James Smart is a chance to join rarefied air on Saturday.
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The Gundagai captain-coach is one of the favourites to take out the Weissel Medal and be crowned the best player in Group Nine.
If successful the 27-year-old would become the third player to win multiple Weissel Medals.
However he expects some stiff competition from Tigers teammate Luke Berkrey.
“I’m looking forward to the day,” Smart said.
“I imagine myself and Luke will be thereabouts.
“If anyone is more deserving I would have to say it would be Berks.
“To even be close to Berks is nice because I’ve seen first hand how good that bloke has been this season and how hard he has worked.”
When votes were last revealed in round 12 troubled Young halfback Ray Talimalie had a three-point lead over both Smart and Berkrey.
Temora lock Hayden Philp was a point further behind.
However Talimalie didn’t play in the last four games of the regular season due to suspension.
The Dragons also slipped out of finals contention, losing four games in the last six rounds plus having the bye, which could hurt Philp’s shot.
Smart and Berkrey are also looking to extend Gundagai’s recent dominance of the award.
“It was something I didn’t think too much about until one of the boys mentioned it a while ago just how many Gundagai players have won the medal in recent years,” Smart said. “It is a pretty special thing to win.
“There has been some really good players like James Luff, Brett Eccleston and then you go back to guys like Pat Clarke and Peter McDonald.”
The four Tigers Smart named have all won the medal in the last 15 years.
He’s looking to make it four wins in the last five years for the club.
Only Albury’s Lou Goodwin ended their streak.
The inaugural NRL Rookie claimed the medal in 2014, a year after Smart’s win, while Luff and Eccleston have won the last two.
“It would be for it to go to Gundagai again,” Smart said.
Smart is looking to be only the third player to win more than one Weissel Medal.
Kangaroos playmaker Baden Power shared the honours in both of his two wins while Harden/Murrumburrah’s John Shea won four including the first ever one.
Smart is just happy to be in contention.
“To be up there in the medal count is a reward for the work that you have put in,” he said.
“I know both myself and Berks have trained really, really hard this year.
“It is nice to be up there in the count.”