Former AFL great Neil Elvis “Nicky” Winmar has been nominated for The Frownlow Medal Hall of Fame after being found guilty of assaulting a woman.
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 men’s and women’s 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 AFL player Noah Balta 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.
Winmar appears in one of the most recognisable images in the history of Australian sport. The famous image shows the Indigenous Australian man lifting his St Kilda jersey and pointing to his dark skin during a game. It has come to symbolise the fight for equality among Indigenous Australians on and off the field. He has now been found guilty of assaulting a woman.
During the court proceedings, the woman said she was “fearful” for her life during the incident in May 2025 at Cohuna, Victoria, because Winmar grabbed and twisted her arm, dragged her by the hair and smashed her head against a wooden door four times.
Winmar pleaded not guilty to charges including assault and intentionally causing injury. He was found guilty of three counts of unlawful assault and common law assault, but was acquitted of a fourth charge of intentionally causing injury.
Winmar’s lawyer claimed the champion player was trying to fend off the woman’s punches and that he was defending himself during the incident. The case will return to court for a pre-sentence hearing in August.
Winmar has been inducted into The Australian Football Hall of Fame. Has he done enough to be inducted into The Frownlow Medal Hall of Fame?
Image: NuNa
The Frownlow Medal 