Narrogin Hawks’ league best and fairest Jordan Heil on the season that was and the one to come

Narrogin Hawks league vice-captain Jordan Heil’s solid season was honoured at the club’s presentations evening on Friday 22 as the formidable player claimed this year’s league fairest-and-best with 158 votes. The count saw Heil break away from the pack on the leader board ahead of teammates Jack Walsh who came in second with 96 votes and Tom Kilpatrick who finished third on 62. “I was hoping to be up the top somewhere,” Heil said. “I was hoping to get it but you never know with good players like Walshy, Killo and Will.” The Hawks league side had a rough start to the season but managed to produce several upsets and strong performances as their game consolidated after the halfway mark. “We got a couple of wins later in the season but obviously we still finished in the bottom four,” Heil said. “Hopefully next year we can do something a little bit different, make the top four and play some finals.” Despite not making league finals the Narrogin Hawks had plenty to celebrate at the end of the 2023 season with colts and reserves claiming premierships on grand final day in Wagin. “Colts and B-grade do really well and do really well quite often,” Heil said. “It’s just about developing the younger players into really good seniors players and making sure that the players we have coming through become dominant a grade players. “A bit of development of our younger players and a bit of support from a few other players would be great.” Strong performances were delivered by the Hawks across all grades with players such as reserves best and fairest Malachi Bolton consistently making his on-field presence felt. Bolton also claimed the Greg O’Neill medal for best on ground in the reserves grand final that saw Narrogin defeat Williams by 13 points. “He had a massive season,” Heil said. “He’s a very talented footballer Malachi and he could do a lot of damage in the Upper Great Southern. “Whether it’s in reserves or league, whatever grade he picks he’ll probably dominate. Hopefully, we can push him up to play a bit more a grade next year.” The 2024 season should see the Hawks fielding a formidable and competitive league squad. “Liam Todd has always been a really good player in b grade as well,” Heil said. “We should have a few players pushing up to play league, there are some talented B-graders considering they won the premiership. Heil said the 2023 season provided him with some tough and memorable games of footy such as Blair ‘Blue’ Forrest’s 250th which saw the Hawks beat Boddington away in round 17 by 27 points. “Blues’ game was huge, I’ve played a lot of senior football with Blue and him kicking a goal in his 250th and getting a win on a top four side was massive,” he said. “The Wagin win that we got as well was also huge. “Mum had just passed away two or three days beforehand, so it was awesome to be able to play that game and win that game as well, that was a massive win for us.” Heil said that despite a challenging year at the top level the Hawks can hold their heads up high. “As a whole our club had a fantastic season but I think our league just needs a little bit more development so that it can find success in a grade,” he said. “It’s been a tough last three years, not playing in the top four kind of hurts a few players and winning games keeps people around. “It’d be great to find some success next year and push for a premiership.”