rugby league football in Australia. The award was originally established in 1979 by The Daily Mirror newspaper in 1979. For many years, it was the second major individual award in the New South Wales Rugby League behind the Rothmans Medal. It was awarded each year between 1979 and 1996. With the Super League schism in 1997, the medal was not awarded. Since the National Rugby League (NRL) was formed from the merger of the Australian Rugby League and the Australian Super League in 1998, the Dally M Medal has been the single official player-of-the-year award for that league, and the highest individual honour in Australian rugby league. The medal is awarded, usually by the Australian Prime Minister, at the annual Dally M Awards night where as well as honouring the player of the year, the NRL recognises the premier player in each position, the best coach and the most outstanding rookie of the season. The medal was notably not awarded in 2003, with the players association threatening to boycott the event during a pay dispute with the league. This backfired badly on the players, with the league responding by swiftly cancelling the event. Penrith's Craig Gower, who led by one vote entering the final round and was unofficially considered man of the match in the final round, is the player thought to have missed out on winning the award as a result. Venues and Broadcasters Dally M Medal winners Multiple winners The following players have won the Dally M Medal multiple times. Wins by Club No award in 1997 and 2003 Multiple winners in 2014 and 2016 See also Dally M Awards Clive Churchill Medal Man of Steel Award Brownlow Medal References External links Rothmans Medal at qrl.com.au Dally M Medla at hunterlink.net.au Rugby league trophies and awards National Rugby League Awards established in 1980 1980 establishments in Australia Australian sports trophies and awards fr:Dally M Medal