WXV: Sao Paulo Pumas

[CrowsFan]

Round 12 - Pumas Blown Away by the Sands

Sao Paulo Pumas (19.17.131) lost to Cairo Sands (21.14.140)

Best
Sao Paulo: W Minson, G Ablett jnr, Jarryd Roughead, J Gunston, C Masten
Cairo: N Dal Santo, B Sewell, L Breust, L Thomas, O Stephenson

The Pumas have produced their worst performance of the season, going down to Cairo 131 to 140, much to the frustration of the head coach. In such an awful match there are few positives to find take from it. Firstly to the squad line up and two changes were made to the previous rounds team, with Scott McMahon (injured) and Dylan Roberton (poor form) omitted from the lineup, being replaced by Beau Waters and Ryan Harwood, who had performed so well in the reserves recently. The rest of the team remained the same.

The Puma performance this week resembled a team near the bottom of the table, not one with ambitions of winning the flag. One positive that came from the match was Will Minson continuing his fine form of the season, which has put him firmly in the frame for All-world honours come season end. But even with Minson dominating the ruck duel the midfielders could not get their hands on the ball! Taylor Adams and Kyle Martin were both far from their best, with both rather inexperienced at the top level some leeway can be given there, but a week or two for Rio may sharpen them up again. It was not just those two who faltered though with seasoned campaigners Rory Sloane and David Zaharakis both uninspiring through the middle.

The defense was atrocious as well. What was such a high performing unit at the start of the season is starting to crumble at this present time. Hartlett stood tall, however Bachar Houli put in his worst performance of the year, whilst Beau's return from injury was unspectacular. Harwood who had impressed so much for the Jaguars recently could not get it done on the main stage and put in a shocker, so he may be right back out of the side come next round, however the reserve defenders were not that much better and picked up some minor injuries along the way.

The forward line continued to perform well, but just lacked the service from the midfield. Jarryd and Jack Gunston both performed admirably, but Andrew Walker was down on his usual output. Devon Smith looked extremely weary and is due for a few weeks break from the senior team to freshen up for the finals.

Overall a terrible performance that infuriated the coach, but credit must go to Cairo for showing up in Sao Paulo and flying off with 4 points no one saw them taking! This loss has seen Sao Paulo drop from first down to third, and with a tough game against the Wolves this weekend their spot in the top 4 could be in question if they lose that as well. But history is on the Pumas side as they have never lost 2 games in a row before...


Reserves
Rio de Janeiro Jaguars (23.21.159) defeated Alexandria Hieroglyphics (14.12.96)

Best
Rio de Janeiro: J Porplyzia, M Duncan, S Jacobs, M Wright
Alexandria: M Hutchings, D Stanley

The Jaguars took on the top of the table Hieroglyphics who had only lost one game from their first 11, whereas the Jaguars were 7-4 and in 6th spot in the ladder. But the Jaguars came away with a commanding 63 point win thanks to fine efforts from Jason Porplyzia, Mitch Duncan and Sam Jacobs. All three were impressive and with some poor form from some of the seniors spots in the team are up for grabs, so these performances have done their chances no harm. Other great news from the game was Brendan Whitecross played his first match for the Jaguars after doing his ACL last season. It was a solid performance by Brendan who is still lacking some match fitness, but could be back in the Pumas side in the near future :)

[CrowsFan]

Round 13 - Minor Premier Hopes Slip Away as Pumas Lose Consecutive Games

Toronto Wolves (22.13.145) defeated Sao Paulo Pumas (21.17.143)

Best
Toronto: S Pendlebury, B McLean, J Ziebell, N Grima
Sao Paulo: M Duncan, W Minson, R Sloane, D Zaharakis, A Walker, C Masten, J Gunston

Late Changes
Sao Paulo: T Adams & S Jacobs replaced G Ablett jnr & B Houli

After last weeks dismal performance against the Sands a much improved performance was expected against the Wolves this week. The improvement was there, but sadly it was the same result as the Pumas limped to consecutive losses, the first time in Puma history. It was a better display by the Pumas, but things were not helped when captain Gary Ablett and key defender Bachar Houli pulled out of the game during the warmup. This meant that Taylor Adams, who had been dropped due to some poor form was elevated back in to the team, although had to toil out of position in defense to cover Houli, whilst Sam Jacobs, who had last played in round 9, also received a call up. The coach had promised changes after last weeks game and he did not disappoint. In total there were 5 changes to last weeks team, in addition to Houli and Ablett pulling out injured Ryan Harwood, Kyle Martin and Devon Smith were all dropped. Coming in to replace them along with Jacobs were Dylan Roberton, Stephen Hill, Mitch Duncan and Jason Porplyzia.

Analysing each position there were only a couple of let downs, which is what resulted in the loss. The biggest let down was by the coach himself. For what was the first time this season he did not name a defender in the emergency list, and so when Houli pulled out he had direct replacement. This meant that Taylor Adams had to struggle down back in an unfamiliar role. The other defenders (Hartlett, Waters, Roberton) all tried to help him out, but Adams struggled and turned in a poor performance.

The mids on the other hand had a great day, Sloane, Zaha and Masten all performed to their usual standards, but the standout was the man replacing Gary Ablett in the side, Mitch Duncan. Duncan showed great energy and a desire throughout the game to remain in the side. The only disappointment was Stephen Hill, who was well below par today in his first match since round round 3.

The forwards continued their solid run with Walker and Gunston the standouts. Roughy performed solidly, but the Porpoise was a little quiet in his return to senior action. With Ablett out of the side big Will Minson took up the responsibility of captaining the side and did a superb job in Ablett's absence. He was supported occasionally by Sam Jacobs in the ruck, but Jacobs drifted in and out of the game.

In the end the Pumas lost by just 2 points to the Wolves. The Wolves just showed that little bit more desire towards the end of the game, and were cheered on the entire game by their home fans. That extra support was probably what won it for them in the end, and so the Wolves should really thank their fans for their support and belief in the team to get them over the line.

Reserves
Toronto Wolves (26.15.171) defeated Rio de Janeiro Jaguars (16.11.107)

Best
Toronto: L Greenwood, M Shaw, A Embley, M Jamison, D Rodan, C Jones
Rio de Janeiro: D Smith, M Wright, R Harwood

There was nothing the Jaguars could do against a rampaging Wolves reserves side, which was a little disappointing. But the game was not helped when rookie listed Aidan Riley went down injured in the opening minute of the match. In positive news from the game Devon Smith responded to his dropping in exceptional fashion picking up the man of the match award. Ryan Harwood also showed determination to get another chance in the senior squad, whilst Brendan Whitecross continues to build up his match fitness in the reserves.

[roo boys!]

I'll make sure to thank my fans for you :P

Out of interest, who would have filled the role of Houli if you had named a defensive emergency?

[CrowsFan]

Only had one other defender playing this round and that was Harwood. He scored 80 something so much more than Adams' 22 :(

[CrowsFan]

Round 14 - Pumas Back on the Winners List After Win in the Pacific

Pacific Islanders (17.7.109) lost to Sao Paulo Pumas (21.10.142)

Best
Pacific: T Rockliff, T Mitchell, S Savage
Sao Paulo: Jarryd Roughead, G Ablett jnr, W Minson, C Masten, J Gunston

Due to the Pumas participating in the Champions League Final against arch rivals the Armadillos on the weekend this game was played midweek. It turned out to be the perfect preparation match for the champions league as the Pumas didn't have to break a sweat to defeat the Islanders by 33 points and get their first league win in 3 rounds! Four changes were made for this match with Stephen Hill (omitted), Beat Waters (injured), Taylor Adams (suspended) and Jason Porplyzia (omitted) all out of the team. Replacing them were some big inclusions including superstar and captain Gary Ablett overcoming his calf injury, whilst Brendan Whitecross and Seb Tape both made their first appearances for the club since injuring themselves last season. The final inclusion was Ryan Harwood who had been performing consistently for the Jaguars and deserved another shot.

Despite not improving their attacking potency this week the defensive efforts were much better and were able to restrict the Islanders to just 109 points. Minson was again dominant in the ruck getting the ball down to Ablett and Masten constantly and consistently. This resulted in our forwards receiving plenty of service, which Roughead and Gunston capitalised on to great effect. Overall it was a solid performance by the Pumas and it was great to get back on the winning list.


Reserves
Port Morseby Iguanadons (17.13.115) defeated Rio de Janeiro Jaguars (13.9.87)

Best
Port Morseby: T Nicholls, L Brown, J Witts, M Watson, J Simpkin
Rio de Janeiro: S Hill, J Porplyzia

Despite the Pumas getting up the Jaguars couldn't get the win in the reserves falling short against the Iguanadons. It was a pretty poor performance by the Jaguars with the only two to impress being the two who had been dropped by the Pumas in Hill and Porplyzia. The Jaguars really need to improve their performances if they want to make the reserves finals. It's going to be tough, but I think they can just scrape in!

[CrowsFan]

Pumas Crowned Champions League Winners

History has been made as the Sao Paulo Pumas have been crowned the first ever winners of the Champions League! The win in the final was over arch rivals the Armadillos, but the road to the final started well before them. This year the Champions League consisted of the top 8 teams from the WXV and the top 8 teams from the EXV (next year onwards will be 4 from each of the XV comps), so there was plenty of tough opponents to play against.

Initially teams were split in to groups of 4 and you had to finish in the top 2 to progress to the next round. The Pumas were drawn against fellow WXV team the Wellington Warriors and 2 EXV teams in the Greek Titans and Spanish Stallions. The Pumas cruised through the group stages comfortably winning all 3 games 142-129 (Stallions), 160-85 (Titans) and 157-113 (Warriors) and progressed to the final 8.

The final 8 were required to play each other once each, and the Pumas continued their dominance from the group stages initially winning the first two games 164-136 (Titans again), and 147-130 (Roulettes). But in round 3 Sao Paulo came up against the WXV premiers the Mexico City Suns and were on the receiving end of a 168-140 scoreline. It was the first time the Pumas had met the Suns since they lost to them in the WXV finals last year, and sadly results did not change. Wins over the Swedish Metal (162-157) and Cape Town Cobras (147-134) saw the Pumas sitting on top of the ladder with 4 wins and 1 loss after 5 rounds. But losses to the Armadillos (160-157) and the Macedonian Wolves (133-131) in the final 2 rounds saw the Pumas drop to 4th place and only scrape in to the finals by percentage ahead of the Roulettes.

The Preliminary Final saw the Pumas face up against the Mexico City Suns again, hoping to atone for the earlier loss. And atone the loss they did, defeating the Suns 143-133. This win took the Pumas to the first ever Champions League final, where they had to face the Buenos Aires Armadillos. In what was an epically close final the Pumas prevailed by 5 points 142-137. It was a true spectacle to watch and the Pumas celebrated all night (without alcohol of course there is still the WXV season to finish). The Pumas look forward to attempting to defend their title next year when clubs from the BXV and AXV are also involved. It's sure to be a great tournament!

[CrowsFan]

2013 Pumas Awards Night

Hello, and welcome everybody to the 2013 Awards Night for the Sao Paulo Pumas. What a season it has been for the Pumas, and quite a rollercoaster ride along the way, with plenty of highs and also plenty of lows. But the season finished in superb fashion with two miraculous come from behind victories to defeat the clubs two biggest rivals in the Armadillos and Suns to claim the 2013 WXV Premiership! Also added to the trophy case was the Champions League and we retained the Rhythm Cup!

Tonight we celebrate the efforts and achievements of the players who made it all possible and give them the recognition they deserve. This season saw 27 players pull on a Pumas jersey, some for the very first time, whilst in total we had 37 players represent either the Pumas or the Jaguars this year. Tonight there will four awards handed out, which are; the two best and fairest awards, namely the Gatinho for the reserves and the much coveted Gato Grande for the seniors, plus the introduction of two new awards this year, the Most Improved Award, and the Best First Year Award. These awards are self explanatory really, the Most Improved goes to the player who has shown the most improvement from the previous year, either in regards to number of games played for the club, an increase in output and effort or a combination of both, whilst the Best First Year goes to the best player who has spent just one season on the Pumas list.

Last year Gary Ablett took home the Gato Grande and Mitch Duncan the Gatinho. Can they defend their titles, or will someone else step up and claim them? And who will be the inaugural winners of the two new awards? Early money has gone to Will Minson and Dylan Roberton for the Most Improved, whilst Chris Masten and Andrew Walker appear to be fighting it out for the Best First Year, but Jack Gunston quietly told me he thought he was a sneaky chance.

The scoring for the two best and fairest awards is relatively simple. For the Gato Grande each match of the season is looked at and each player is awarded a score of 0 to 5 regarding how they played during that game and what position they play in, so it is possible that in one game all 15 players receive a vote, whilst in the next none of them do. For the Gatinho a simple 3-2-1 is awarded to the three best players for the match. The two other awards will be announced throughout the night, interspersing with the votes from each round. The Best First Year Award will be revealed after round 7, and the Most Improved Award handed out after round 14. Right so on with the votes!

[CrowsFan]

Round 1
Sao Paulo Pumas 25.23.173 defeated 20.17.137 PNL Reindeers
5 - Ablett, Hartlett, Waters
4 - Minson, Waters
3 - N/A
2 - Hill, Jacobs, Wright
1 - N/A

Reserves
Rio de Janeiro Jaguars 13.4.82 lost to 19.16.130 Marseille Kings
3 - Duncan, 2 - Sumner, 1 - Porplyzia

Round 2
Sao Paulo Pumas 21.16.142 defeated 14.13.97 Beijing Thunder
5 - Minson
4 - N/A
3 - McMahon, Waters
2 - Jacobs
1 - Sloane

Reserves
Rio de Janeiro Jaguars 14.10.94 defeated 0.0.0 Shanghai Storm
3 - Zaharakis, 2 - Roberton, 1 - Sheppard

Round 3
Berlin Brewers 23.16.154 lost to 23.22.160 Sao Paulo Pumas
5 - Walker
4 - Hartlett, Houli, Masten, Roberton
3 - N/A
2 - Jacobs, McMahon
1 - Ablett, Minson, Sloane

Reserves
Rhineland Rum-Runners 20.20.140 defeated 12.14.86 Rio de Janeiro Jaguars
3 - Wallis, 2 - Duncan, 1 - Raines

Round 4
Moscow Spetsnaz 20.17.137 lost to 24.13.157 Sao Paulo Pumas
5 - Hartlett
4 - Sloane
3 - Ablett, Roughead
2 - Houli, Minson, Walker
1 - McMahon, Roberton

Reserves
Siberian Wolverines 9.7.61 lost to 15.17.107 Rio de Janeiro Jaguars
3 - Duncan, 2 - Armstrong, 1 - Gunston

Round 5 - Rhythm Cup
Sao Paulo Pumas 25.14.164 defeated 22.23.155 Buenos Aires Armadillos
5 - Ablett, Hartlett, Smith
4 - Houli, Walker, Zaharakis
3 - N/A
2 - Minson
1 - N/A

Reserves
Rio de Janeiro Jaguars 16.10.106 defeated 13.9.87 Buenos Aires Armadillos
3 - Gunston, 2 - Armstrong, 1 - Hill

Round 6
Tokyo Samurai 20.18.138 lost to 21.21.147 Sao Paulo Pumas
5 - Walker
4 - Ablett, Roberton
3 - Masten, Roughead
2 - Minson
1 - Houli

Reserves
Yuzawa Typhoon 10.9.69 lost to 15.16.106 Rio de Janeiro Jaguars
3 - Adams, 2 - White, 1 - Porplyzia

Round 7
Sao Paulo Pumas 20.23.143 lost to 22.12.144 Cape Town Cobras
5 - Ablett
4 - Minson, Roughead
3 - Houli
2 - Zaharakis
1 - Sloane

Reserves
Rio de Janeiro Jaguars 20.14.134 lost to 23.14.152 Cape Town Cobras
3 - Wright, 2 - Daw, 1 - Gunston


So after seven rounds played we are now one third of the way through all 21 matches that the Pumas played this year (Jaguars only played 18), so lets check the leader boards before then anouncing the winner of the Best First Year Award.

Gato Grande
23 votes - Gary Ablett
21 - Andrew Walker
20 - Will Minson
19 - Hamish Hartlett
14 - Bachar Houli
10 - Jarryd Roughead
9 - Dylan Roberton
7 - Chris Masten, Rory Sloane, Beau Waters
6 - Sam Jacobs, Scott McMahon, David Zaharakis
5 - Devon Smith
2 - Stephen Hill, Matthew Wright

Gatinho
8 votes - Mitch Duncan
5 - Jack Gunston
4 - Tony Armstrong
3 - Taylor Adams, Mitch Wallis, Matthew Wright, David Zaharakis
2 - Majak Daw, Jason Porplyzia, Dylan Roberton, Liam Sumner, Simon White
1 - Stephen Hill, Andrew Raines, Brad Sheppard

So very tight at the top in the Gato Grande, with just 4 votes separating the top 4 places at the moment, with Gary Ablett leading from the front as he always does. In the Gatinho, Mitch Duncan is holding a 3 vote lead over Jack Gunston, followed by Tony Armstrong 4 votes behind. A bunch of players then have 2 or 3 votes to their name.

[CrowsFan]

Best First Year Award

It is now time to announce the recipient of the first ever Best First Year Award. It was a tightly fought contest throughout the season between two player the Pumas traded in during the off season, and they were Chris Masten and Andrew Walker. But in the end the award there was a clear winner and that is Andrew Walker! Walker has had a brilliant first year at the Pumas that is for sure. Recruited from the Islanders in exchange for Jarryd Blair the original intention had been to recruit him as a backup/depth player up forward for the Pumas. However a standout preseason saw Walker start in the first round and never look back! A great season capped off this past week with a premiership medallion, and being named the MVP of the entire competition. Congratulations Andrew!

[Purple 77]

Thats one right so far! haha

[CrowsFan]

Round 8
Sao Paulo Pumas 25.17.167 defeated 17.14.116 New York Revolution
5 - Houli, Roughead
4 - Gunston, Minson, Roberton
3 - Sloane
2 - Jacobs
1 - Ablett, Walker, Waters

Reserves
Rio de Janiero Jaguars 15.14.104 defeated 14.12.96 Washington Rebellion
3 - Adams, 2 - Smith, 1 - White

Round 9
Seoul Magpies 19.15.129 lost to 22.15.147 Sao Paulo Pumas
5 - N/A
4 - Ablett
3 - N/A
2 - Gunston, Hartlett, Minson
1 - McMahon, Roberton, Roughead, Zaharakis

Reserves
Pyongyang Chollimas 11.7.73 lost to 11.10.76 Rio de Janeiro Jaguars
3 - Duncan, 2 - Sheppard, 1 - Silvagni

Round 10
Sao Paulo Pumas 25.12.162 defeated 19.13.127 London Royals
5 - Minson, Walker
4 - N/A
3 - Ablett, Sloane
2 - Houli, Roughead
1 - Hartlett, Zaharakis

Reserves
Rio de Janeiro Jaguars 22.16.148 lost to 27.13.175 Imperial Princes
3 - Duncan, 2 - White, 1 - Hill

Round 11
Sao Paulo Pumas 23.23.161 defeated 18.9.117 Wellington Warriors
5 - Ablett, Walker
4 - Houli
3 - N/A
2 - Gunston
1 - Hartlett, Roughead

Reserves
Rio de Janeiro Jaguars 14.13.97 defeated 9.6.60 Wellington Warriors
3 - Harwood, 2 - Hill, 1 - Jacobs

Round 12
Sao Paulo Pumas 19.17.131 lost to 21.14.140 Cairo Sands
5 - N/A
4 - Minson
3 - Roughead
2 - Ablett, Gunston, Hartlett
1 - Masten

Reserves
Rio de Janeiro Jaguars 23.21.159 defeated 14.12.96 Alexandria Hieroglyphics
3 - Porplyzia, 2 - Duncan, 1 - Jacobs

Round 13
Toronto Wolves 22.13.145 defeated 21.17.143 Sao Paulo Pumas
5 - N/A
4 - N/A
3 - Minson
2 - Gunston, Hartlett, Walker, Wright
1 - Masten, Roughead, Sloane, Waters, Zaharakis

Reserves
Toronto Wolves 26.15.171 defeated 16.11.107 Rio de Janeiro Jaguars
3 - Smith, 2 - Wright, 1 - Harwood

Round 14
Pacific Islanders 17.7.109 lost to 21.10.142 Sao Paulo Pumas
5 - Roughead
4 - N/A
3 - Gunston, Minson
2 - Ablett, Masten
1 - Roberton, Walker

Reserves
Port Morseby Iguanadons 17.13.115 defeated 13.9.87 Rio de Janeiro Jaguars
3 - Hill, 2 - Porplyzia, 1 - Smith

We are now 14 rounds in, so lets go check those leader boards again! Followed by the presentation of the Most Improved Award!

Gato Grande
41 votes - Will Minson
40 - Gary Ablett
35 - Andrew Walker
28 - Jarryd Roughead
27 - Hamish Hartlett
25 - Bachar Houli
15 - Jack Gunston, Dylan Roberton
14 - Rory Sloane
11 - Chris Masten
9 - Beau Waters, David Zaharakis
8 - Sam Jacobs
7 - Scott McMahon
5 - Devon Smith
2 - Mitch Duncan, Stephen Hill, Matthew Wright

Gatinho
16 votes - Mitch Duncan
7 - Stephen Hill, Jason Porplyzia
6 - Taylor Adams, Devon Smith
5 - Jack Gunston, Simon White, Matthew Wright
4 - Tony Armstrong, Ryan Harwood
3 - Brad Sheppard, Mitch Wallis, David Zaharakis
2 - Majak Daw, Sam Jacobs, Dylan Roberton, Liam Sumner
1 - Andrew Raines, Alex Silvagni

So with just four reserves games to go it appears that the result is a foregone conclusion, with Mitch Duncan holding a 9 vote lead over the trailing pack. It appears that Mitch will receive his second Gatinho. In the seniors it is a much more exciting affair with 7 games to play. Will Minson holds a 1 vote lead over Gary Ablett, with Walker the only other true challenger 6 votes behind. With 7 rounds to go anything could happen!

[CrowsFan]

Most Improved Award

Ladies and gentlemen it's now time to present the second award of the evening. This time it is for the Most Improved player at the club. There were three standout options to choose from here. Firstly big Will Minson who stood up and became the number one ruckman at the club and captained the Pumas to premiership glory. Secondly is young defender Dylan Roberton, who went from playing just four games last year to 17 this season and becoming a vital member of the defence. And thirdly is Mitch Duncan. Mitch played just one game last year for the Pumas, but played 12 games this year, cementing his spot in the midfield four by the end of the year. All would be worthy winners, but there can only be one. The winner of the Most Improved Award is... Dylan Roberton! As mentioned Roberton played just 4 games for the Pumas last season at a measly average of just 41.5 per game. This season however he stepped it up playing 17 games and improving his average by almost 36 ppg up to 77.18. He played the third most number of games for a defender this season behind Hartlett and Houli. Congratulations Dylan on a fantastic season, we hope to see more improvement next year!

[CrowsFan]

Round 15
Sao Paulo Pumas 23.12.150 defeated 19.9.123 New Delhi Tigers
5 - Ablett
4 - N/A
3 - Masten
2 - Walker
1 - Hartlett, Harwood

Reserves
Rio de Janiero Jaguars 16.10.106 defeated 6.2.38 Mumbai Elephants
3 - Wright, 2 - Adams, 1 - Whitecross

Round 16
Dublin Destroyers 25.16.166 defeated 22.10.142 Sao Paulo Pumas
5 - N/A
4 - N/A
3 - Hartlett, Minson, Walker
2 - Ablett, Hill, Houli, Sloane
1 - N/A

Reserves
Belfast Braves 13.10.88 defeated 11.5.71 Rio de Janiero Jaguars
3 - Wallis, 2 - Whitecross, 1 - Smith

Round 17
Mexico City Suns 24.13.157 defeated 20.16.136 Sao Paulo Pumas
5 - Hartlett
4 - N/A
3 - N/A
2 - Roberton, Wright
1 - Ablett, Houli, Jacobs, Minson

Reserves
Mexico City Suns 7.6.48 lost to Rio de Janeiro Jaguars
3 - Wallis, 2 - Smith, 1 - Tape

Qualifying Final
Mexico City Suns 20.16.136 defeated 20.11.131 Sao Paulo Pumas
5 - Sloane
4 - Minson
3 - Roughead
2 - Houli
1 - Hartlett

Reserves (Elimination Final)
Imperial Princes 22.12.144 defeated 16.11.107 Rio de Janeiro Jaguars
3 - Jacobs, 2 - Whitecross, 1 - Tape

Semi Final
Sao Paulo Pumas 23.14.152 defeated 22.12.144 Cairo Sands
5 - N/A
4 - N/A
3 - Walker
2 - Hartlett, Harwood, Minson
1 - Hill, Roberton, Sloane, Whitecross

Preliminary Final - Rhythm Cup
Buenos Aires Armadillos 22.13.145 lost to 22.14.146 Sao Paulo Pumas
5 - Minson
4 - Houli
3 - Jacobs
2 - Duncan, Masten, Roughead, Sloane, Zaharakis
1 - Harwood

Grand Final
Mexico City Suncs 23.12.150 lost to 24.16.160 Sao Paulo Pumas
5 - Ablett, Minson
4 - Walker
3 - Buntine, Roughead, Sloane
2 - Gunston
1 - Harwood

So that concludes the count, which means it's time to announce the winners.

[Purple 77]

2 from 2!

Duncan should make it 3, but Minson is ruining my plans!

[CrowsFan]

Gatinho

First to be announced will be the Gatinho... We have a tie for 2nd place! Equal on 9 votes apiece are Devon Smith and Mitch Wallis. A great effort from both lads who also managed to play a fair bit of senior football this season too. Wallis finished with 7 Puma games and just missed out on the grand final, whilst Devon played 8 games, but was unavailable for the grand final. Devon was also named in the Reserves All-Worlds Side!
But the clear winner of the Gatinho is for the second year running, with 16 votes, is Mitch Duncan! It was another fantastic year by Mitch who only played 9 reserves games to win this award. He ended up playing 12 senior games, picked up a premiership medal and was named the Vice Captain of the Reserves All-Worlds Side. Congratulations Mitch!