Sydney Swans co-captain and midfielder Callum Mills has won the 2022 Carey Bunton Medal awarded by the NSW Australian Football History Society for the best player from NSW in the AFL this season.
Mills scored 65 votes in the AFL Coaches’ Association award; the votes for the Carey Bunton Medal are based on this award.
After polling second in the award last year, Mills has gone one better to claim the medal ahead of Adelaide’s Taylor Walker (North Broken Hill) with 45 votes with Gold Coast ruckman and Port Power forward Todd Marshall (Deniliquin) third on 36 votes.
The Carey-Bunton Medal is named in honour of Wayne Carey and Haydn Bunton Sr.
Mills has had a stand out season with an average of 24.9 disposals, 14.7 kicks 6.3 tackles and 4 clearances per game this season. He has kicked eight goals in 2022 and also had a career high 37 disposals in the Swans Round 6 clash with Hawthorn and a career high 16 tackle performance against the Western Bulldogs in Round 17.
Swans teammates Isaac Heeney polled 30 votes, Errol Gulden polled 23 and Nick Blakey polled 14 votes this season.
CAREY- BUNTON MEDAL - FINAL VOTES 2022
65 Callum Mills (Mosman Swans) – Sydney Swans
45 Taylor Walker (Norths - Broken Hill) – Adelaide
36 Todd Marshall (Deniliquin Rams) – Port Adelaide
34 Jarrad Witts (Sydney University) – Gold Coast
30 Isaac Heeney (Cardiff) - Sydney Swans
26 Tom Hawkins (Finley) – Geelong
23 Errol Gulden (UNSW-Eastern Suburbs) - Sydney Swans
22 Isaac Smith (Cootamundra) – Geelong
21 Lachie Schultz (Moama) – Fremantle
20 Matt Kennedy (Collingullie) – Carlton
19 Jeremy Finlayson (Culcairn) - Port Adelaide)
14 Nick Blakey (UNSW-Eastern Suburbs) – Sydney Swans
14 Harry Perryman (Collingullie) - GWS Giants
11 Isaac Cumming (Norths - Broken Hill) – GWS Giants
10 Elliott Himmelberg (Mangoplah CUE) – Adelaide
10 Harry Himmelberg (Mangoplah CUE) – GWS Giants
8 Luke Breust (Temora) - Hawthorn
6 James Peatling (Pennant Hills) - GWS Giants
3 Dougal Howard (Wagga Tigers) – St Kilda
2 Charlie Spargo (Albury Tigers) – Melbourne
2 Jacob Hopper (Leeton-Whitton) - GWS Giants
1 Matt Flynn (Narrandera) - GWS Giants
The Carey Bunton medal was struck by the Society following the selection of the NSW Greatest Team of All Time in 2019.
Previous results for the medal are as follows:
2019: 1. Jacob Hopper, 2. Tom Hawkins, 3. Zac Williams
2020: 1. Tom Hawkins, 2. Jarrod Witts, 3. Dane Rampe/Harry Perryman
2021: 1. Jacob Hopper, 2. Callum Mills, 3. Isaac Heeney
