PERTH, AUSTRALIA - AUGUST 12: Sean Darcy of the Dockers sets for a bounce contest during the 2018 AFL round 21 match between the Fremantle Dockers and the Carlton Blues at Optus Stadium on August 12, 2018 in Perth, Australia. (Photo by Daniel Carson/AFL Media/Getty Images)
Sean Darcy has won the 2021 Fremantle Best and Fairest pipping veteran David Mundy at the post.
The strongly built ruckman had a career-best season, announcing himself as one of the games most dominant ruckman.
Darcy polled 222 votes, 15 votes ahead of runner-up Mundy who is continuing to defy time and age. Mundy also polled 20 votes in the Brownlow Medal.
The 23-year-olds rise in 2021 made this year his first top-ten finish in the Doig Medal. He said when accepting the award that it hadn't sunk in yet what he achieved.
“It (winning the award) still hasn’t sunk in at the moment, I really didn’t think I was going to get up," Darcy said.
"I thought David Mundy had it for sure so I’m a bit embarrassed to be up here. He was an unbelievable player this year. It’s a bit weird but I’m sure I’ll get used to it."
He also went on to pay tribute to his mentor and ruck coach Aaron Sandilands. Darcy said Sandilands has been pivotal in his improvement.
“I think (improvement came from) my follow up around the ground, it’s something that my coach and I, Aaron, always talk about,” Darcy said.
“When that’s going, I feel like our roles are going. Around the ground, following up, clearances, handball receives, ground ball gets, tackles – it’s something that we really pride ourselves on, especially as ruckmen.
“We feel like our game flows from that and it’s something I do a lot of work on in the pre-season and we went from there.”
He also paid tribute to teammates, saying that this honour wouldn't be possible without their help.
“I’d love to thank the boys, I honestly love every single one of you guys," he said.
"You make life so much easier seeing you every day. Secondly the coaches, you put so much trust and faith into me and working with me every day, I can’t wait for the next few years,” Darcy said.
“To my family, it’s been a disappointing couple of years not having you coming over and hanging out as much as we want, I really miss you deeply and hopefully the borders can open up soon so we can hang out.
“To the fans, you guys are awesome, we love the Purple Army and it gives us an extra gear when we play at Optus.”
Andrew Brayshaw, Caleb Serong and Adam Cerra rounded out the top five.