KANGAROO Flat midfielder Damien Saunders won the 1990 Michelsen Medal on 18 votes, two clear of Castlemaine's Derrick Filo and Square's Dean Strauch.

Saunders polled in seven games, garnering four three votes and three twos for his total of 18.

Strauch and Filo polled in eight and seven matches, respectively.

The 26-year-old Roo had to wait anxiously as the votes were called at the Strathdale Community Hall for the final two rounds.
In rounds 17 and 18 Strauch was awarded three votes for his performances against Kennington and then Eaglehawk, but finished the call on 16 with Filo --- and adrift by a couple from Saunders' tally.
Twenty-two years back, Kangaroo Flat had won its first finals match since the BFL had been reformed for the start of the 1983 season.
The Roos had saluted in the elimination final with a big win over Castlemaine: 18.13 (121) to the Maine's 9.12 (66).
But the Green and Whites bowed out of the 1990 finals series with a loss to Golden Square in the first semi: 12.12 (84) to the Square's 14.19 (103).
That loss was incurred on the same weekend as the historic AFL finals draw between West Coast and Collingwood. The two AFL clubs could not be split, finishing on 13.12 (90) apiece.

BUT BACK to the 1990 count.
There was much anticipation leading up to the vote count.
As South and Square were preparing for the 1990 grand final, many players were touted as realistic chances of taking home the BFL's top individual award.
Saunders' teammates Robert Herbert, the ‘general' of the Roo backline, and ruckman Graeme Willox were mentioned in several media outlets.
So, too, were followers Alan Paterson (GS) and Peter Crone (Eaglehawk), on-ballers Strauch and Kyneton's Shane Muir, Northern United goalsneak Shawn McCormick, South Bendigo centre half-back Stephen Dean and his teammates Tony Gundry and Mark Keck.
Eaglehawk's prolific ball-winning half-back Darren Thompson was another given a strong chance.

McCormick had won the 1990 senior goalkicking award with 79 majors. That placed him 19 clear of Sean Smith (Cm) and Russell Parkes (GS) who both finished with 60.
Of course exactly a year earlier, Saunders had finished third in the 1989 medal voting behind winner Brendan Hartney (Sandhurst) and runner-up Muir (Kyneton), so he was also fancied.

BFL CHAIRMAN Bill Bonney called the votes round-by-round as per the AFL example.
Club coaches or senior players manned the Strathdale Hall boards where little numbers were attached to nails on each board.
There was much merriment around the hall as the "numbers men'' tried valiantly to get their numbers to stay affixed to their club boards.
And of course all this was long before the 21st century sophistication of computerisation and the provision of big screens all around the Michelsen Medal venue.
At the halfway mark Sandhurst rover Mark Templeton was a surprise joint leader with South's on-baller David Griffin.
They had both polled eight votes.
A big group of players on seven were next in line.
This bunch included Filo, South coach Peter Bradbury, Flat's Tony Benham, Two Blues' follower Crone and Northern United forward Matt Allan (who had left for the Ovens and Murray league during July).
But by the end of the 15th round Saunders had surged to the lead on 13.
Filo and Griffin had improved to 10 each with the call of the final three rounds set to provide the final drama of the evening.

SAUNDERS polled the best afield three-vote in round 16 against Golden Square to progress to 16.
But Strauch was awarded the two-vote in the same game which the Bulldogs won by a mere two points.
Filo garnered three for his effort in the Castlemaine-Eaglehawk fixture while Muir snared the three in the Kyneton-Sandhurst match.
That was to be Muir's final vote in the 1990 Michelsen Medal count.
In Round 17, Willox snatched the three votes in the Flat-Kyneton game at Dower Park. Saunders had to settle for two votes.
In the Castlemaine-United clash Filo was awarded the three-votes to move to 16 - still two adrift of Saunders' 18, but with the Round 18 cards yet to be called.
Among the leading contenders, only Strauch polled in the concluding round of the season.
Filo didn't get any in the Castlemaine-South fixture so was left on 16 votes with Strauch --- leaving Saunders the clear winner by two.
However Filo did take out the $1000 3CCC-FM coaches award while Strauch finished on top in the XXXX club voting with 47: 31 club votes tallied to his 16 in the Michelsen.
Filo was second in the XXXX award on 45 (29, added to his medal 16 votes) with Tigers' centre half-back Bobby Beare third with 39 (32, plus seven medal votes).
South Bendigo won the Champion Club award as well as the three top-of-the-ladder Westpac footy trophies.
The 3CCC-FM $1000 umpires' award went to Alan "Boofa" Smith from (current Hall of Famer) Ron Threlfall and Billy Makeham.
The Bart N Print Most Improved Umpire award was taken out by Andrew Jones.

ACCEPTING his award Saunders described his ability to handball quickly and accurately and the way he was able to create space for teammates as his greatest attributes.
"That's what I try to do. Set up play and be constructive," he told me straight after his win.
Quietly spoken Saunders let Kangaroo Flat club president Frank Ward do most of the talking.
Ward recalled how the club had found out about the Michelsen Medal winner.
"He'd bought a block of land out at Marong and former Flat player Mark Eastman put us onto him," he recalled.
"I actually first interviewed Damien on-site as he was concreting. It was a 40-degree summer day. I'll never forget it," said Ward.

FINAL vote tallies of leading players:
Saunders (KF):18
Strauch (GS), Filo (Cm): 16
Willox (KF): 12
Garry Mountjoy (NU), Muir (Kyn): 11
Griffin (SB), Simon McLean (Sh), Mark Tunzi (Kyn), Crone (Eh), Thompson (Eh): 10

Richard's 2012 Michel Medal tip: Grant Weeks (GS) who booted 148 home-and-away round goals. From Gisborne's Tom Waters.
Dark horses: Eaglehawk's Brady Green, Storm's Lachlan Sharp.

Preliminary final tip: Strath Storm by 15 points over Gisborne.
2012 running total: 73.

By Richard Jones