The Shepparton United batting all-rounder harpooned his white whale on Monday night, storming home by five votes to claim the association’s most coveted individual prize.
Bari finished the count on 17 votes to lead the pack by a margin of five, beating out the likes of Numurkah’s Tim Arnel, Waaia’s Reinhardt Engler and Katandra’s Andrew Riordan, who were tied on 12 votes each.
It’s a fitting reward for the powerful Pakistani, six years after his runner-up placing in the count.
Bari missed out on the prize by a single vote to Numurkah’s Liam Gledhill in the 2017-18 Lightfoot Medal race but can now proudly add the gong to his list of awards following a stellar season with bat and ball.
He amassed 583 runs at 58.3 during the 2023-24 campaign, boasting the best batting average of any player in the competition. Bari also picked up 12 wickets at 31.4 and is one of three players to notch 400-plus runs and more than 10 wickets alongside Riordan and Waaia’s Mitch Cleeland.
It didn’t take long for Bari to crank into form, either.
He belted an unbeaten 109 runs in Shepparton United’s second outing of the season, hitting 81 in round three before a 63-run knock the following week.
In just six games, Bari mashed 415 runs to make him the tearaway favourite for the Lightfoot, and though his damaging form with the blade tailed off slightly, his five half-centuries and unbeaten ton proved enough to seal Cricket Shepparton's highest individual honour.
His latest league collect adds to a healthy list of club merits, with the crafty left-hander famously notching three consecutive Williams Family Senior Club Champion awards for Shepparton United.
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