The AFL on Monday announced joint winners for the Graeme Samuel Scholarship for 2015.

The Scholarship is awarded by the AFL Commission in recognition of Graeme Samuel’s contribution to the game. Graeme Samuel was one of the original AFL Commissioners when the Commission was formed in 1984, and played an invaluable role in the strategic direction of the AFL competition and Australian Football generally.

The Award is $20,000 for future study or professional development.

This year, the Commission has announced two winners, Rosie King from the Geelong Football Club and Ameet Bains from the St Kilda Football Club.

Rosie is the General Manager People and Culture at the Geelong Football Club. She joined the Cats in 2010, having held senior management roles in the commercial, not-for-profit and government sectors including Sport New Zealand.  

Rosie has a Masters in Business Management and has been a member of various Boards in the education and training sector, and is on the Community Advisory Board of the Deakin Clinical School of Medicine.

"I’m very fortunate to work with a group of people at the Cats who have encouraged and supported my professional growth. The Graeme Samuel Scholarship will enable me to continue with my learning and I really do feel so lucky to have this opportunity and thank the AFL most sincerely for their support. It’s an exciting time to be in the AFL industry and to share this Scholarship with Ameet is all the more special," Ms King said.

Ameet Bains is the Chief Operating Officer and General Counsel at the St Kilda Football Club. Ameet has been leading substantial change at St Kilda – overseeing stronger governance and integrity processes, restructuring the club’s player payments and developed a new focus on international player recruitment. 

Ameet serves on a number of AFL subcommittees, and was nominated by the AFL for Indian Young Business Executive of the Year award. He holds a Bachelor of Laws (Honours) and Bachelor of Business (Banking & Finance) from Monash University and was admitted to practice as a Barrister and Solicitor of the Supreme Court of Victoria in 2002.

"It’s an honour to receive this Scholarship and represent the St Kilda Football Club. I’m both delighted and grateful for the opportunity to undertake further study to help progress my career in an industry I’m so passionate about," Mr. Bains said.

AFL CEO, Mr Gillon McLachlan said it was very pleasing to have the quality of people like Rosie and Ameet committing to the AFL industry, and joining a list of outstanding club administrators to have received the Graeme Samuel Scholarship.

Mr. McLachlan said: "Rosie King is an outstanding executive and a critical part of building the strong organizational culture at the Geelong Football Club. She is a very worthy winner of this award, and a true leader in our industry.

"Ameet Bains is also a great young leader and executive in our industry, and this Award is recognition of his role at his club," Mr. McLachlan said.

"I congratulate them and wish them well with their future studies."