Awards
Perpetual Awards
Mudgee Touch Association has three perpetual awards presented to their members each season and one for their Primary Schools gala day. The club awards recognise excellence, committment and sportsmanship within Mudgee Touch. The awards are:
- Peter Spinner Club Person of the Year
- Jim Yeo Referee of the Year
- Dave Aldridge Memorial Shield – Primary School gala day
- Sam Bateman Memorial Awards – awarded to the Player(s) of the Grand Final.
Peter Spinner Club Person of the Year
The Peter Spinner Club Person of the Year is Mudgee Touch Association’s most prestigious award. It is named after club legend, the late Peter Spinner, who passed away in June 2014. ‘Spin’, as he was affectionately known, was an outstanding gentleman who put his life into Touch Football – from behind the scenes on committees to taking the field as a accomplished Level 3 Referee. No task was too big for Spin and he was always willing to help Mudgee Touch Association in any way. Spin was a hard-working, and a dedicated family and community man!
The Club Person of the Year Award recognises a hard-working and dedicated individual within the Mudgee Touch community. The individual could be anybody – a player, coach, referee, committee member, parent or spectator – and it honours their involvement within Mudgee Touch whether it be setting or packing the fields up, helping in the canteen, marking the lines, encouraging sportsmanship or just bringing a positive vibe to Mudgee Touch. The award is presented at the conclusion of our competitions’ grand finals.
Peter Spinner Club Person of the Year recipients
| 2014-15 | The Shoulders family – Samantha, Justin, Caitlin, Alyssa & Gemma |
| 2015-16 | Ben Harris |
| 2016-17 | Karen Quinn |
| 2017-18 | Grace Quinn |
| 2018-19 | Kelli O’Connell and Payden Lawson |
| 2019-20 | Rachael Forrest |
| 2020-21 | Simone Rawlinson |
| 2021-22 | The Perini family – Erin, Adam, Sophie, Charlotte & Georgia |
| 2022-23 | Simone Rawlinson |
| 2023-24 | Erin Perini |
| 2024-25 | Sarah Magro |
Jim Yeo Referee of the Year
The Jim Yeo Referee of the Year is Mudgee Touch Association’s award to honour our dedicated referees. It is named after one of club’s pioneers, Jim Yeo. Jim was the first Mudgee Touch member to be given life membership to our club, the first state-graded referee (#204 in 1993) at our club, the first Level 6 at our club, the first Blues Award recipient at our club, the first international recognised referee at our club, and he has held many positions on the club’s committee including President and Referee Director. Jim has officiated 19 international matches including the Bronze Medal Men’s 35s match between Cook Islands and England at the 1999 Touch World Cup and the Gold Medal Girls 20s match between Australia and New Zealand in Auckland at the 2001 Youth Touch World Cup. Upon retiring from on-field refereeing, Jim went into the referee coaching ranks and became the club’s first national referee coach – coaching the best referees in the world.
The Referee of the Year Award recognises an individual who has excelled at refereeing and has shown improvement and committment to the role.
Jim Yeo Referee of the Year recipients
| 2018-19 | Ella Hawes |
| 2019-20 | Jamie Gallen |
| 2020-21 | Flynn and Connor McLean |
| 2021-22 | Haydn Fisher |
| 2022-23 | Haydn Fisher |
| 2023-24 | Haydn Fisher |
| 2024-25 | Hamish Pirie |
Dave Aldridge Memorial Shield
The Dave Aldridge Memorial Shield is a school-based gala day involving primary school teams from across the Mudgee region. Dave was a fantastic educator and principal in the region who also had a passion for sport and fair play. The Dave Aldridge Memorial Shield allows primary school students to play touch football in a social and friendly atmosphere with the focus of the day being on sportsmanship. The winning school is determined based on how they conducted themselves throughout the day, their sportsmanship and their positive attitude – just how Dave would have wanted it.
Dave Aldridge Memorial Shield winners
| 2010 | Coolah Central School |
| 2011 | All Hallows Catholic School |
| 2012 | St Matthews’ Catholic School |
| 2013 | Hargraves Public School |
| 2014 | All Hallows Catholic School |
| 2015 | Dunedoo Central School |
| 2016 | Cudgegong Valley Public School |
| 2017 | Dunedoo Central School |
| 2018 | St Matthews’ Catholic School |
| 2019 | Gulgong Public School |
| 2020 | Cancelled due to COVID-19 |
| 2021 | Cancelled due to COVID-19 |
| 2022 | Cudgegong Valley Public School |
| 2023 | Cudgegong Valley Public School and Gulgong Public School |
| 2024 | Mudgee Public School |
Sam Bateman Memorial Awards
The Sam Bateman Memorial Award are a set of awards recognising the player(s) of the grand final for each of the club’s divisions. It is named after club member, the late Sam Bateman, who tragically passed away in February 2011. Sam was a regular player on club nights at Mudgee Touch. He was a talented sportsman, displayed excellent sportsmanship and was a true gentleman. After each grand final, the player – or players in mixed open games – deemed to be the Player of the Grand Final is awarded a Sam Bateman Memorial Award.
To view the recipients of the Sam Bateman Memorial Award and a list of Mudgee Touch Association’s previous divisional premiers – click here.