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WA clubs reach AFL derby medal compromise

The Glendinning Medal will be retained for the AFL western derby and a Fremantle great will be added to the award.

Fremantle and West Coast have agreed to retain the Ross Glendinning medal for Sunday's AFL western derby.

But there will be no trophy for the match under a compromise deal that involved the WA Football Commission.

The Dockers and Eagles have also agreed to include a Fremantle great along with Glendinning in a renamed medal for the player judged best afield in the derby.

They aim to have the new medal confirmed for their round 20 clash.

Ben Allan, Fremantle's inaugural captain, is the early favourite to join Glendinning as the names on the medal.

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There will be no trophy until a new sponsor is confirmed for the derby.

Retrospective Glendinning medals will also be handed out to the best Docker or Eagle in the derbies between 1995 and 2000 before it was awarded for the first time in 2001.

The compromise follows several days of bickering between the two clubs.

Sunday is Fremantle's home game and also the first derby at the new Optus Stadium.

The Dockers controversially decided to scrap the Ross Glendinning medal followed a failed bid to erase the West Australian football great's name from the award.

Fremantle confirmed they sought to rename the medal, which has been awarded to the player judged best afield in the AFL western derby since 2001, but were rebuffed by West Coast.

Glendinning was Fremantle's chairman of selectors when the medal was introduced but is best known as West Coast's inaugural captain.

The medal and derby trophy were dumped following a change in sponsorship agreement with Carlton United Breweries.

Fremantle announced the change on Monday night, describing it as a "joint decision" by both clubs.

But it emerged on Wednesday the Dockers refused to continue with the award under its current name, while West Coast would not entertain a change.


2 min read

Published

Source: AAP



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