DANDENONG Stingrays midfielder Callum Smith has stormed into top spot on the Rookie Me Central Medal leaderboard after another three-vote performance in Round 11. The performance put him a single vote clear in pole position ahead of former leader and pick one contender Willem Duursma.

>> SCROLL for the Round 11 votes & leaderboard

Smith is the grandson of 403-game Richmond legend Kevin Bartlett, but has begun to blaze his own trail through the footballing pathway. Sunday marked Smith’s fourth vote-tallying game, joining only Duursma, Thomas Burton, Thomas McGuane, and Rory Wright as players to do so this season.

What sets Smith apart is his hat-trick of best on ground performances. He has now polled eight of a possible 12 votes in his last four appearances, with his most recent yielding 29 disposals, seven tackles, and 11 clearances in Dandenong’s 27-point defeat to Oakleigh Chargers on Saturday night.

The 17-year-old’s consistent form sees him average an even 23 disposals, 5.6 marks, and 5.1 tackles from seven Coates Talent League games in 2025. Such numbers put him in the frame for Vic Country selection, and he donned the ‘Big V’ guernsey for the narrow loss to Western Australia a fortnight ago.

While Smith was the only player among the top 10 leaderboard to add to his tally over the weekend, four others have joined the bottleneck of prospects trailing on six votes. In that group was Lachy Dovaston, who bagged five goals from 20 disposals to take out our Player of the Week nomination.

He was outdone on the scoreboard by Charlie McKinnon (seven goals), who took out the Round 8 nod. A round-high 35 disposals from Gippsland’s Luke Cheffers saw him join the six-vote club along with GWV Rebels over-ager Floyd Burmeister, who starred up forward alongside McKinnon.

>> ROUND 11: Snapshot | Player of the Week | Team of the Week | Scouting Notes

ROUND 11 VOTES

Dandenong Stingrays 7.14 (56) def. by Oakleigh Chargers 13.5 (83)
By: Michael Alvaro

3 – Callum Smith (Dandenong Stingrays)
2 – Josh Shepherd (Oakleigh Chargers)
1 – Lucas Tovey (Oakleigh Chargers)

GWV Rebels 14.10 (94) def. Murray Bushrangers 6.9 (45)
By: Michael Alvaro

3 – Charlie McKinnon (GWV Rebels)
2 – Floyd Burmeister (GWV Rebels)
1 – Riley Holloway (GWV Rebels)

Eastern Ranges 11.4 (70) def. Geelong Falcons 10.9 (69)
By: Michael Alvaro

3 – Lachy Dovaston (Eastern Ranges)
2 – Xavier Taylor (Eastern Ranges)
1 – Hugo Mikunda (Geelong Falcons)

Gippsland Power 13.17 (95) def. Western Jets 5.11 (41)
By: Declan Reeve

3 – Luke Cheffers (Gippsland Power)
2 – Brodie Atkins (Gippsland Power)
1 – Zac O’Keefe (Gippsland Power)

TOP 10 LEADERBOARD

1. Callum Smith (Dandenong Stingrays) – 11 votes [3, 2, 3, 3]
2. Willem Duursma (Gippsland Power) – 10 votes [3, 2, 3, 2]
eq. 3. Daniel Annable (Lions Academy) – 8 votes [3, 2, 3]
eq. 3. Thomas Burton (Western Jets) – 8 votes [1, 2, 2, 3]
eq. 3. Harry Dean (Murray Bushrangers) – 8 votes [3, 3, 2]
eq. 3. Thomas McGuane (Western Jets) – 8 votes [1, 3, 3, 1]
eq. 3. Sebastian Murphy (Northern Knights) – 8 votes [3, 3, 2]
eq. 3. Cody Walker (Bendigo Pioneers) – 8 votes [3, 3, 2]
eq. 9. Beau Addinsall (Suns Academy) – 7 votes [2, 3, 2]
eq. 9. Talor Byrne (GWV Rebels) – 7 votes [2, 3, 2]
eq. 9. Rory Wright (Sandringham Dragons) – 7 votes [2, 1, 2, 2]