Raiders coach Ricky Stuart has blasted the reaction to Jack Wighton's Dally M Medal win, a day after the five-eight became just the third Raiders player to win the prestigious award.
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Wighton's 26 votes across the NRL season was enough to hold off Parramatta fullback Clint Gutherson and Penrith's Nathan Cleary as he joined Stuart (1993) and Laurie Daley (1995) as Canberra Dally M winners.
The result was released by the Daily Telegraph prematurely, and has led to certain arms of the Sydney media suggesting Cleary should have won the Medal and that the system needs an overhaul.
"It's totally disrespectful to any award winner who has to put up with such negativity," Stuart told the Sydney Morning Herald.
"This is a wonderful achievement and he's done it through a lot of consistency and hard work. He's a wonderful example of what happens when you commit and work hard. Winning a Dally M puts Jack into a very elite category."
Meanwhile, Wighton claims none of the contenders knew the result before it was announced despite it being published online several hours early.
"Halfway through they took our phones so we weren't sure why," Wighton said. "We had no idea."
Wighton appeared genuinely shocked despite his stellar season for the Raiders in which he took on the bulk of the attack with star hooker Josh Hodgson sidelined with injury. He was rested for the final round of the season, but neither Cleary or Gutherson polled votes either.
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"Even towards the end I was writing myself off, missing that last game. It was a massive shock to receive," Wighton said.
"I was going to give Ricky a phone call for that. I can't believe it happened to be fair."
It was the first ever virtual event, with players and presenters filming in separate studios.
- With AAP
