The AFL New Zealand High Performance Awards recognise, acknowledge and celebrate the very best in athletes, coaches, officials, administrators and volunteers and what they offer to the development of AFL in Aotearoa.
The scheduling of the awards for its eighth year was due to take place on April 4th. Due to COVID-19, this will now take place electronically and we encourage you to support those involved and their efforts.
The winner’s will be announced via the AFL New Zealand website and social media platforms in the coming weeks.
AFL New Zealand would like to congratulate the following nominees for the 2020 AFL New Zealand Senior Men’s Player of the Year.
Congratulations to all the nominees!
Aaron Harris
Aaron Harris made his return to the NZ Falcons side for the first time since his knee injury in 2017.
The ruckman had a sudden impact on the game and was outstanding in all 4 quarters to be awarded best on ground.
With the AFL International Cup set for August 2021, look for Aaron to play a big role for the Falcons throughout the tournament.
Andrew Howison
New Zealand Falcons Captain Andrew Howison has had another strong season to be nominated in this category.
The talented midfielder has recently returned home to Christchurch after spending 8 years leaving in Australia where he won back to back Premierships in 2018 and 2019 with the Dromana Tigers.
In April last year, he led the NZ Falcons for the sixth time in the annual AFL Academy ANZAC game at Marvel Stadium and had a strong performance in the midfield.
A winner of 3 New Zealand Player of the year awards, Howison’s work ethic around the ground is the best in the country.
Jay Green
2019 AFL New Zealand Premiership Best & Fairest winner Jay Green has been nominated in this category for the first time.
In his debut season playing in the Premiership for the Western Crows, the ball magnet from the Howick Hornets in the Auckland AFL claimed the award over runner up Michael Boyce from the Southern Saints after a stellar season.
A great runner of the football, Jay is small in stature but he has a massive impact on the field popping up all over the ground.
Jay has won the Auckland AFL Best and Fairest for the past 2 seasons and recently represented the Premiership selection side against the Redtails in March.
Mykelti Lefau
New Zealand forward Mykelti Lefau is a star in the making.
In April, Lefau represented New Zealand for the third time against the AFL Academy at Marvel Stadium where he was named as one of their best and managed a goal.
Lefau plays for the Casey Demons in the Victorian Football League (VFL) and was named the most improved player at the club in 2019.
His silky smooth skills and hunger for the football make Mykelti a great asset in the New Zealand side.
Shem Tatupu
Shem Tatupu returned to international footy last year for the first time in five years when he pulled on the silver fern to play against the AFL Academy at Marvel Stadium.
The former Hawthorn FC international scholarship holder and key forward played a big role up front where his size and strength saw him dominate the opposition and end the game with 4 goals.
In 2019, Tatupu signed with the Frankston Dolphins in the Victorian Football League (VFL).
