Collingwood enters the 2012 Brownlow Medal count with three players among the favourites to take out the coveted award.
Last year’s winner Dane Swan and teammates Scott Pendlebury and Dayne Beams are likely to attract plenty of attention from the TV cameras in the Crown Palladium after putting in stellar seasons in the midfield.
The trio were named in the All-Australian team and each has claims to polling strongly in tonight’s count.
The Collingwood players invited to tonight’s count: Nick Maxwell (captain), Dane Swan (past winner), Dayne Beams, Scott Pendlebury, Steele Sidebottom.
Dane Swan
The season: There aren’t many footballers that can say that they have increased their disposal average in each of their 10 seasons at the highest level. It seems ridiculous to think that Dane Swan made a statistical improvement on his mind-blowing 2011 season that saw him average 31.7 disposals but, somehow, he managed to record an average of 34.5 touches per game. Swan gathered 40 or more possessions in six of his 18 home and away games and only had less than 30 on three occasions.
Pedigree: Swan burst onto the Brownlow scene in a blaze of glory with 20 votes in 2007, including 16 by round 14 which had the league madly trying to track him down as he watched from home with teammate Guy Richards. He polled reasonably well in 2006, 2008 and 2009 (averaging 11 votes per season) before taking it to the next level in 2010 when he received 24 votes en route to finishing third. Last year was his crowning glory, polling a record 34 votes to see him take out the Brownlow Medal in a landslide victory, finishing a good four votes ahead of Hawthorn’s Sam Mitchell.
Lock it in: Never has a game screamed “three votes” like Swan’s 42 possessions, six tackles and three goals against Essendon on ANZAC Day. He might have taken out the ANZAC Medal in the one-point win but five months on his monumental performance will continue to deliver.
Watch highlights from Dane Swan's virtuoso performance on ANZAC Day on CTV in the video above.
Ignore: The one game that Swan is nigh-on guaranteed not to poll in is the Magpies’ 49-point loss to West Coast in round 23. It was a dismal night for the black and white and Swan, despite winning 27 possessions, is unlikely to have featured amongst the umpire’s post-match discussion.
Verdict: With eight games as the leading possession getter on the field and six with 40 possessions or more, not to mention the eye-catching shuffle out of the packs, Swan is every chance to be in contention all night long. The four matches spent on the sidelines (two with a hamstring, two with suspension) may come back to bite when round 23 rolls around.
The vital stats:
Average Possessions: 34.5 Average Contested Possessions: 13.5 Average Tackles: 3.4 Average Goals: 1.2
First received a Brownlow vote: Round One, 2006, v Adelaide at Telstra Dome (34 possessions, 15 marks, two tackles, one vote).
Dayne Beams
The season: Little did we know that Luke Ball’s knee injury against Carlton in round three would light a bonfire underneath Dayne Beams. The fourth-year midfielder transformed himself from a dependable half forward who took turns in the midfield into a bona fide superstar onballer in the space of a week. It feels like a distant memory now, but in his first two games for the year, Beams averaged 22 disposals. In the first game of the post-Ball era, Beams won 27 possessions against Port Adelaide. But it was only the entrée to a run that saw him gather 30 or more disposals in 16 of his next 18 matches. Although Swan and Pendlebury continued on their merry way and Steele Sidebottom bobbed up with important contributions, Beams’ contribution did not go unnoticed. He finished second in the AFL Coaches Association Champion Player of the Year Award and ranked second at the club for goals scored (28).
Pedigree: In his first three seasons at the highest level, Beams polled only eight votes, five of which came in his first season and only one last year. His only best on ground performance came in round 21, 2009, against Sydney at the MCG. Expect that to change dramatically tonight.
Lock it in: In a year of standout performances, Beams shone the brightest when the Magpies travelled to Adelaide and knocked off the Crows by 26-points in round nine. He gathered 36 possessions, laid five tackles and kicked two goals. It soon became par for the course, but it was the night the 22-year-old sounded a warning to the rest of the competition.
Ignore: Don’t expect Beams to poll any votes in his first two games of the year. After a delayed start due to shin soreness, it took Beams three weeks to find his best form.
Verdict: A hot favourite and rightfully so. The only issue that he will face (as will his teammates) is that Swan and Pendlebury will steal votes off him at different stages. But there is every chance that he will poll votes in 13 matches after round five.
The vital stats:
Average Possessions: 30.9 Average Contested Possessions: 11.8 Average Tackles: 4.2 Average Goals: 1.2
First received a Brownlow vote: Round 20, 2009, v Richmond at the MCG (30 possessions, seven marks, one goal, three votes).
Scott Pendlebury
The season: Began 2012 like a runaway train and could be leading the Brownlow Medal count after four rounds as he was one of the best afield in games against Hawthorn, Richmond and Port Adelaide. Began to take on a scary resemblance to superman by the midway point of the season with his ability to grab hold of the game and turn it in Collingwood’s favour. Only a cracked tibia against Gold Coast in round 10 could halt his progress, sidelining him for four weeks. While his form from there on was consistently strong, he didn’t produce any games as commanding as what he had in the weeks prior to his leg injury. That said, he won 36 possessions on return against Geelong in round 16. He is some footballer.
Pedigree: Pendlebury should poll 25 votes or more if his career record is any indication. He went voteless in nine games in 2006 but in the years since has improved his standing on a 12-month basis. He received one vote in 2007, seven in 2008, 13 in 2009, 21 in 2010 and 24 in 2011. It was enough to see him finish fourth in 2010 equal fourth in 2011. His silky and fluent style of play is clearly as attractive to the umpires as it is to supporters.
Lock it in: The vice-captain put in what was perhaps the best performance of his career in round eight against Geelong. He kicked a career-high four goals, laid six tackles and used the ball 30 times. But while Sidebottom had more of it (38) and Heath Shaw just as much, it was the decisiveness and presence of mind shown by Pendlebury that made him stand out like a sore thumb. His final goal, kicked from 60m out with only seconds remaining, sealed the game and underlined his standing within the game.
Ignore: The only man to ‘get’ him this year was Carlton’s Andrew Carrazzo in round three. The Blues put them to the slaughter and Pendlebury wasn’t spared, as Carrazzo restricted him to 15 possessions while winning 29 of his own as the old dark navy Blues ran out convincing 60-point victors.
Verdict: It’s easy to say that the four matches spent in the grandstand will hurt, but you could throw a blanket over several Brownlow fancies in a similar position. But Pendlebury (and Swan) will need to buck the trend established in recent times. Of the past 12 winners (between 2002 and 2011), no player had missed four or more games. Gary Ablett (2009) and Chris Judd (2010) missed three games respectively, but still managed to record comfortable victories.
The vital stats:
Average Possessions: 29.5 Average Contested Possessions: 14.1 Average Tackles: 5.5 Average Goals: 0.5
First Received a Brownlow vote: Round 21, 2007 v Sydney at the MCG (22 possessions, five tackles, one goal).
