A drunken brawl at an Adelaide pub left Matthew Jaensch with a broken jaw and a nomination for The Frownlow Medal Hall of Fame. The former Adelaide Crows player engaged in the scuffle at the General Havelock Hotel after a few too many drinks in 2011.
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. Former NRL player Shaun Kenny-Dowall won the inaugural medal in 2015, while NRL star Jarryd Hayne is the latest recipient.
The Frownlow Medal Hall of Fame honours former players and players who received media attention in previous seasons, for similarly scandalous behaviour, and its inductees include Ben Cousins and Julian O’Neill.
Jaensch eventually reached a settlement with the man who broke his jaw but this was not the end of his Frownlow story. He received further nominations after a one-week suspension for staying out late with teammate Bernie Vince in 2010 and was also arrested for drink driving. Jaensch was apparently three times of the legal limit and as a result lost his licence for six months.
A broken jaw and two more separate incidents places Jaensch in a good position for induction into The Frownlow Medal Hall of Fame, but he faces strong competition from some of Australia’s footballing greats, whose exploits can be seen at www.instagram.com/thefrownlowmedal/
Image: NuNa
The Frownlow Medal 