2023 BROWNLOW MEDAL LEADERBOARD | |
|---|---|
FINAL | |
| Player | Votes |
| Lachie Neale (BL) | 31 |
| Marcus Bontempelli (WB) | 29 |
| Nick Daicos (COLL) | 28 |
| Zak Butters (PA) | 27 |
| Errol Gulden (SYD) | 27 |
| Christian Petracca (MEL) | 26 |
| Caleb Serong (FRE)* | 24 |
| Jack Viney (MEL) | 24 |
| Noah Anderson (GCS) | 22 |
| Patrick Cripps (CAR) | 22 |
| Sam Docherty wins Jim Stynes Community Leadership Award | |
| Harry Himmelberg wins 2023 Mark of the Year | |
| Will Ashcroft wins 2023 Goal of the Year | |
The 2023 AFL Brownlow Medal promises to be another close count, with a host of stars a chance at claiming the coveted award. Join The Roar for round-by-round updates and every vote from 7:30pm (AEST).
With a clear group of favourites to take home ‘Charlie’ this year, it promises to be a tight run race until the very end of the home and away season.
Early in the year it seemed that by the time Brownlow night came along, it might be a foregone conclusion that Nick Daicos was going to take the medal home.
However, a knee injury that saw him miss the last three rounds of the home and away season have made the contest a lot tighter. Christian Petracca of the Melbourne Demons, Port Adelaide’s Zak Butters and Bulldogs captain Marcus Bontempelli all loom as part of the chasing pack.
Additionally, Lachie Neale is an outside shot that should not be discounted. He did not make the 2023 All-Australian team, unlike the four main frontrunners, but he did feature in the 44-man squad. His Lions have also enjoyed great success throughout the year, in large part due to him, which may see him poll high quite consistently.
Tonight is not only about the Brownlow: we also crown the Mark of the Year and Goal of the Year winners.
Harry Himmelberg of GWS has had two separate marks make it to the final three, with Collingwood’s Ash Johnson his sole competition. Goal of the Year finalists are Will Ashcroft of Brisbane, North Melbourne’s Paul Curtis, and Port Adelaide’s Dan Houston.
Curtis’ goal was a rare highlight in a tough season for the Kangaroos, and is a deserved finalist purely for the difficulty of skill execution it required. Dan Houston’s after the siren winner from long range against Essendon was not quite as ridiculous a kick as the other finalists, but the moment was greater than the others.
Ashcroft unfortunately had his rookie season cut short due to an ACL injury, but before he did he showed exactly how talented he is, and his mid air goal from the pocket against Fremantle genuinely defied belief. It was called as such immediately on commentary, and I agree that Ashcroft’s goal should be the 2023 Goal of the Year.
Don Freo
Roar Rookie
There's no ridicule of Daicos, but this "poor Nick" stuff totally diminishes the achievements of a non-Victorian player who won more clearances than any other player this season.
Macca
Roar Rookie
I hav been very consistent, just Collingwood supporters get upset with even the slightest hint of criticism of their team
Macca
Roar Rookie
But he isn’t running to space. Finally 41 possessions for 540m gained is about 13m a possession- plenty of turning 1 possession into 2 for not much gain
Charlie Keegan
Roar Guru
Metres gained is also a stat that can be blown out by taking kick ins as well
Charlie Keegan
Roar Guru
I think they need to check all the umpires bank accounts after last year
.kraM
Roar Rookie
Tough in a losing side but I would have loved it
Tassie
Roar Rookie
No point arguing with airhead macca, his point changes on a weekly basis if it either endorses Carlton or derides Collingwood. Sometimes that can even happen in the same weekend. Bontempelli should feel very hard done by, their is no way Neale earned 1 vote let alone 3 votes in that round 6 match.
Pravin Manivannan
Roar Rookie
Sure, and I’m not suggesting he wins a Brownlow cause of kick-ins taken. I’m suggesting we stop ridiculing a great player for performing a function of the team he is very well suited to because it is affronting to some people’s ideas of how the ball should be won to then count as a disposal. The point of any disposal for any team is usually to help the team win by getting a good score on the board. His kick-ins are a large part of how Collingwood functionally scores, his and Moore’s and Pendlebury’s etc. Stewart takes kick-ins for the Cats, he gets a stat for them, Isaac Smith did too. They weren’t racking up 30+ disposal games with consistent ease by doing so like Nick does, because Nick doesn’t simply take kick-ins and stat pad. Nick takes kick-ins because it benefits his team, he also runs hard and finds space and gets the ball given to him so he can use the ball well for his team, help his team break lines, transition the ball, and importantly score. Why is that a bad thing?
Don Freo
Roar Rookie
It's no indicator of Brownlow Medal winning footy; it just indicates he's doing the kicking in.
Pravin Manivannan
Roar Rookie
Because if as you step out and get on the run, space opens up in front of you, or a new option presents itself up field and you can now hit the target cause you’re 10m closer, then you would. Why would you limit your options, why would you not get the ball moving forwards and with speed instead of stagnant one step kicks. If you’re still in the square when you make your kick, then the man on the mark now has more time to close you down again and stop you from linking up in the chain once more. And again when it comes to breaking a tag this is useful for him, he can make his tagger follow him around the long way and make them run the extra metres to stay with him.
Don Freo
Roar Rookie
Oh dear, Bretto.
Dheeren
Roar Rookie
Even though I am a Port supporter, I never thought Zak Butters was a realistic chance as his best mate Connor Rozee would eat into a lot of Zak’s votes. However, I feel sorry for Marcus Bontempalli. He has been a bridesmaid so many times but never a bride. Votes polled by J Horne-Francis and Lachie Neale in some of their games was downright disgrace to the way voting happens for this prestigious medal.
Pravin Manivannan
Roar Rookie
No, as I said he got 1 in his 10 centre bounces attended. Mitchell who did poll in that same game got 1 centre clearance in 16 attended. Adams who got 2 votes in that game had only 20 touches, and 138 metres gained for one added score involvement and 3 extra clearances. Nick only turned it over 2 times, the other ineffective disposals went to contests that were than drawn. And while he only got 25% contested possession, thats 10 in raw numbers. Tom Mitchell had 33% resulting in 12 and Adams only had 8 but translated to 40%. Nick aided in scoring in transition and in the back half spending 67% of time in defence, where there will be an outnumber due to system and so yes more uncontested ball. His job is to translate that into scores for the team which he did.
Macca
Roar Rookie
The question is why don’t they give you a stat for just taking a kick in? And if you are only short passing 15m to get the ball back what is the point in stepping out? Just to get the stst
Macca
Roar Rookie
He got a centre clearance from outside the square? 25% of his possessions were ineffective and only 25% were contested.
Pravin Manivannan
Roar Rookie
Why would you not step out, they give you free metres by making the man on the mark like 10m back from the square. It’s stupidity to not take those metres. We don’t criticise other players for doing the smart thing?
Macca
Roar Rookie
And if he doesn’t step out of the square it is not counted
Macca
Roar Rookie
Is what I said not true? Even pies players joke the fastest player on the team is Daicos trying to take a kick in
Pravin Manivannan
Roar Rookie
Match high inside 50s was 7, he was clear as the highest metres gained, he’s not an inside mid and he had one clearance from 10 centre bounces attended, mostly after Pendlebury was subbed. He had 5 out of 13 possible kick ins, literally in line with all the other half-backs, Whitfield took 6 out of 12 that game for the Giants. 9 score involvements was equal second with a lot of other Pies and 5 intercept possessions, 4th highest of his team. Remembering that Taylor Adams got 3 votes for a 20 disposal game, Horne-Francis for a 13 disposal game and Neale for a 20 disposal game.
PeteB
Roar Rookie
Yeah they struggle to adjudicate the rules of the game as it is, so how can they possibly be expected to vote for best players of each game. Crazy stuff but in line with most of the crazy rules and interpretations of this game.