Gary Ablett says shoulder surgery that could cost him third Brownlow was his only option

GOLD Coast champion Gary Ablett has no regrets over the shoulder surgery that could cost him a third Brownlow Medal. CHAMPION DATA PREDICTIONS

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GOLD Coast champion Gary Ablett has no regrets over the shoulder surgery that could cost him an extraordinary third Brownlow Medal tonight.

Ablett is expected to be a runaway leader with as much as a 10-vote cushion on rivals Nat Fyfe and Scott Pendlebury when a tackle from Magpie tagger Brent Macaffer wrenched Ablett’s left shoulder and ended his season in Round 16.

Gary Ablett made the hard decision to have surgery after consulting a surgeon following his shoulder injury in Round 16. Picture: Nicole Garmston

While his injury landed a devastating blow to Ablett’s chances of becoming only the fifth player to win three medals, it has set up one of the most thrilling counts in history as many as five challengers race home in the final seven rounds.

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Geelong captain and Brownlow Medal favourite Joel Selwood, Hawthorn’s Jordan Lewis, Essendon’s Dyson Heppell and Port’s Ablett-clone Robbie Gray are all likely to storm home.

As many as eight medals will be on hand around the country tonight to accommodate the expected tight finish.

Ablett, 30, consulted shoulder specialists in the days following his shoulder injury before making the gut-wrenching decision to have the season-ending reconstruction.

Despite the heartache that is expected to follow tonight if he surrenders his lead in the finals rounds, Ablett was adamant the surgery was the right call as he races to be fit for the start of the Suns’ next pre-season.

“Without a doubt,” Ablett told the Herald Sun.

“After I saw the surgeon, and we had a look at the scans, I don’t think it was possible that I could have played on with the damage I had done.”

There could be a controversial tone to the count with Champion Data predicting ineligible midfield wrecking ball Fyfe to tie with Selwood on 25 votes, ahead of Ablett on 24.

Fyfe was suspended twice throughout the year, including a contentious bump on Suns’ Michael Rischitelli in Round 2, costing the AFL Players’ Association most valuable player four weeks on the sidelines.

He could join Western Bulldogs’ Chris Grant and North Melbourne’s Corey McKernan as a third ineligible winner, ahead of an expected Brownlow ineligibility review post-season.

Brisbane ball magnet Tom Rockliff is also ineligible.

Port superstar Gray has been sensationally backed into a $6 third favourite with TAB to win the medal after Port Adelaide coach Ken Hinkley boldly declared the goalkicking midfielder the season’s best player.

Robbie Gray has firmed in recent weeks after a stellar 2014. Picture: Sarah Reed

“Robbie has just had an unbelievable year,” Hinkley said after Port’s preliminary final loss.

“If people who are controlling the game have got good vision … we’ll see probably an interesting result Monday night, because he was clearly the best player in the competition this year.”

But he could yet be trumped by teammate and superstar captain Travis Boak in one of the night’s most intriguing sub-plots.

Despite the flood of money and industry support for Gray, who also won the AFL Coaches Association award, Champion Data expects Boak to finish higher than Gray.

Champion Data estimate Boak finishes equal sixth with Collingwood superstar Scott Pendlebury on 17 votes, two ahead of Gray, in equal ninth.

Tonight will still be a historic night for Ablett as the industry celebrates his extraordinary dominance that has won him an unprecedented eight-straight All-Australian guernseys.

Ablett is ranked fifth for career votes on 187 and needs and only 16 votes tonight to surpass Leigh Matthews’ total of 202. Ablett would need 29 to leapfrog second-placed St Kilda champion Robert Harvey.

Carlton superstar Chris Judd, who is tied with Matthews on 202 votes, will also move into the top-three of all-time voting.