Charles Sutton Medal


The Charles Sutton Medal is an Australian rules football award presented annually to the player adjudged best and fairest for the Western Bulldogs throughout the Victorian Football League/Australian Football League season. The medal is named after 1950 winner Charlie Sutton, who was the Bulldogs' 1954 premiership captain-coach. There were many previous names for the medal, which was originally known as the McCarthy Trophy from 1927 to 1939, named after Con McCarthy, who played a key part in getting the club entry into the Victorian Football League. It was also called the Con Weickhardt trophy from 1940 to 1954. It was named after the man who chaired the club for 4 years. It was renamed to its current name in 1955. The inaugural winner for the award was Ivan McAlpine in 1927.
The voting system as of the 2019 AFL season, consists of five members of the Western Bulldogs match committee awarding a score from zero to five for each player after every game. The maximum score that can be obtained after one game is 25. Five players have won the award while also winning the Brownlow Medal, the best and fairest award for the Australian Football League. Those players were Norman Ware, John Schultz, Gary [Dempsey (Australian footballer)|Gary Dempsey], Kelvin Templeton and Scott Wynd. Scott West holds the record for most Charles Sutton Medals at the club, winning the accolade seven times in ten years; 1995, 1997, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2004 and 2005. Gary Dempsey and Marcus Bontempelli are in second with a total of six. Dempsey also holds the record for most Charles Sutton Medals won consecutively, his streak running from 1973 to 1977, a total of five years.

Recipients

SeasonRecipientRef.
1927
1928
1929
1930
1931
1932
1933
1934
1935
1936
1937
1938
1939
1940
1941
1941+
1942
1943
1944
1945
1946
1947
1948
1949
1950
1951
1952
1953
1954
1955
1956
1957
1958
1959
1960+
1961
1962
1963
1964
1965
1966
1967
1968
1969
1970
1971
1972
1973
1974
1975+
1976
1977
1978
1979
1980+
1981
1982
1983
1984
1985
1986
1987
1988
1989
1990
1991
1992+
1993
1994
1995
1996
1996
1997
1998
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014^
2015
2016^
2017^
2018
2019^
2020
2021^
2022
2023^
2024^
2025

Multiple winners

PlayerMedalsSeasons
71995, 1997, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2004, 2005
^62016, 2017, 2019, 2021, 2023, 2024
61970, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1977
51960, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1966
51934, 1937, 1938, 1940, 1941
51954, 1957, 1958, 1959, 1961
32009, 2011, 2012
31979, 1981, 1982
31939, 1945, 1948
31999, 2002, 2006
31927, 1930, 1932
21951, 1952
21994, 1996
22010, 2013
21933, 1936
21941, 1944
21946, 1947
21978, 1980
21968, 1971
21988, 1989