AFL great Mick Malthouse looks at why Max Gawn should win this year’s Brownlow Medal

FORGET Tom Mitchell. There is one man who deserves the Brownlow Medal even more this year, and his name is Max Gawn. AFL great MICK MALTHOUSE lays out the reasons why the star Dee should break the ruck curse.

Max Gawn deserves to win this year’s Brownlow. Picture: Getty Images

IF the umpires have kept their eyes raised this season and noticed the talls as much as the smalls, then I have a new Brownlow Medal tip for you.

Max Gawn.

If big and bad doesn’t sum him up enough, then the Melbourne ruckman is dominant, noticeable, and above all else, the heart of his club.

The Brownlow has become a midfielder’s award in recent times. Aside from Adam Goodes in 2003 and 2006, the last genuine ruckmen to win it were Scott Wynd in 1992 and Jim Stynes in 1991, so it will be a tall order for Gawn to poll as well as Mitchell.

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While Gawn is second favourite to win the count Monday night, it would still be an upset of sorts considering bookmakers and most tipsters have already put the medal around Tom Mitchell’s neck.

All the individual football awards can be traced back to stats.

The statistics of every match are displayed on websites even as the match is played out.

Max Gawn deserves to win this year’s Brownlow. Picture: Getty Images

Immediately afterwards, they are printed in newspapers and used by journalists to help sum up the clash — contested ball, uncontested ball, goal assists, meters gained and overall disposals — it’s all right there to be analysed and critiqued by anyone with an interest in the game.

But under a wave of numbers many people have become lazy in their assessment of the game. Quite often the best and second-best players on the ground are direct opponents, which in a way nullifies the stats, because it doesn’t take into account the most important factor — the player’s value to the team.

If that could be put into numbers then Gawn would have racked up a figure to equal his height. His influence on the Demons’ season can be summed up in two isolated moments.

In Round 1 against Geelong he had Melbourne’s last kick of the game. Melbourne had been the better team on the day and Gawn was instrumental in setting them up with 47 hit outs. He had already pushed forward and kicked a goal. And he had pushed back to help in defence.

Had he goaled with that kick in the last 15 seconds of the match, Melbourne would have beaten the Cats and been off to a flying start to the season. But he missed.

In Round 18 he was forced from the field with a blood nose in the last 90 seconds of the clash, making him unavailable for a throw-in deep in Melbourne’s forward line. Geelong cleared the ball and Zach Tuohy goaled after the final siren to give the Cats a thrilling two-point win.

Gawn couldn’t be blamed for the blood nose, but his absence from the field in that crucial moment helped cost the Demons the game.

He has set up many of Melbourne’s victories this year, but such is his influence that he has also been inadvertently responsible for some of the Demons’ losses. Had Melbourne won those games, they would have finished top four.

Tom Mitchell is the hot favourite to win this year’s Brownlow. Picture Getty Images

Hawthorn’s Mitchell is the hot Brownlow fancy, for good reason — he is an extraordinary accumulator of the ball. But on sheer value, I feel that Gawn, for the decisive impact he has on how Melbourne plays, should poll more votes.

There has never been an undeserving Brownlow medallist, but there have been a few surprises. Perhaps the biggest surprise is the number of legends of Australian rules football who haven’t won a Brownlow.

Of the game’s most decorated full-forwards — John Coleman, Gordon Coventry, Peter Hudson, Tony Lockett, Alex Jesaulenko, and Bob Pratt — only Lockett has won a Brownlow.

From the most talented on-ballers — Ron Barassi, Barry Cable, Leigh Matthews, Bob Skilton and Ian Stewart — just two, Skilton and Stewart, were awarded the Brownlow.

Two of the greatest players I had the honour of playing alongside at Richmond — Kevin Bartlett and Royce Hart — don’t own a Brownlow Medal either.

Does that make the Brownlow voting system flawed? No.

The Brownlow has always been the most important individual award in football and still is.

It should never change from being the umpires’ award, because, while there isn’t a 100 per cent guarantee they are not swayed by popular public opinion, the umpires select the best AND the fairest player generally without prejudice.

Mick Malthouse with Dane Swan at the 2011 Brownlow.

That makes the Brownlow Medal a prestigious award. A higher accolade than any other individual football honour, the MVP and coaches’ awards included.

It also makes it exciting, not knowing who is going to win as the vote count begins.

In 1980 we had an extremely talented Richmond team. We were in the Grand Final and were favourites to beat Collingwood for the flag. Our standout player, who would go on to win the club best and fairest that year, was Geoff Raines.

He was favourite to win the Brownlow and we were poised to celebrate our teammate’s achievement.

But, not only did he not win the medal, he didn’t pole a single vote. To this day I find that unbelievable. The winner was, even more surprisingly, a key forward — Footscray’s Kelvin Templeton — but he was no less deserving.

The Tigers of course won the premiership later that week and Raines earned a medal he’ll always cherish.

In 2010, in one of the more embarrassing AFL moments, the Brownlow favourites were paraded on a catwalk. Dane Swan was perhaps the most uncomfortable player on stage, as it was virtually alluded to that he would win.

Max Gawn has had a brilliant year for the Demons. Picture: Getty Images

He didn’t. Chris Judd won his second Brownlow Medal that night.

“Swanny” didn’t care because he still had a Grand Final to play in, although on reflection, I think that the distraction that comes with being Brownlow favourite did have an effect on his game that Saturday when the Magpies drew with St Kilda.

The pressure is tangible as the media and supporter focus loads the player up to tipping point.

Dane was significantly more influential the following week in the Grand Final replay, without a Brownlow night to begin the week, and he walked off the ground a premiership player.

The following year the Brownlow count did go his way and Dane Swan was the toast of the town. He deserved to be after a brilliant season. Unfortunately, he couldn’t add another premiership medallion to his trophy collection in that year’s Grand Final.

In the end footy is a team sport and a premiership is the ultimate reward. But for a select few, the Brownlow Medal symbolises hard work, courage, talent and influence.

Max Gawn is all that, and more. Monday night we’ll see if the umpires agree.

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