Dyldam Parramatta Eels forward Daniel Alvaro and Wentworthville Magpies playmaker Sam Gorman have taken home the NSW Cup awards at the 2015 Ken Thornett Medal, with Alvaro also being named Rookie of the Year.
Making his NRL debut against Penrith in Round 16, Alvaro worked his way up from just a handful of minutes in his first appearance, to 45 minutes in the final round of the season, scoring two tries in the final two rounds of the NRL Telstra Premiership.
For his efforts for the Blue and Gold and for the Wenty Magpies, Alvaro was named the Eric Grothe Senior NRL Rookie of the Year and took home the Geoff Gerard NSW Cup Coaches’ Award.
“It was nice and gradual for me,” Alvaro said of the move between VB NSW Cup and NRL level.
“I slowly got eased into it. The boys and the coaches [from both grades] really got around me and supported me through it and it was good.”
“We’re disappointed with how we ended it but we sort of can’t wait for next year. There’s a really good feeling around and I can’t wait.”
Gorman was voted the Bob O’Reilly NSW Cup Players’ Player, and said the acknowledgment from his teammates was a special one.
“That’s massive, to get it from your peers you play with them every week,” Gorman said.
“The coaching staff have been great this year and the players, we had a pretty solid group from Wenty and through Parramatta when they came back. It means a lot.”
- Click through to see the gallery from inside the Ken Thornett Medal
- Click through to see photos from the red carpet
- Click through to see all the award winners from the night
- Hear from Ken Thornett Medallist Tim Mannah who received three awards
- Hear from Blue and Gold Army Members Award recipient Corey Norman
