Favourites shocked in 2025 Brownlow Medal

GOLD Coast midfield machine Matt Rowell has secured a monster Brownlow Medal upset, downing red-hot favourite Nick Daicos to collect the AFL’s highest individual honour tonight (Monday, September 22).

Surging to 20 votes after 11 rounds, Rowell couldn’t be stopped as he denied Collingwood superstar Daicos, who for a third-straight year had been one of the major fancies.

Rowell finished with 39 votes, with Daicos finishing in second place on 32.

Enigmatic Geelong star Bailey Smith and Adelaide captain Jordan Dawson rounded out the top four.

Pick one in the 2019 draft, Rowell becomes Gold Coast’s second Brownlow winner, after Gary Ablett Jnr back in 2013.

The 24-year-old’s win follows another high-polling count after Carlton captain Patrick Cripps’s record win with 45 last year.

In one of the most bizarre polling games in history, Melbourne’s Jack Viney was given three votes instead of St Kilda’s Nasiah Wanganeen-Milera for an extraordinary individual performance that steered the Saints to victory in round 20.

During the count, Geelong captain Patrick Dangerfield overtook former teammate Gary Ablett Jnr to claim the record for most three-vote games in Brownlow history.

Meanwhile, Fremantle young gun Murphy Reid was rewarded for a brilliant rookie season by becoming the fourth Dockers player to win the Rising Star award.

Despite not receiving a nomination in Round 1, Reid virtually had the award wrapped up early after a stunning debut game.

The 19-year-old kicked four goals in a quarter in the Dockers’ loss against Geelong.

Reid, who finished his first season with 25 goals, received 48 votes to win ahead of Adelaide’s Dan Curtin (35) and Brisbane’s Levi Ashcroft (26).