Schofield rewarded for career-best form with Lynn MedalTuesday, October 10, 2017 - 1:45 PM - by Chris Pike

EAST Fremantle might not have had the 2017 WAFL season it desired in terms of wins but it wasn’t without its positives and one of those without question was Lynn Medal winner Jayden Schofield for his outstanding performances.

East Fremantle did struggle for the most part throughout the 2017 season missing out on playing finals third successive year following a grand final appearance in 2013 and preliminary final in 2014.

But the performance and emergence of Schofield into an elite player in the competition was one of the highlights. He was rewarded for his efforts by winning his first Lynn Medal as East Fremantle's fairest and best winner.

East Fremantle won just three games for the season but did manage to avoid the wooden spoon at Perth's expense.

In the end, Schofield won the Lynn Medal because of superb form in a role off half-back he began playing early in 2016 following the arrival of Rob Wiley as coach.

He had previously struggled to find his best position and had at times found himself in and out of East Fremantle's league side since returning from a season in the AFL with the Western Bulldogs where he played seven games at the top level.

But the role at half-back proved to be where he found he belonged. As an attacking and creative player for the Sharks from the defence to set up play with his good foot skills and ability to run and carry the ball, he became a standout in the position.

Schofield averaged 25.7 disposals a game throughout the 2017 season for the Sharks in that role off half-back. That included a high of 35 in Round 12 and only twice did he drop below 20 disposals in a game. All up he had 25 or more possessions in games on 10 occasions for the season.

On top of winning the Lynn Medal for the first time, Schofield brought up his 100-game milestone for the Sharks late in the season and was always named to the wafl.com.au Team of the Year.

Schofield won the Lynn Medal by polling 76 votes for the season to prevail ahead of Matthew Watson (71), Jonathon Marsh (57), Matthew Jupp (46), Cameron Eardley (46), George Hampson (35), Andrew Stephen (32), Tom Marshall (31), Sam Read (30) and Dion Anthony (30).

Watson had a terrific season for the Sharks in his second, but unfortunately, last year in the WAFL following his AFL career with Carlton. Splitting his time between the ruck and up forward, he kicked 30 goals and averaged 16.9 possessions a game.

Marsh was another player with AFL experience who had a significant impact for the Sharks as a big-bodied midfielder. In his 15 matches, he averaged 27.7 possessions and was also part of the WAFL's history-making state game victory against the VFL in Melbourne.

Defender and vice-captain Jupp shared fourth-placed with tenacious and consistent midfielder Eardley while Hampson coming fifth only highlights how important he is to the Sharks considering he played just nine matches but averaged 26.6 possessions and kicked 13 goals.

A sixth-place finish was also a good reward for retiring former Lynn Medal winner Stephen. He spent most of the season in unfamiliar territory as a forward, but made the most of it including a seven-goal haul against Claremont. He retires a 164-game great of East Fremantle.

It was a season of building for the future for East Fremantle and one of those showing he will be part of that was Best First Year Player award recipient Corey Holmes while Tom Bennett was given the Rising Star award.

Tim Bristow was named Best Clubman and won the club's Community Award.

Ben Harding claimed the Prendergast Medal for the best WAFL reserves player in 2017 so it was no surprise seeing him back that up by claiming the Henry Jeffery Medal as East Fremantle's reserves fairest and best.

He won with 55 votes ahead of Peter Delaney (43), Alex Montauban (42), Joel Kalajzic (39), Corey Holmes (38), Sean Henson (36), Jye Clements (34), Tom Omodei (33), Dion Anthony (24) and Miles Franklin (23).

East Fremantle's colts won this season's premiership and the fairest and best count went right down to the wire between Jayden Quill and Zach Jackson. In the end, the pair couldn’t be split sharing the Allan Trott Medal as fairest and best winners for 2017.

They won ahead of Liam Rajanayagam (88), Chris Scott (76), Dillon O'Reilly (69), Kennedy Sorrell (68), Josh Ritchie (64), Brandon Collard (63), Sam Lewis (59) and Dylan Campbell 55.

LEAGUE AWARD WINNERS
Lynn Medal Winner (Fairest and Best): Jayden Schofield
Runner-up Fairest and Best: Matthew Watson
Third-place Fairest and Best: Jonathon Marsh
Fourth-place Fairest and Best: Matthew Jupp, Cameron Eardley
Fifth-place Fairest and Best: George Hampson
Best First Year Player: Corey Holmes
Patrons Rising Star: Tom Bennett
Leading Goalkicker: Matthew Watson
Best Clubman: Tim Bristow
Bendigo Bank Community Award: Tim Bristow

RESERVES AWARD WINNERS
Henry Jeffery Medal (Fairest and Best): Ben Harding
Runner-up Fairest and Best: Peter Delaney
Third-place Fairest and Best: Alex Montauban
Fourth-place Fairest and Best: Joel Kalajzic
Fifth-place Fairest and Best: Corey Holmes

COLTS AWARD WINNERS
Allan Trott Medal (Fairest and Best): Jayden Quill, Zach Jackson
Runner-up Fairest and Best: Liam Rajanayagam
Third-place Fairest and Best: Chris Scott
Fourth-place Fairest and Best: Dillon O'Reilly
Fifth-place Fairest and Best: Kennedy Sorrell 
Best First Year Player: Zach Jackson
Most Dedicated Player: Mitch Anderson
One Percenter Award: Dwayne Nevill
Past Players & Officials Encouragement Award: Brandon Collard
Player of the Finals: Tom Joyce