Seven untold stories from the Brownlow

With Matt Priddis last night crowned as a deserving winner of the 2014 Brownlow medal, these are seven of the stories that have not been widely discussed in the aftermath to what was a surprise count.

1. Who said it is a midfielder’s award?
Every year the Brownlow Medal votes throw up a few head scratchers. They started in Round 1 this year when both Eric MacKenzie and Darren Glass polled in the same game.

This perhaps is the first time that two key defenders have polled in the same game. They also came in a match West Coast won by near 10 goals with more damage being done at the other end.

Some other surprises came with Bernie Vince polling two best on grounds in heavy Melbourne defeats, Tom Rockliff polled when Brisbane scored just three goals against Fremantle and in Round 23 big men Scott Lycett, Ben Brown, Paddy Ryder, Jack Gunston, Tom Hawkins, Alex Rance, Josh Kennedy, Jay Schulz and Josh Gibson all polled – giving hope that maybe this is not just a midfielders award.

2. The Round 23 delay
Usually the last few rounds are rushed through when it becomes apparent that a winner has been found. Last night, despite it being clear that Priddis was the winner after Round 22 and it being highly unlikely that either Travis Boak or Patrick Dangerfield would catch and tie him, there was a commercial break.

Of course Priddis polled two votes in the last game to rise ahead of the ineligible Nathan Fyfe in the final game called on the night. Where was the conspiracy theory that they had to have that late break to redo the final rounds votes to save the AFL the embarrassment of Fyfe topping the count?

Imagine the frantic phone calls behind the scenes during that last break as the AFL calls the umpires of the Gold Coast versus West Coast clash to tell them the votes are being changed and that no-one can know about it, while they quickly rewrite M. Priddis for two votes. Stranger things have happened.

3. Playing 22 games
This count – more than any other before it – was decided by who was on the field for longer. By playing in more games, Priddis increased his chances to poll and win the award while other contenders like Gary Ablett, Fyfe, Kennedy and Lance Franklin were hurt by missing games through injury or being rested.

Where awards like the AFLPA MVP and All-Australian fall down is that those that vote in these do not take into consideration games played. Being durable and resilient through a season is a key trait and was one of the deciding factors in the count. Perhaps greater weight should be placed on consistency when deciding the All-Australian team and MVP award.

4. If ruckman aren’t best, they aren’t noted
Ruckman were the big losers of the night, with the big four of the season in Sam Jacobs, Todd Goldstein, Aaron Sandilands and Shane Mumford combining for just 24 votes.

These four failed to cover the winner. What was interesting though of these 24 votes, 18 came from best on ground displays. It appeared that when ruckmen stood out they got the best on ground nod, however for the rest it was hard to beat other smaller bodies.

Interestingly Champion Data have really begun to rate ruckmen due to their importance to stoppages and starting scoring chains, yet it has not really transferred to the umpiring department.

5. The MRP plays havoc
Nearly 100 of the 594 votes that were called on Brownlow night went to players who were ineligible to win the award. That means over 15 per cent of the vote was compromised with players who never had a shot.

With the MRP continuing to see more players with carry over points and loading for future offences, expect to see it only increase if the current system remains where players who are ineligible take a large percentage of the count.

Kudos to Round 7 and the Geelong versus Richmond clash where all three players who received votes were ineligible due to various offences.

6. Great player in an average midfield
You have to go back to 2011 to find a Brownlow medallist whose team played finals that year. Dane Swan was the last in a long line of winners that included Chris Judd, Gary Ablett, Jimmy Bartel, Adam Cooney, Adam Goodes and Ben Cousins who were part of outstanding midfield groups.

Over the past three years though Jobe Watson, Gary Ablett and now Matt Priddis have won by being a star midfielder in an average midfield.

This probably highlights AFL clubs at the top focusing on becoming champion teams as opposed to having standout individual performers in any one game. Looking ahead, perhaps the Brownlow winner is always going to come from that stand out midfielder in a team in that 9 to 12 range that wins about half of their season’s matches. Speaking to the importance of team in the AFL nowadays, it is more important to bat deep in the midfield.

7. Priddis is an outstanding winner
On so many levels Priddis winning the Brownlow was a great result for the AFL. His football journey gives hope for so many footballers out there that have been so close so often.

His standing among his club and his peers is one of respect. His humble demeanour and approach is something the AFL wants to build its young players around. His greatest features were both consistency in performance and in playing more games than the other contenders.

His acceptance speech highlighting family as most important speaks to the nature of AFL footballers when other codes around Australia and around the world are having their stars’ moral fibre questioned.

More importantly than Priddis’s story and character though is that he was a deserving winner. He polled in 13 games, which was more than anyone else this year. He had a fifth place finish in the AFLCA award.

The only places in which Priddis was not rated for his season were by media experts, who did not include him in the All-Australian team. This was a win for a footballers’ footballer over hype.

Priddis would not want it any other way. Congratulations Matt Priddis.