England Joins Exclusive Club

By Ken Casellas

A virtuoso performance by Callan England for WA in last Saturday’s match against South Australia at Leederville Oval not only earned the smooth as silk midfielder the prestigious Simpson Medal but a place in the exclusive club of Claremont footballers who have won both a Sandover and a Simpson Medal.

The 26-year-old England, Claremont’s co-captain with Bailey Rogers, joins Sonny Maffina, Luke Blackwell and Jye Bolton as members of this unique club.

He was the unanimous choice as the Simpson medallist for his outstanding display in the midfield which played a key role in WA’s 36-point victory over SA. He set the standard with a dazzling effort with ten disposals in the first quarter, and he finished with seven marks, 20 kicks, 12 handpasses, nine clearances, five tackles and five inside 50s.

Cool, calm, collected and always in just the right place, England disposed of the ball by hand and by foot with unerring accuracy.

His Claremont teammates Zac Mainwaring and Jaiden Hunter also were strong contributors in Saturday’s contest, with Mainwaring excelling with eight marks, 14 kicks, three handpasses, three tackles and five inside 50s, and Hunter applying three important tackles in the forward area and scoring two goals and a poster.

England, the 2024 Sandover medallist, has been in superb form for the Tigers in the side’s opening six matches this year and is again a leading contender at this early stage for this year’s medal.

Maffina, a champion centreman, won the 1949 Sandover Medal and the Simpson Medal as WA’s best player at the 1950 national carnival in Brisbane; Blackwell, an exquisite midfielder, won the Simpson Medal in 2010 for his brilliance in WA’s match against Victoria; and Bolton, a superb midfielder, won four Simpson Medals — in 2016, 2018, 2020 and 2021 — three in interstate contests and for his performance in a losing WAFL grand final against South Fremantle in 2020.