TOPPING off a career-best season for the ultra-consistent Crow, Ebony Marinoff is a League Best and Fairest medallist after edging out Roo Ash Riddell on Monday night.

Alongside the honour, she took home her seventh All-Australian accolade to be paired with a sweep of the AFLW Players Association awards, in which she won the Best Captain Award and the Most Valuable Player.

Speaking on Tuesday morning, Marinoff was ecstatic to take out the top gong.

“I didn’t really sleep much, I had probably just under an hour this morning but it was an amazing night,” she said. “Obviously really cool to have my teammates with me and we celebrated that’s for sure.”

Marinoff’s story is one of consistency and excellence, plying her trade over the years from her inaugural Rising Star award to the league’s Best and Fairest medal. She gave her plaudits to the people that have got her to this point, her family, who have ensured her grounded upbringing.

“[This award] means an incredible amount to me,” Marinoff said.

“I’ve played footy my whole life [and] I’m probably the only one in the family to play sport of all the way through so I really am like the golden child in the family because they can actually watch and support me.

“My family is really close to me and the fact that they are my number one fans, whether that’s my mum, my dad, or my aunties or all my cousins.

“They are super excited for me to get back home to Adelaide to celebrate with them but it means a lot when you come from a tight-knit family, you are only a product of your upbringing and I’ve had a pretty good upbringing.”

Thinking about being at the awards eight years ago accepting the Rising Star award when the league was in it’s infancy, Marinoff was truly in awe as to her journey.

“[It’s] amazing, like I said last night, to think when I was an 18-year-old, I think it was actually over here [that] I won the Rising Star and then eight years later, I’m standing up here, it’s a pretty surreal feeling but I guess it’s reward for hard work that I’ve done over the years.”

When asked about her competitive nature which has become a trademark of ‘Noffy’, she explained that it started at home for her, where she learnt to ‘always want to win’.

“I actually think I was just born with [that drive], I don’t think I’ve met anyone more driven than myself, I’m just a competitor [and] I love to win,” she said.

“I think just growing up probably with my brother at home and he’s two years older than me, everything was always a competition.

“I’m sure if you ask my teammates, no matter what training session it is or what we’re doing, I’m always wanting to win, I’ve always said win at all costs so that’s just the way I am.”

The three premierships remain her greatest achievement and the goal for the future, a sign of her team first mentality.

“[My goal going forward is] to win as many premierships as I can, like I said, it’s why I play, it’s what drives me, hopefully it’s what drives my teammates, which I know it does,”

“It doesn’t really sit well with me that we’ve been out [of a grand final] for so long [but] that’s footy, you’ve got to ride the highs and the lows and stick together.

“[You’ve got to] be honest and open with each other with where we are at to continue to get better to make sure that we are striving for that success.”

Continuing to speak about the preliminary finals loss to the Lions over the weekend, Marinoff described how the Crows will plan to take the team forward after missing three consecutive grand finals.

“That’s three prelims we’ve lost in a row, it’s certainly not a good feeling and something we will reflect [on],” she said.

“I think when you think back on or reflect last year and to be standing in the same spot, it’s bitterly disappointing and we’ve got to get better.

“I think the speed that Lions brought us in the second half, that was something that we’ve got to combat.

“We really miss Eloise Jones this year but just continuing to build this list with a little bit more speed and we’ve seen over the years the natural progression of the game styles and skillsets so I think over the next couple of weeks during the trade period and the draft, hopefully we get a few athletic people into the club.”