Fremantle’s 2018 Beacon Award will be hotly contested with nine players eligible for the award to be announced at the 2018 Doig Medal Presentation Dinner, held on Saturday 6 October at the Perth Convention and Exhibition Centre.

The Beacon Award, proudly sponsored by Programmed, uses the same selection criteria as the AFL’s NAB Rising Star Award, where players are eligible if they are in their first year of football, or second year of football provided they played 10 games or less in their debut season.

The player must also be younger than 21 years of age as of 1 January 2018, with first-year players Scott Jones and Sam Switkowski ineligible due to their age.

The award is given to the eligible player who polls the most votes in the Doig Medal count.

The following Fremantle players are eligible for the award.

Bailey Banfield – Taken in the rookie draft, the midfielder had a quick rise at Freo, making his debut in round one and playing 20 games. Banfield impressed as both a tagger and midfielder, playing crucial roles on some of the AFL’s best players.

Andrew Brayshaw – The no.2 draft pick made his debut in round one and played 17 games until a broken jaw ended his season in round 20. Brayshaw showed steady improvement throughout the year, with the midfielder’s best performance coming against Hawthorn in round 19 with 25 disposals and nine contested possessions.

Adam Cerra – The 18-year-old played the most games of all eligible players, with 21 consecutive games after making his debut in round two. A starring performance against Adelaide saw Cerra earn three Brownlow votes and he earned a Rising Star nomination after Fremantle’s round 16 clash with Melbourne. 

Brennan Cox – The second-year forward played 16 games in 2018 and kicked 18 goals, highlighted by his four-goal performance against Adelaide, which earned him an AFL Rising Star nomination.

Mitch Crowden – The midfielder played nine games in his debut season and will also be eligible for the Beacon and Rising Star in 2019. In 2018, Crowden impressed with his ability to pressure his opponents, averaging 19.8 pressure acts per game – the fourth-most for Fremantle.

Sean Darcy – The second-year ruckman played seven games in 2018, with a knee injury seeing him miss the first half of the season. Darcy averaged 34 hitouts per game, the ninth-highest of players who played five games or more.

Taylin Duman – With 10 games in 2018, the rookie defender remains eligible for the Beacon and Rising Star in 2019. Duman had a breakout performance in the final game of the 2018 season against Collingwood with 24 disposals, eight marks and seven tackles.

Stefan Giro – Arrived in the rookie draft and played 10 games in 2018, remaining eligible for the Beacon and Rising Star in 2019. Giro would consistently cover more ground than both his teammates and opponents on game-day and averaged 3.5 tackles and 20 pressure acts per game.