Lambert–Pearce Medal


The Lambert–Pearce Medal is awarded to the best and fairest player in the VFL Women's during the home-and-away season, as determined by votes cast by the officiating field umpires after each game. It is the most prestigious award for individual players in the VFLW.

History

The VFL Women's best and fairest award was named the Lambert–Pearce Medal in 2018 to honour Victorian Women's Football League founding committee member and former president Helen Lambert and Daisy Pearce, who won the inaugural VFL Women's best and fairest award in 2016 after having previously won six Helen Lambert Medals in the VWFL.

Criteria

Voting procedure

To determine the best player, the three field umpires confer after each home-and-away match and award three votes, two votes and one vote to the players they regard as the best, second-best and third-best in the match, respectively. On the awards night, the votes from each match are tallied, and the player or players with the highest number of votes is awarded the trophy.
The current voting system, which is the same as that of similar awards such as the Australian Football League 's Brownlow Medal or the AFL Women's best and fairest, has been used since the award's inception. If two or more eligible players score the equal highest number of votes, each wins a trophy.

Ineligibility

The fairest component of the trophy is achieved by making ineligible any player who is suspended by the VFL Tribunal during the home-and-away season. An ineligible player cannot win the award, regardless of the number of votes she has received.
A player remains eligible for the award under the following circumstances:
Umpires cast their votes for each game independent of eligibility criteria of the players; i.e. umpires can cast votes for players who have already been suspended during that season if they perceive them to be amongst the best on the ground.

Winners

Records

Winners who also won a premiership in the same season
Winners who also led the league goalkicking in the same season