively.
Following a strong year of development last season, a permanent move to the midfield saw him elevate his status to become one of the league’s most consistent and damaging players in 2023.
After starting his journey playing predominantly half back, the 22-year-old’s midfield switch saw him enjoy a career-best year with impressive numbers right across the board.
With his toughness around the contest and poise by foot becoming defining features of his game, Day averaged 25.6 disposals, 4.2 clearances and 5.8 marks per game.
Having only once this season dropped below 20 disposals, Day has been a model of consistency, polling votes in all but one of his 21 games played this year.
Originally drafted as Pick 13 in the 2019 national draft, Day made his first appearance in Round 6 of 2020.
After playing 33 games across his first three seasons, 2023 saw the youngster only miss two games, both of which were due to suspension.
Having only just surpassed his 50th game this season, his best and fairest adds to an impressive year that also saw him claim Hawthorn’s fan-voted MVP award, along with earning a spot in the AFLPA’s 22Under22 team.