Bill Castle nominees

BILL CASTLE MEDALBy Les Muirlmuir@dailyadvertiser.com.auSOUTHERN Inland Rugby Union has released the list of contenders for the prestigious Bill Castle Medal, the award honouring the best player in the premiership.Fifteen players spread across 10 clubs are on the short list for the medal which will be presented at a function in Wagga on August 22.Although there are three rounds of the SIRU competition to play, the allocation of votes for the Bill Castle Medal ended at the weekend.SIRU manager Mick McTaggart said yesterday the decision to rule out the final three games had been made in the best interests of the players.McTaggart said the withdrawal of Hay from the SIRU premiership only a month before it started had initiated the early medal count finish."We thought this was the fairest way to do it," McTaggart said."After 13 rounds all clubs have each played one another and every player has had the same chance to collect votes."Had we continued through the last three games some players would have been disadvantaged due to their team having a bye."Although the vote count period had been shortened, McTaggart said all players had an equal chance."It was a level playing field," he said.McTaggart said the quality of players in contention for the award had not been affected by early cut-off."It's no surprise to see the likes of Tumut's Paul Roche, Wagga City captain-coach Jarrod Bryant and Ag College halfback Peter Armstrong in the running for the medal, but is pleasing to see Rivcoll's Sterling Ross, Cootamundra's Andrew Glover and Temora's Casey Jordan feature as well," McTaggart said."Jordan, Ross, Shaun Connolly and Darren Kidd and Luke MacKay all represented Southern Inland this year and they are all worthy contenders."McTaggart said the Bill Castle Medal was the highest individual playing tribute for a player and was keenly sought."The referees do a great job awarding the points each week," McTaggart said."The honour roll since the inception of the medal in 1994 suggests the referees get it right just about every year."With the votes locked away, McTaggart said the outcome would be released at the medal count function at Romano's Hotel on August 22."It should be really close and I'd imagine the points from the last round on Saturday would have been vital," he said."I'd imagine it will go right down to the wire."The presentation of the medals to the winner and runner-up will be presented at Romano's Hotel after the elimination and qualifying finals are played at Conolly Rugby Complex."The top eight teams play that afternoon in Wagga and a large majority of the candidates will be in action for their clubs," McTaggart said.Planning for the Bill Castle Medal function is almost finalised."We are just waiting to confirm a few details," he said."I will shortly be able to announce the start time of the function and the name of the special guest for the night."