Your Swans and Giants Brownlow preview
By Michael DiFabrizio
Football’s night of nights is here and for the Swans and Giants, it promises to be an exciting evening.
The Grand Final-bound Swans have a couple of players that many consider capable of winning ‘Charlie’, while the Giants will be awarded votes for the first time.
Let’s take a look at who the highest vote winners will be for each club.
Sydney Swans
Josh Kennedy – After a huge start to the year, Kennedy will get off to a great start. He could poll in all of the Swans’ first five games, and is a serious chance for three votes in three of those games. Competition for votes increased as the year went on, but a strong finish is bound to add to his tally. You can lock in three votes for Round 17 and expect more either side of that game. Expect between 17 and 24 votes.
Kieren Jack – Jack starts to heat up from Round 8, a game he should poll three votes in, and keeps going. Don’t be surprised if he’s ahead of Kennedy heading into the final month of the season, as his other expected three-vote games are in Rounds 13, 14 and 18. He’s headed for a career-best year in terms of votes. Expect between 16 and 20 votes.
Jarrad McVeigh – A big chance to take votes away from Kennedy and Jack, McVeigh had a strong second half to the year. He’s a chance to poll multiple votes in Rounds 4, 14, 15, 17, 19 and 23. He only had six votes last year, but he’s a good chance to top that. Expect between 7 and 13 votes.
Dan Hannebery – A couple of monster games across the season means Hannebery is a chance to poll three votes on more than one occasion. Rounds 3, 16 and 19 are when he’s most likely to strike. Expect between 7 and 11 votes.
Ryan O’Keefe – A purple patch between Rounds 14 and 18 should see O’Keefe catch up to some of his teammates. He polled 12 votes last year, which was beaten at the Swans only by Goodes. Expect between 6 and 11 votes.
Adam Goodes – Despite missing games in the middle of the year, in matches like the Round 5 win over Hawthorn and the Round 18 win over Carlton he’s a good chance for votes. He’s also a proven vote winner. Expect between 4 and 8 votes.
GWS Giants
Toby Greene – It will be hard for Greene to snag votes in some of the Giants’ bigger losses, but performances like what he produced in the Round 21 loss to Melbourne – where he had 38 disposals, two goals and seven inside 50s – could see him accumulate votes. He was also active in the Round 19 win over Port Adelaide and the Round 23 narrow loss to North Melbourne. Expect between five and eight votes.
Jonathan Giles – In the win against Gold Coast in Round 7, Giles had three goals and 21 disposals. In the Port win, he had two goals, 23 touches and 26 hitouts. He should get two or three votes in each of these games and is a chance to pinch a vote from some other good games, putting him in a prime position for highest vote count at the Giants. Expect between three and seven votes.
Callan Ward – The club’s best and fairest winner also had a major say in the Giants’ two wins. He may become the first ever Giant to be awarded Brownlow votes for surpassing 30 touches in the Round 4 loss to Adelaide and a big Round 23 game could see him poll once again. At the Western Bulldogs, Ward polled six votes last season. Expect between three and six votes.
Jeremy Cameron – The Giants may have lost to the Bulldogs by 42 points in Round 5, but it’ll be hard for the umpires to ignore Cameron’s five goal return. A few more good games from a goal kicking perspective will keep his hopes of voting alive throughout the season. Expect between one and four votes.
Stephen Coniglio – A chance for best-on-ground honours in Gold Coast win, Coniglio ican be considered a decent chance to earn votes tonight. He’s also an outside chance for the Port win. Expect between one and three votes.
Adam Treloar – In Round 19, Treloar had 26 disposals and two goals. In a Round 20 loss to Gold Coast, he had 32 disposals. It’s certainly possible that he could poll in either game. Expect between one and three votes.
