The Fos Williams Medal has been awarded since 1981 to the best Australian rules football

Australian rules football

Australian rules football, officially known as Australian football, also called football, Aussie rules or footy is a sport played between two teams of 22 players on either...

  player from South Australia

South Australia

South Australia is a state of Australia in the southern central part of the country. It covers some of the most arid parts of the continent; with a total land area of , it is the fourth largest of Australia's six states and two territories.South Australia shares borders with all of the mainland...

 during Inter-State or Inter-Competition matches. The medal is named in honour of legendary South Australian National Football League

South Australian National Football League

The South Australian National Football League is an Australian rules football league based in the Australian state of South Australia. It is also the governing body for the sport of Australian rules football in South Australia....

 (SANFL) player and coach Fos Williams

Fos Williams

Foster Neil "Fos" Williams AM was a leading Australian rules footballer who played for and coached the Port Adelaide and West Adelaide Football Clubs and coached South Adelaide in the South Australian National Football League in a career spanning 1946-1978...

.

Originally the award was made in respect of State of Origin matches. Since that competition folded in 1999, the medal has been awarded during games where the SANFL plays other state competitions in State League representative matches (eg WAFL

West Australian Football League

The West Australian Football League is an Australian rules football league based in Perth, Western Australia. The WAFL is the second-most popular in the state, behind the nation-wide Australian Football League...

 v SANFL). The award is usually voted on by a panel selected by the SANFL from significant football identities present at the match, and may include past players, coaches and journalists.

Medal winners

* denotes State League clash, not an AFL-level Origin match
♦ South Australia played no state games in 1990 so the SANFL played a City v Country match at Football Park which was essentially an All-Stars game with teams divided into those recruited from SA's country leagues and those from Adelaide

Adelaide

Adelaide is the capital city of South Australia and the fifth-largest city in Australia. Adelaide has an estimated population of more than 1.2 million...

. The concept only lasted one season due to poor attendance.

See also

• Interstate matches in Australian rules football
  Interstate matches in Australian rules football
  Australian rules football matches between teams representing Australian colonies/states and territories have been held since 1879. For most of the 20th century, the absence of a national club competition and international matches meant that football games between state representative teams were...
  
  
• Simpson Medal
  Simpson Medal
  The Simpson Medal, a prize for Australian rules football, has been donated by Dr. Fred Simpson and family since 1945. It is awarded to the best player in a WAFL Grand Final and the best player in an interstate game involving Western Australia....
  
   – Western Australia
• E. J. Whitten Medal
  E. J. Whitten Medal
  The E.J. Whitten Medal is awarded to the best Victorian player in a VFL/AFL State of Origin football match. The award is named after the late and great Ted Whitten, also known as Mr. Football, who played for and coached Footscray and known for his role in Victorian football...
  
   – Victoria (State of Origin)
• Frank Johnson Medal – Victoria (VFL)