Dally M Medal 2023: Voting goes behind closed doors with Payne Haas, Nathan Cleary chasing history

It’s the equivalent of leaving the season finale of a TV show on a cliffhanger. Now fans have an agonising wait to see how this Dally M script plays out, as voting goes behind closed doors.

Nathan Cleary and Payne Haas lead the Dally M Medal Award race as voting goes behind closed doors.

As Dally M voting goes behind closed doors, waiting for Payne Haas when he swaps his NSW jersey for a Broncos one will be a shot at history.

Haas and NSW Blues teammate Nathan Cleary are locked in an epic battle to claim this year’s Dally M Medal.

Broncos powerhouse Haas, who heads the leaderboard on 30 points, is three clear of Penrith halfback Cleary after voting went under lock and key following round 12.

Haas is on track to become the first prop to win the award in its 44-year history and the only Bronco since champion halfback Allan Langer in 1996 to claim the gong.

Broncos powerhouse Payne Haas leads the Dally M vote. Picture: Chris Hyde/Getty Images

The giant Broncos star is doing his best to play down the hype after a barnstorming start to the season.

“I’m not trying to get a big head … I don’t think about that stuff that people put on me. I feel like if you start playing for those things it will be mentally draining,” Haas said.

“I feel like I just want to do my job and get the team on the front foot.”

Incredibly, only eight forwards have won the Dally M since 1979, with halfbacks and fullbacks dominating the winners’ list. No props, centres or wingers have ever won the award.

Cleary is looking to avoid joining the likes of champion playmakers Darren Lockyer and Brad Fittler in winning everything the game has to offer, except its highest individual honour.

Cleary would become Penrith’s first Dally M Medallist since Greg Alexander in 1985.

He has already come agonisingly close on two occasions. In 2020, he was the red-hot favourite but finished two points behind winner Jack Wighton.

Twelve months later he was second behind Manly’s Tom Trbojevic.

Nathan Cleary has come agonisingly close to claiming a Dally M twice before, but is yet to claim the prestigious medal. Picture: Getty Images.

With voting behind closed doors, reigning Dally M Medallist and Cronulla halfback Nicho Hynes is five points behind Haas, alongside Melbourne hooker Harry Grant, on 25 points.

South Sydney fullback Latrell Mitchell, who among his pre-season goals made it his mission to win the Dally M Medal, is seven points behind Haas on 23 votes.

Highlighting Haas’ dominance is the fact that fellow big man Tino Fa’asuamaleaui is the next highest ranked prop on 18 points on a leaderboard littered with halves and fullbacks.

Dally M voting has undergone a shake-up this year, with the NRL now using two anonymous judges to adjudicate on each game, rather than a single one.

That change is significant, given just 11 points separates the top 15 vote getters.

A player has the ability to score a maximum six points in any one game, meaning the likes of Brisbane’s Adam Reynolds, Melbourne’s Cameron Munster, Parramatta’s Mitchell Moses and Cronulla’s Will Kennedy are all still well in Dally M contention, despite only polling 19 points so far this season.

Cronulla and Melbourne, along with North Queensland and Parramatta, have supplied the most Dally M winners with five each.

Latrell Mitchell made it his goal to win the Dally M.

Halfbacks have won the Dally M Medal 19 times in its 44-year history, with current No.7s Cleary (27), Hynes (25), Ben Hunt (22), Shaun Johnson (22), Reynolds (19) and Moses (19) in the mix to extend that record.

For now, Cleary is focused on the other stage he is yet to truly dominate, State of Origin.

Cleary is used to the pressure that comes with his status at NRL or representative level.

“Everyone comes at me, but I’m always ready for it. Bring it on,” he said.

The Dally M Medal winner will be announced during a ceremony in grand final week in the last week of September.