This years September AFL action will kick into top gear with the prestigious AFL Players’ Association Most Valuable Player (MVP) Award ceremony being held on Monday 8 September 2008 at the Grand Hyatt Melbourne.

The respected awards determine which players are rated most valuable in 2008, as voted by their peers.

The AFLPA MVP Awards are the only player-voted awards, where the players decide who amongst their peers deserve the titles of Most Valuable Player; Most Courageous Player, Best First Year Player and Best Captain, for the 2008 season.

VOTING PROCESS FOR MOST VALUABLE PLAYER AWARDS:

STEP ONE – CLUB NOMINATIONS

Every player is asked to vote 3-2-1 for their teammates in each of the categories:

• Most Valuable Player
• Most Courageous
• Best First Year Player

The votes are tallied resulting in the final nominations:

• Three players from each club nominated as Most Valuable Player
• One player from each club nominated as Best First Year Player
• One player from each club nominated as Most Courageous Player
• Best Captain award, including all captains from the 16 AFL clubs

STEP TWO – VOTING

The nominations are then presented by the AFLPA to the Clubs. Each player votes for one player in each category, except for the MVP, where players select three players on a 3–2–1 basis. Players cannot vote for their teammates.

STEP THREE – AWARDS

The final votes are tallied under the supervision of AFLPA. The winners of each award will be announced at the Most Valuable Player Award ceremony on Monday 8h September.

AWARDS TO BE PRESENTED ON 8 SEPTEMBER 2008:

The Most Valuable Player (Leigh Matthews Trophy)

presented by Medibank Private
Since it was first awarded to Leigh Matthews in 1982, the MVP has been won by true champions of the competition. Versatility, ability to play under pressure, skill, leadership, courage, respect for all players, and overall value to a team, are all qualities found in the MVP.

The ‘Robert Rose’ Most Courageous Player Award

presented by AMP
The recipients of the Robert Rose ‘Most Courageous Player Award’ are selfless, committed and fiercely loyal.

The Best Captain Award

Each captain has identifiable qualities which have made them team leaders. Given the opportunity, most players would not hesitate to say their captain is the best in the league. But what if they had to vote for any captain but their own?

The Best First Year Player Award

presented by Red Bull
The AFLPA recognize the difficulty that first year players must overcome and as such struck the Best First Year Player Award in 1999.

The Education & Training Excellence Award

presented by Drake Training
Each year the AFL Players’ Association seeks to recognise a player who has managed to excel in the combination of further education with their AFL careers.

The Grant Hattam Trophy

presented by Kelly Hazell Lawyers
Since 1999, the AFLPA has recognised excellence in football journalism by awarding the Grant Hattam Trophy to the creator of the best piece of football journalism from the players' perspective.

The AFL Players’ Association MVP Awards
Exclusive on FOX SPORTS 1
9:30pm Monday September 8th