Former AFL player Carl Ditterich has been nominated for The Frownlow Medal Hall of Fame after being charged with historical child sex abuse.
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 Talatau Amone is the most recent 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.
Ditterich played for St Kilda and Melbourne between 1963 and 1980 and has been charged with three counts of indecent assault and one count of gross indecency.
The incidents are alleged to have taken place in the Melbourne suburb of Heatherton in 1985. During his career, Ditterich was a star for Saints and Demons and was known for playing the game hard. He was suspended for 30 matches in total but was still named in St Kilda’s team of the century.
Ditterich has also been inducted into the Australian Football Hall of Fame, and the court case in June will determine if he is also inducted into The Frownlow Medal Hall of Fame.
Image: NuNa
The Frownlow Medal 