From Andrew Gaff’s punch to looming records, check out the must watch games on Brownlow night
IS IT possible to poll votes in the same game you punch someone in the face? How about getting votes off the umpires in the same game you get suspended for umpire contact? Take a look at the games and records you need to be watching on Brownlow night.
Brownlow
Don't miss out on the headlines from Brownlow. Followed categories will be added to My News.
BROWNLOW night isn’t just about celebrating the best player in the AFL.
It is also about finally getting the answers to all the quirky questions we have been waiting for.
Is it possible to poll votes in the same game you punch someone in the face?
Will Gary Ablett make even more Brownlow Medal history?
Who is the emperor of playing in China?
In anticipation of this year’s count, here are some quirky things to keep an eye on come Brownlow night.
WILL GAFF POLL AFTER PUNCH?
Andrew Gaff’s punch to the face of young Docker Andrew Brayshaw was the most shocking moment of the 2018 season.
But there is one question that still needs to be answered. Will Gaff poll Brownlow votes in the match?
Five seconds before his brain fade, the star Eagle was clearly in the best three players on the ground.
He finished the match with 33 disposals, which was the equal with any player on the ground. That was despite spending extended periods of time on the bench following the punch.
Gaff had seven inside 50s, 12 contested possessions, kicked a goal and was awarded four free kicks throughout the match.
TAB, which is taking bets on who will poll the three votes in every match of the season, has Elliot Yeo, Jack Redden, Brad Sheppard and Jamie Cripps all ranked ahead of Gaff in the market. Gaff has been rated a $34 chance.
In SuperFooty’s Brownlow predictor, we agree that Gaff is unlikely to get a look in for either the two or the three votes but we did give him the nod for the one-vote.
Champion Data has him likely to poll either one or two votes.
But will the human element of Brownlow Medal voting lead the umpires to look elsewhere?
DID ROBERT WALLS GET IT RIGHT?
It’s not often a team loses by 77 points and has the three best players on the ground.
But that is exactly how Robert Walls saw things after Richmond handed Fremantle a 77-point hiding in Round 7.
Despite the one-sided score, Walls gave his votes to:
Nat Fyfe — 33 disposals, four tackles
Aaron Sandilands — 11 disposals, 49 hitouts
Lachie Neale — 35 disposals, two tackles
At the time he was heavily criticised for the votes but was Walls on the money after all?
Given how even the Tigers were that day, you can make a strong argument that all three Dockers had better individual games than any Richmond player.
However, in SuperFooty’s Brownlow predictor, we couldn’t bring ourselves to go full-Wallsy, instead handing two votes to Kane Lambert after his 25 disposals and two goals.
Who got it right? Watch closely on Brownlow night.
WILL GAZ COMPLETE 18-CLUB SET?
On Brownlow night this year, Gary Ablett has the chance to make history.
In his first meeting against his old side after leaving the Gold Coast, the Little Master had a whopping 37 disposals and three goals.
That spells three votes!
However, this won’t be your average ‘G. Ablett — 3 votes’.
In polling against the Suns, Ablett will have secured a Brownlow vote against all 18 clubs in the AFL.
IS BOAK ABOUT TO MAKE CHINESE FOOTBALL HISTORY?
We know some players feel at home at certain venues.
The Hawks have a great record in Launceston, the Roos are ultra-tough in Hobart and the Tigers are almost impossible to beat at the MCG.
It is a (slightly) smaller sample size but the same can be said for Travis Boak, who is the master of playing in … China!
In last year’s inaugural China game, Boak dominated with 30 disposals, two goals and had to declare three Brownlow Votes when he came back through customs.
Something at Jiangwan Stadium clearly agrees with the Power skipper, who was equally dominant in his second hit-out at the venue, posting 29 disposals (16 contested) and kicking a goal this year.
Will he be the first player in history to have back-to-back three vote games in China?
WILL THE AMERICAN PIE GET HIS THREE VOTES?
In 2016, Mason Cox made history when he became the first American to poll a Brownlow vote.
But that might seem like nothing when the votes are read out for this year’s Queen’s Birthday clash.
Cox put on a clinic against the Demons, kicking five goals which was enough to secure him the Neale Daniher trophy for best player on the ground.
But will the umpires come to the party on Brownlow night?
Cox has some stiff competition, with Jordan de Goey (30 disposals, seven tackles) and Steele Sidebottom (32 disposals, five tackles) well and truly in the mix for three votes.
DO SEVEN FREES EQUAL THREE VOTES?
Chris Scott called it a horrible game. He was right!
There were limited highlights from Geelong’s Round 10 win over Carlton.
That makes giving out the three votes a tough task. However, we think we’ve found an edge.
On top of Patrick Dangerfield’s 29 touches and a goal, he had a whopping seven free kicks paid in his favour.
How’s that for being right under the umpires’ noses!
Will it lead to the ultimate reward though? We are pretty confident it will.
SMITH SET FOR UNWANTED RECORD
Brownlow night is all about celebrating remarkable performances.
And it doesn’t get much more remarkable than Sydney defender Nick Smith.
In Round 20 against Collingwood, Smith played his 210th match and in doing so, reached an AFL record.
Provided he doesn’t poll a vote between rounds 1 and 19, Smith will become the longest serving player without being awarded a Brownlow vote.
WILL UMPIRE CONTACT COST ED?
We have gone through the record books and we don’t think anyone has done this before. Ed Curnow might be about to make Brownlow history.
The veteran Blue could become the first player to be awarded three votes by the umpires in the same game as being suspended for umpire contact.
Flashback to Round 8 and Curnow produced one of his best performances of the season, racking up 24 disposals, 13 tackles and two goals in an upset win over the Bombers.
Two days later he copped a one-match ban for pushing an umpire. Now that is a rollercoaster relationship with the whistleblowers.
Watch every match of every round of the 2018 Toyota AFL Premiership Season. SIGN UP NOW >
Originally published as From Andrew Gaff’s punch to looming records, check out the must watch games on Brownlow night