2023 AFL Rising Star

The AFL Rising Star award is given annually to a standout young player in the Australian Football League (AFL).^[1] In 2023, the award was won by North Melbourne player Harry Sheezel.

2023 AFL Rising Star
Date	30 August 2023
Country	Australia
Ron Evans medallist	Harry Sheezel (North Melbourne)
← 2022 · AFL Rising Star · 2024 →

Eligibility

Every round, a nomination is given to a standout young player who performed well during that particular round. To be eligible for nomination, a player must be under 21 on 1 January of that year and have played ten or fewer senior games before the start of the season; a player who is suspended may be nominated, but is not eligible to win the award.^[1]

Nominations

2023 AFL Rising Star nominees

Round	Player	Club	Ref.
1	Harry Sheezel	North Melbourne	^[2]
2	Will Ashcroft	Brisbane Lions	^[3]
3	Reuben Ginbey	West Coast	^[4]
4	Mitch Owens	St Kilda	^[5]
5	Max Michalanney	Adelaide	^[6]
6	Jai Culley	West Coast	^[7]
7	Finn Callaghan	Greater Western Sydney	^[8]
8	Mattaes Phillipou	St Kilda	^[9]
9	Bailey Humphrey	Gold Coast	^[10]
10	Josh Weddle	Hawthorn	^[11]
11	Jye Amiss	Fremantle	^[12]
12	Jacob van Rooyen	Melbourne	^[13]
13	George Wardlaw	North Melbourne	^[14]
14	Darcy Wilmot	Brisbane Lions	^[15]
15	Angus Sheldrick	Sydney	^[16]
16	Luke Pedlar*	Adelaide	^[17]
17	Seamus Mitchell	Hawthorn	^[18]
18	Judd McVee	Melbourne	^[19]
19	Jaspa Fletcher	Brisbane Lions	^[20]
20	Mac Andrew*	Gold Coast	^[21]
21	Oliver Hollands	Carlton	^[22]
22	Elijah Hewett	West Coast	^[23]
23	Matthew Johnson*	Fremantle	^[24]
24	Eddie Ford	North Melbourne	^[25]

*ineligible to win the Rising Star due to suspension.

Final voting

The winner was decided by an 11-person panel consisting of Gillon McLachlan (chair), Eddie Betts, Jude Bolton, Nathan Buckley, Kane Cornes, Andrew Dillon, Glen Jakovich, Laura Kane, Cameron Ling, Matthew Pavlich and Kevin Sheehan. Each member awarded five votes to the player they determined most deserving, four votes to the second-most deserving, and so on to one vote to the fifth-most deserving. Panellists were unanimous on the top four (Jye Amiss, Will Ashcroft, Mitch Owens and Harry Sheezel), but not their order.^[26]

Vote receivers

	Player	Club	Votes^[26]
1	Harry Sheezel	North Melbourne	54
2	Will Ashcroft	Brisbane Lions	39
3	Mitch Owens	St Kilda	33
4	Jye Amiss	Fremantle	28
5	Darcy Wilmot	Brisbane Lions	4
6	Finn Callaghan	Greater Western Sydney	3
	Max Michalanney	Adelaide	3
8	George Wardlaw	North Melbourne	1

Full votes

Panel member^[26]	5 votes	4 votes	3 votes	2 votes	1 vote
Gillon McLachlan (chair)	Harry Sheezel (North Melbourne)	Mitch Owens (St Kilda)	Will Ashcroft (Brisbane Lions)	Jye Amiss (Fremantle)	Darcy Wilmot (Brisbane Lions)
Eddie Betts	Harry Sheezel (North Melbourne)	Will Ashcroft (Brisbane Lions)	Mitch Owens (St Kilda)	Jye Amiss (Fremantle)	George Wardlaw (North Melbourne)
Jude Bolton	Harry Sheezel (North Melbourne)	Will Ashcroft (Brisbane Lions)	Jye Amiss (Fremantle)	Mitch Owens (St Kilda)	Max Michalanney (Adelaide)
Nathan Buckley	Mitch Owens (St Kilda)	Harry Sheezel (North Melbourne)	Will Ashcroft (Brisbane Lions)	Jye Amiss (Fremantle)	Finn Callaghan (Greater Western Sydney)
Kane Cornes	Harry Sheezel (North Melbourne)	Mitch Owens (St Kilda)	Will Ashcroft (Brisbane Lions)	Jye Amiss (Fremantle)	Max Michalanney (Adelaide)
Andrew Dillon	Harry Sheezel (North Melbourne)	Will Ashcroft (Brisbane Lions)	Mitch Owens (St Kilda)	Jye Amiss (Fremantle)	Finn Callaghan (Greater Western Sydney)
Glen Jakovich	Harry Sheezel (North Melbourne)	Will Ashcroft (Brisbane Lions)	Jye Amiss (Fremantle)	Mitch Owens (St Kilda)	Max Michalanney (Adelaide)
Laura Kane	Harry Sheezel (North Melbourne)	Will Ashcroft (Brisbane Lions)	Mitch Owens (St Kilda)	Jye Amiss (Fremantle)	Darcy Wilmot (Brisbane Lions)
Cameron Ling	Harry Sheezel (North Melbourne)	Jye Amiss (Fremantle)	Will Ashcroft (Brisbane Lions)	Mitch Owens (St Kilda)	Darcy Wilmot (Brisbane Lions)
Matthew Pavlich	Harry Sheezel (North Melbourne)	Jye Amiss (Fremantle)	Will Ashcroft (Brisbane Lions)	Mitch Owens (St Kilda)	Finn Callaghan (Greater Western Sydney)
Kevin Sheehan	Harry Sheezel (North Melbourne)	Will Ashcroft (Brisbane Lions)	Mitch Owens (St Kilda)	Jye Amiss (Fremantle)	Darcy Wilmot (Brisbane Lions)

References

1. "NAB AFL Rising Star Award". NAB.com.au. National Australia Bank. Retrieved 28 March 2015.
2. "Sheez, he's good: Roos young gun snags Rising Star nom". afl.com.au. 20 March 2023. Retrieved 21 August 2023.
3. "Wonderful Will: Lions young gun secures Rising Star nomination". afl.com.au. 27 March 2023. Retrieved 21 August 2023.
4. "Precious Reuben: Eagles' tackling machine earns Rising Star nom". afl.com.au. 3 April 2023. Retrieved 21 August 2023.
5. Welsh, Sophie (11 April 2023). "Owens the Saint goes marching in to Rising Star nom". AFL.com.au. Retrieved 11 April 2023.
6. Harvey, Daniela (17 April 2023). "Crows father son earns Rising Star nomination". AFC.com.au. Retrieved 18 April 2023.
7. Harvey, Daniela (26 April 2023). "Jai time: Eagle earns Rising Star nomination after four-goal haul". AFC.com.au. Retrieved 1 May 2023.
8. Harvey, Daniela (2 May 2023). "Giant reward: GWS wingman lands Rising Star nomination". AFC.com.au. Retrieved 3 May 2023.
9. Welsh, Sophie (8 May 2023). "High-flying Saints youngster nabs Rising Star nom". AFC.com.au. Retrieved 9 May 2023.
10. Welsh, Sophie (15 May 2023). "Suns gun earns Rising Star nomination after powerful performance". AFC.com.au. Retrieved 16 May 2023.
11. Welsh, Sophie (15 May 2023). "High flying Hawk secures rising star nom". AFC.com.au. Retrieved 22 May 2023.
12. "Dockers young gun earns Rising Star nod after dominant display". afl.com.au. 29 May 2023. Retrieved 21 August 2023.
13. O'Connor, Alison (5 June 2023). "Roo yeah! Dees forward earns Rising Star nom". AFC.com.au. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
14. "Rule of Wardlaw: Bullocking Roo earns Rising Star nomination". afl.com.au. 13 June 2023. Retrieved 21 August 2023.
15. "Energetic Lions young gun snags Rising Star nom". afl.com.au. 19 June 2023. Retrieved 21 August 2023.
16. "Strong Swan powers way to Rising Star nod". afl.com.au. 26 June 2023. Retrieved 21 August 2023.
17. O'Connor, Alison (4 July 2023). "High-flying Crow earns Rising Star nod". afl.com.au. Retrieved 7 July 2023.
18. O'Connor, Alison (10 July 2023). "Reborn Hawk nabs rising star nod". afl.com.au. Retrieved 10 July 2023.
19. O'Connor, Alison (17 July 2023). "Melbourne Demons' quiet achiever earns Rising Star nod". afl.com.au. Retrieved 19 July 2023.
20. "Jaspa Fletcher Claims Round 19 Rising Star Nomination". lions.com.au. 24 July 2023. Retrieved 21 August 2023.
21. "Suns defender grabs Rising Star nomination after QClash win". afl.com.au. 31 July 2023. Retrieved 21 August 2023.
22. "Blues' running machine lands Rising Star nomination". afl.com.au. 7 August 2023. Retrieved 21 August 2023.
23. "Exciting young Eagle earns Rising Star nod". afl.com.au. 14 August 2023. Retrieved 21 August 2023.
24. "Talented Docker youngster earns Rising Star nom". afl.com.au. 21 August 2023. Retrieved 21 August 2023.
25. https://www.afl.com.au/news/1019909/another-young-north-melbourne-kangaroo-eddie-ford-earns-rising-star-nomination
26. Schmook, Nathan (30 August 2023). "Full votes: North young gun named Rising Star for 2023". Australian Football League. Retrieved 25 September 2023.