| Competition: | Coates Talent League Boys |
| Year: | 2023 |
| Teams: | 13 (and 5 academy teams) |
| Premiers: | Sandringham Dragons |
| Count: | 5 |
| Minor Premiers: | Tasmania Devils |
| Mpcount: | 1 |
| Wooden Spooners: | Murray Bushrangers |
| Wscount: | 1 |
| Prevseason: | 2022 |
| Nextseason: | 2024 |
The 2023 Coates Talent League Boys season is the 31st season of the Talent League competition for under-19 male Australian rules footballers in Victoria and Tasmania. The season commenced on 25 March and concluded with the Grand Final on 24 September.[1]
The league consisted of 13 full-time teams (12 from Victoria and 1 from Tasmania) that competed in a 13-round home and away season. Five academy teams (Brisbane Lions Academy, Gold Coast Suns Academy, Sydney Swans Academy, GWS Giants Academy and Northern Territory Thunder) participated in three-to-five matches during the season, though were not eligible for the Wildcard Round or further finals matches.
Following the regular season, the full-time teams were split into conferences for the Wildcard Round and Quarter Finals, the Metro Conference (Sandringham Dragons, Northern Knights, Calder Cannons, Eastern Ranges and Western Jets) and the Country/Tasmania Conference (Tasmania Devils, Greater Western Victoria Rebels, Geelong Falcons, Gippsland Power, Dandenong Stingrays, Bendigo Pioneers and Murray Bushrangers).[2]
Each team played another team from their conference, besides the top-ranked Country/Tasmania team who had a bye for finishing their odd-sized conference's top ranked side.
First Wildcard Match: First ranked Metro team vs. Sixth ranked Metro team
Second Wildcard Match: Second ranked Metro team vs. Fifth ranked Metro team
Third Wildcard Match: Third ranked Metro team vs. Fourth ranked Metro team
Fourth Wildcard Match: Second ranked Country/Tas team vs. Seventh ranked Country/Tas team
Fifth Wildcard Match: Third ranked Country/Tas team vs. Sixth ranked Country/Tas team
Sixth Wildcard Match: Fourth ranked Country/Tas team vs. Fifth ranked Country/Tas team
Bye: First ranked Country/Tas team
In the Metro Conference, the winners of the Wildcard Round progressed to the Quarter Finals, along with the highest ranked loser. In the Country/Tasmania Conference, the winners of the Wildcard Round progressed to the Quarter Finals, along with the team who had a bye.
First Quarter Final: Highest ranked Metro Wildcard winner vs. Highest ranked Metro Wildcard loser
Second Quarter Final: Second-highest ranked Metro Wildcard winner vs Third-highest ranked Metro Wildcard winner
Third Quarter Final: First ranked Country/Tas team vs Third-highest ranked Country/Tas Wildcard winner
Fourth Quarter Final: Highest ranked Country/Tas Wildcard winner vs Second-highest ranked Country/Tas Wildcard winner
The winners of the Quarter Finals progressed to the Preliminary Finals, where they faced a team from the other conference.
First Preliminary Final: Highest ranked Metro Quarter Final winner vs. Lowest ranked Country/Tas Quarter Final winner
Second Preliminary Final: Highest ranked Country/Tas Quarter Final winner vs. Lowest ranked Metro Quarter Final winner
The winners of the Preliminary Finals faced off in the Grand Final on Sunday September 24 at Ikon Park.
Grand Final: Winner of First Preliminary Final vs Winner of Second Preliminary Final
The Morrish Medal for the Best and fairest was won jointly by Patrick Hughes of the Geelong Falcons and Colby McKercher of the Tasmania Devils.[3]
| Player | Votes | |
|---|---|---|
| =1st | Patrick Hughes (Geelong Falcons) | 18 |
| Colby McKercher (Tasmania Devils) | ||
| 3rd | George Stevens (Geelong Falcons) | 16 |
| 4th | Zane Duursma (Gippsland Power) | 15 |
| 5th | Kristian Ferronato (Northern Knights) | 14 |
| 6th | Billy Wilson (Dandenong Stingrays) | 13 |
| =7th | Levi Ashcroft (Sandringham Dragons) | 12 |
| Jagga Smith (Oakleigh Chargers) | ||
| =9th | Nate Caddy (Northern Knights) | 10 |
| Darcy Wilson (Murray Bushrangers) |
The Team of the Year was announced at the 2023 Coates Talent League Awards night.[4]