Dally M Medal be established in rugby league in Australia. The medal was sponsored by Rothmans, Benson & Hedges Inc., a tobacco production company. There were two Rothmans Medals awarded each year: one for the best player in the New South Wales Rugby League, and one for the best player in the Brisbane Rugby League. The voting for the Rothmans Medal was the same basic format as the modern day Dally M, except that the votes were determined by the referees, rather than the media. The two Rothmans Medals were first awarded in 1968, and were awarded each year until 1996. In 1997,
Dally M Awards NRL met their demands, the NRL cancelled the Dally M awards two days prior to the ceremony. Craig Gower would have been named player of the year had the awards not been cancelled. Gower was subsequently awarded the inaugural RLPA Players Player Medal in recognition of his 2003 NRL season exploits, and his central role in the dispute that saw the creation of the games first overarching workplace agreement 8 months after the boycott. The 2014 Dally M Medal was held on 29 September 2014 and was won jointly by Jarryd Hayne and Johnathan Thurston of the North Queensland Cowboys.