Jack Oatey Medal
| League | South Australian National Football League |
|---|---|
| Awarded for | The best on ground in the SANFL Grand Final |
| History | |
| First award | 1981 |
| First winner | Russell Ebert |
| Most wins | Chris Gowans (2) |
| Most recent | Lachlan Hosie (2023) |
The Jack Oatey Medal is awarded to the best player during the SANFL Grand Final. It has been awarded since 1981. In 2018, Mitch Grigg of Norwood became the first player to win the Jack Oatey Medal on a losing team, after his team were defeated by North Adelaide in the 2018 SANFL Grand Final.
Winners
| ^ | Player was member of losing team |
Club totals
| Club | Total | Years |
|---|---|---|
| Port Adelaide | 10 | 1981, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1992, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1998, 1999 |
| Central District | 9 | 2000, 2001, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010 |
| Norwood | 8 | 1982, 1984, 1997, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2018, 2022 |
| Woodville-West Torrens | 5 | 1993, 2006, 2011, 2020, 2021 |
| Glenelg | 4 | 1985, 1986, 2019, 2023 |
| Sturt | 3 | 2002, 2016, 2017 |
| West Adelaide | 2 | 1983, 2015 |
| North Adelaide | 2 | 1987, 1991 |
| South Adelaide | 0 | — |
| Adelaide | 0 | — |
Best on ground before award
Before the inception of the Jack Oatey Medal there was no official award for the best on ground in SANFL Grand Finals. However the media would often arrive at a consensus as to who was the best player on the ground.
| Year | Best on ground (media consensus) | Club | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1951 | Allen Greer (The Mail, The Advertiser) | Port Adelaide | |
| Peter Marrett (The Mail, The Advertiser) | Port Adelaide | ||
| 1952 | Doug Olds (The Advertiser, The News) | Norwood | |
| 1953 | Mick Clingly (The Mail, The News) | West Torrens |