Port Adelaide ruck Matilda Scholz has claimed her second consecutive Best and Fairest award, capping off a dominant season in which she shone across all 12 home and away games.
The now two-time winner averaged 17 disposals at 52.5 per cent efficiency, 10.6 contested possessions, 22.8 hitouts, six score involvements and four clearances per game.
She was a clear standout at the club’s annual awards on Monday evening, polling 118 votes to finish nine ahead of runner-up Ash Woodland, who impressed with an outstanding season through the midfield.
Speaking to the media after the event, Scholz said she hadn’t expected to win but was honoured to accept her second Best and Fairest. The humble 20-year-old credited her teammates, the Power’s coaching staff and her family for helping her reach the top of the leaderboard again in 2025.
She also reflected on the areas of her game she hopes to improve ahead of next season, her role within the team, the growth and potential of the club’s young list, and how close she believes the group is to bridging the gap to the competition’s top teams.
Scholz on claiming her second consecutive Port Adelaide Best and Fairest honour
“It's exciting. I wasn't expecting it tonight, but I think it's a massive credit to the girls. I wouldn’t be where I am today without the group that surrounds me. My family as well - they are huge for me, as well as the coaching staff. They have made me who I am, so I'm really grateful for them.”
“I like to think that I always try my hardest. It sounds funny, but it's something my dad’s always taught us growing up - to always try our best and always give 100 per cent - and that's something I hold really deep to my heart. I wouldn’t say I belong amongst the best, but I feel honoured to receive this award two times now."
Scholz on what elements of her game she’d like to improve on
“I want to be a better marking target. I think I've improved a little bit this year, but I want to improve heading into next year, in addition to my fitness and my strength. I've still got room to be stronger, and I’ve still got room to move faster and run further - I think they're big areas for me.”
“There's still a lot of room for me to grow, and I'm really looking for this off-season to really dig deep into my running and the fitness side of things, but also to knuckle down to the fundamentals that I think maybe at some stages were lacking a little bit in my game.”
Scholz on playing her role both in the ruck and around the ground
“I'd like to think that I help the team, but I also think we have a lot of really key players in our team, and we saw, especially that last game against GWS, what we can actually produce with our full team. We had a healthy list towards the end of the season, and with Julia Teakle back in…she's a big in for us, and it just showed how dynamic our forward line can be and relieved some pressure off our back line as well. I feel grateful that I’m able to help out our midfield as well with not just being a stand-and-tap sort of ruck, but to be able to move around the ground and for the girls to trust me to kick it too.”
Scholz on the growth and potential of the side’s young list
“Yeah, this season hasn't been what we wanted it to be. Obviously, the last half of the season is something that we're really proud of, and as I said before, our last game against GWS is something that we want to showcase to the rest of the competition and something that we're really proud of - that’s our best footy. Similarly, we beat some of the top four sides this year, which I think is definitely something that should be mentioned. I guess it's exciting to not have as much pressure on us. I think we came into this season with a little bit of expectation on ourselves, wanting to make finals again like we did last year. But for 2026, I think to be able to have none of that pressure and to just go out and play is something that we all should be really excited for, and especially our fans.”
Scholz on Ash Woodland’s season and polling second in the Best and Fairest
“She’s improved out of sight this season, and her move to the midfield has been something that's really benefited us as a team. Being able to touch the ball down to her and knowing she's going to get it, and knowing she's going to kick inside, is something that we probably take a little bit for granted. To have her as runner-up at the Best and Fairest is extremely well deserved, and I think she may have even deserved it more. She's been incredible this season - I'm really grateful to play alongside her.”
Scholz on closing the gap between some of the top teams in the competition
“North Melbourne is a very, very good side. They're one of the older sides of the competition, so they have been playing together for a bit longer than we have. So, I don't actually think we are that far behind them. Not to discredit them - as I said, they're a very, very good side - but I think in the next few years, we are definitely a side that could bring it to them.”
