NRL rookie Selwyn Cobbo is the youngest player ever to be nominated for The Fronwlow Medal at just 19 years of age, after being charged with multiple driving offences.
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 star Jarryd Hayne is the most recent recipient.
Cobbo was recently charged with driving an unregistered, uninsured vehicle while on a suspended licence. He was fined $700 and disqualified from driving for six months.
His club, the Brisbane Broncos, also came under fire for failing to admit to the offence. Instead, they told the media that Cobbo missed a training session for personal reasons, when in fact he was in court answering to the charges.
Cobbo narrowly edged out Bronson Xerri as the youngest Frownlow nominee. Xerri also played NRL before testing positive to performance enhancing drugs, and was just a few months older than Cobbo when he entered the Frownlow family.
While Cobbo won’t be able to drive to the awards night for The Frownlow Medal later this year, he is over 18 and allowed to partake in any of the activities offered at the wildest party of the year.
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The Frownlow Medal 