AFL player Sydney Stack has become the second player in history to earn three nominations for The Frownlow Medal in the same year, after being arrested for breaching quarantine and disorderly conduct, plus a controversial social media post.
The Frownlow Medal is awarded to the player whose off-field demeanour epitomises the values of the modern-day footballer and draws attention to the status of footballers as role models to young Australians. It covers Australia’s four major football codes; the National Rugby League (NRL), Australian Football League (AFL), the A-League (Football) and Rugby Union’s Super Rugby competition. NRL player Shaun Kenny-Dowall won the inaugural medal in 2015, while NRL player Ben Barba is the most recent recipient.
Stack was arrested during a brawl outside a pub in Perth recently, and spent time in a police cell over the Christmas holidays. While processing the arrest, police also realised that Stack was supposed to be in self-isolation and not out partying. To strengthen his bid for The Frownlow Medal, Stack also posted an image wearing a ring reading ‘1%er’, which is apparently associated with bikie gangs.
He is a 1%er, as only fellow AFL player Tyson Stengle has also earned three Frownlow nominations in the same year.
The Richmond rookie scored his first Frownlow nomination earlier this year when he was banned for 10 games, after he and teammate Callum Coleman-Jones were involved in a fight outside a Surfers Paradise strip club.
Will Stack become the first AFL player to win The Frownlow Medal?
Image: NuNa