Sydney Swans young gun Luke Parker’s courage on the footy field has been rewarded with the Robert Rose Award for the AFL’s Most Courageous Player, presented by The Line.

top five
1. Luke Parker – Sydney (238 votes)
2. Callan Ward – GWS (123)
3. Joel Selwood – Geelong (83)
4. Luke Hodge – Hawthorn (78)
5. Alex Rance – Richmond (43)

Players from across the AFL have voted Parker the game’s Most Courageous Player, with the 22-year-old finishing with 238 votes. Greater Western Sydney co-captain Callan Ward was second on 123 votes.

Previous winners Joel Selwood (83) and Luke Hodge (78) were both in the top five yet again, followed by Richmond star Alex Rance (43).

Parker won Sydney’s best and fairest in 2014 and backed up his standout season with another brilliant year which was littered with gutsy acts.

He averaged 25 disposals per game this year, with more than half of them contested.

Parker opened the season in style with 35 touches and 10 clearances against Essendon in Round 1.

He notched his 100th game late in the season before a broken leg in Round 20 all but ended his year. There is hope the he will return to bolster the Swans in their semi-final clash against North Melbourne on Saturday night.

Sydney’s General Manager of Football Tom Harley played alongside Selwood at Geelong and has seen Parker develop during his time at the Swans.

He can see the similarities between the two champions – particularly their attack on the ball and opponent.

“I think what they both do is they sense the moment as young players, they sense when the team needs a lift, needs some grunt around the ball, and they play at a high level consistently,” Harley said.

“Luke’s got a bit of a way to go to be a great of the game because he’s only played 100 games, but he’s certainly tracking in that direction.”