Former Melbourne captain Garry Lyon says there should be no debate around which player in the competition is the most courageous, given what Geelong defender Tom Lonergan has gone through in his career.
In just his seventh game in the AFL, Lonergan backed into a contest against Melbourne in 2006 and clashed with Demons forward Brad Miller.
Lonergan was placed into an induced coma after the incident, and had his kidney removed in a life-saving procedure.
The 33-year-old needed to have his entire blood supply replaced three times during the operation, and should the same injury occur once again, it could be more than life-threatening.
โTo be recognised as the gameโs most courageous player is a badge of honour to be worn as proudly as any other accolade handed down in the competition, especially when it is voted on by your peers,โ Lyon said onย SEN Breakfast.
โItโs the ultimate show of respect in a game that requires and demands bravery just by its very nature."
Lyon believes Lonergan should be a shoe-in for the Robert Rose Award (which is voted by the players and given to the game's most courageous player) each and every year, given that each game could potentially be his last.
โThis man should have won the past 11 awards and should be a walk-up start to win his 12th this year," Lyon added.
โ(After losing his kidney), returning to an AFL field sometime in the future was a fairy tale. Heโs not only done that, but he has added a premiership and close to 200 more games.
โThink about that, 200 times he has taken the field knowing he is flirting with his life on every single occasion.
โNext time you watch him play and back in to a converging pack of players, three or four hundred kilos piling into his back, ask yourself who is the gameโs most courageous player.
โWe often say in this game โrelax, itโs just a game. Itโs not life and death.โ Well it is for Tom Lonergan every single weekend, and he has done it in an extremely modest, understated and superb fashion.โ
Surprisingly, Lonergan hasn't taken home the award at any stage during his career, although a number of AFL superstars have.
Glenn Archer has won the award a record six times, while Joel Selwood (2012-2014) and Luke Parker (2015-2016) have won the past five between them.
