The youngest member of the leadership group, Scott Pendlebury enjoyed a terrific 2009 season until an injury sustained in the opening minutes of the qualifying final loss to St Kilda ended the midfielder’s finals run.
Pendlebury hit the 30 possession mark in eight matches this season, a significant increase from the lone occurrence in 2008. He averaged a career-high in disposals with 25.8 and increased his hard ball gets with an average of 7.9 (7.1 in 2008) per game.
The midfielder improved his work rate around the stoppages averaging 4.3 clearances a game (3.1 in 2008) while increasing his attack intro the forward 50 averaging 3.3 inside 50s (2.4 in 2008).
His class was sorely missed in the finals series as he was forced to miss the entire campaign after fracturing his leg in the first week of September. In a show of extreme courage and strength, Pendlebury played out most of the second quarter during the game under severe duress.
In a surprise result during the Brownlow medal night, Pendlebury was the leading vote getter for his side with 13, one more than Dane Swan.
2009 highlights
Round 11 v Melbourne: In the traditional Queen’s Birthday clash, Pendlebury was at his best collecting a career-high 39 possessions, 11 marks and one goal. He ran riot in the midfield for most of the day and was awarded three Brownlow votes for his efforts in the 66-point win.
Round 18 v Brisbane: A come-from-behind win over the home side can be largely credited to the efforts of Pendlebury who had a game-high 36 disposals (t-Dane Swan). Down by three goals heading into the main break, Pendlebury took charge of the midfield with nine three-quarter possessions and used it with 78% efficiency. His goal from a set shot late in the third tem put the Magpies 12 points in front to effectively seal the match.
2009 AFL statistics
| G | K | H | D | M | G | B | T | C |
| 21 | 12.9/72.3% | 12.9/86.7% | 25.8/79.5% | 5.0 | 0.4 | 0.2 | 3.3 | 4.3 |
CTV
