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Hello fellow AFL-loving Roarers. You might have caught a glimpse on the rugby league section of the site that The Roar is running its own in-house NRL MVP award – well, I’m pleased to announce we will be doing the very same for the AFL.
The Roar‘s AFL MVP award will see our live bloggers from each game award their own 3-2-1 votes, Brownlow style, at the end of each match. Then on Monday morning – or Tuesday in this case due to the long weekend – I’ll run through all the votes here and update the leaderboard.
Come the end of the season, we’ll crown The Roar‘s 2016 AFL MVP winner, and hopefully with a bit of luck our tally will prove to be a handy predictor for the 2016 Brownlow Medal count as well.
So, without further ado, here are all the votes from Round 1, as determined by our live-blogging team.
Richmond Tigers 92 defeated Carlton Blues 83
Blogged by Matthew Walsh
3: Kane Lambert – In the absence of some of the Tigers’ established stars, Lambert stepped up to the plate and recorded 28 disposals and a goal for the night.
2: Bryce Gibbs – After missing the end of last season Gibbs made a very successful return to the top level, with 30 touches and a goal.
1: Marc Murphy – The Blues captain was instrumental in their third-quarter charge and recorded 27 disposals and a goal.
Melbourne Demons 80 defeated Greater Western Sydney Giants 78
Blogged by Riley Pettigrew
3: Jack Viney – 32 disposals, 15 contested possessions, six tackles, Viney was dominant through the midfield and the main man behind Melbourne’s ability to drive the ball forward.
2: Callan Ward – With 28 disposals and two goals, Ward provided his usual cement-headed impact through the middle of the ground while also having more scoreboard impact than is typical for him.
1: Jesse Hogan – Although quiet early on, Hogan eventually got going and when he did his three-goal performance was what turned the tide for the Dees.
Gold Coast 121 defeated Essendon 60
Blogged by Lou Lando
3: Gary Ablett – After missing most of last year Ablett showed he is still one, if not the best player in the league, with 34 disposals, nine clearances, seven tackles and a goal to his name.
2: Aaron Hall – Ablett’s partner in crime was the vastly improved Hall who recorded 36 touches and two goals for the day, delivering the ball inside 50 on nine occasions.
1: David Zaharakis – Showing his ability to step up in the absence of the banned Bombers, Zaharakis had 33 touches, five clearances and kicked two goals in a great display.
North Melbourne Kangaroos 107 defeated Adelaide Crows 97
Blogged by Dylan Toune
3: Todd Goldstein – Last year’s All-Australian ruckman had an engrossing duel with Sam Jacobs all night but it were his big marks around the ground in the final term that proved decisive in this contest.
2: Daniel Wells – The return to the big stage couldn’t have gone much better for Wells who had six clearances, seven tackles, eight inside 50s and two goal assists for the night.
1: Scott Thompson – Thompson saw more of the ball than any other player on the ground with 30 touches. He won nine clearances and drove the ball inside 50 seven times.
Sydney Swans 133 defeated Collingwood 53
Blogged by TomC
3: Luke Parker – 40 disposals, 20 contested possessions, six clearances, a goal and a goal assist. Yes, those are best on ground numbers by a decent margin.
2: Tom Mitchell – 30 disposals, nine tackles and three goals. A tough break for Mitchell, because those would also be best on ground numbers most weeks!
1: Isaac Heeney – Picking up right where he left off, Heeney had 23 disposals and kicked a goal for the rampaging Swans.
Western Bulldogs 103 defeated Fremantle Dockers 38
Blogged by Brent Ford
3: Jason Johannisen – Despite losing his eye-catching hairdo Johannisen pulled a reverse-Sampson and played the best game of his career providing drive out of the backline and up the wing, finishing with 35 touches and a goal.
2: Shane Biggs – Fantastic intercept play was the highlight of Biggs’ afternoon as he cut off the Dockers time and time again finishing with 35 disposals.
1: Jake Stringer – After a breakout 2015 Stringer stamped his authority on the competition early with a five-goal performance that included a few of his typical moments of brilliance.
Port Adelaide Power 133 defeated St Kilda Saints 100
Blogged by Stirling Coates
3: Robbie Gray – 26 disposals, 14 contested, eight clearances and four of the most important goals of the afternoon, Gray’s was a match-winning effort.
2: Tom Hickey – 20 touches is a good day out for a ruckman, but Hickey almost busted the stat-board with 56 hit-outs. Easily won his duel with Matthew Lobbe.
1: Brad Ebert – 25 disposals, eight tackles, five inside 50s and three goals. His disposal wasn’t as slick as Gray’s, but the impact was definitely there.
West Coast Eagles 166 defeated Brisbane Lions 103
Blogged by Stirling Coates
3: Matt Priddis – Was on track to break the AFL record for disposals at one point. Ended up settling for 43 touches, 12 clearances, five tackles and two goal assists. Superb.
2: Josh J Kennedy – 25 disposals, 10 marks inside 50, eight inside 50s, four goal assists. Oh, and eight goals too. This bloke is an absolute freak.
1: Nic Naitanui – Absolutely unstoppable in the ruck, amassing 46 hit-outs while also putting up 22 disposals, six contested marks, six inside 50s and two goals.
Geelong Cats 116 defeated Hawthorn Hawks 86
Blogged by Brent Ford
3: Patrick Dangerfield – In his first game as a Cat, Danger had a casual 43 disposals, 21 contested possesions, seven clearances and ten inside 50s. The only thing he couldn’t do was hit the goals, kicking 0.3 for the day.
2: Sam Mitchell – The Hawks didn’t get the win but it wasn’t through lack of effort from Mitchell who finished the day with 36 disposals and eight clearances.
1: Josh Caddy – 21 disposals and seven clearances was a solid day at the office from Caddy but three goals, the equal most on ground, was the icing on the cake.
So there you have it folks, the first batch of votes for The Roar‘s AFL MVP award. There’s no need for a leaderboard this week but starting from Round 2 we will tally up the votes and keep track of who is winning the race to be crowned the first ever Roar AFL MVP.
See you next week for our next batch of votes!