It was a wet and wild weekend of AFL action with some big wins for Sydney, Geelong and Brisbane. Melbourne upset the ladder leaders Fremantle in one of the matches of the year, while Carlton and Collingwood also had good wins to take a step closer to finals action!
As usual, we’ll share our thoughts from every match of the AFL season, along with our Brownlow vote predictions and projections using our own system which has a proven profitable history over many years. For full details on how it works, see the section at the bottom of the page. We hope you'll use our free Brownlow tips to help you find value during the season and built a green book before the big night.
For links to every round of the season and full count, head to our 2026 Brownlow Medal Leaderboard page and check out the latest Brownlow Odds.
2026 AFL Brownlow Round 22 Overview
Another round of AFL and another three votes for Nick Daicos. This race is all over folks!
Other notables likely to poll well in Round 22 inclued Luke Davies-Uniacke, Kysaiah Pickett, Errol Gulden, Chad Warner, Bailey Smith, Izak Rankine and reigning Brownlow medallist Matt Rowell.
Check out our 2026 Round 22 Brownlow votes below and our updated 2026 Brownlow leaderboard here!
2026 AFL Brownlow Votes - Round 22 Match Analysis
Western Bulldogs 11.11.77 def by North Melbourne 15.10.100
The Roos finally held their nerve for four quarters to hold off the Bulldogs and land a much-needed victory. Luke Davies-Uniacke (31 disposals, 10 tackles, 10 clearances, 2 goals) was exceptional for the Roos, while Harry Sheezel (29 disposals, 7 marks, 6 tackles), Caleb Daniel (33 disposals, 6 marks), Colby McKercher (30 disposals) and Dylan Stephens (28 disposals, 6 marks) all won plenty of ball. Up forward, it was Paul Curtis who was the difference between the teams with 19 disposals and 4 goals. Ed Richards (28 disposals, 6 clearances, 1 goal) and Marcus Bontempelli (25 disposals, 1 goal) were best for the Dogs.
Luke Davies-Uniacke - 3
Paul Curtis - 2
Harry Sheezel - 1
Brisbane 18.17.125 def Hawthorn 8.10.58
Brisbane put the Hawks to the sword in devastating fashion on Friday night in a huge victory that might define the top four. The firepower came from Kai Lohmann (5 goals, 24 disposals) and Logan Morris (4 goals, 15 disposals) who were enormous up forward. Lachie Neale (35 disposals, 7 marks, 9 tackles, 6 clearances) and Will Ashcroft (39 disposals, 6 marks, 7 clearances) were typically prolific. Josh Ward (28 disposals, 7 marks, 8 clearances) was the Hawks’ best.
Kai Lohmann - 3
Logan Morris - 2
Lachie Neale - 0.5
Will Ashcroft - 0.5
Melbourne 17.11.113 def Fremantle 17.7.109
One of the matches of the year saw Melbourne prove that they are a genuine premiership threat as they got home against Fremantle. Tom Sparrow (24 disposals, 2 goals), Kysaiah Pickett (27 disposals, 6 tackles, 2 goals) and Jake Bowey (24 disposals, 1 goal) were the leading ball winners for the Dees in the win. Luke Jackson (17 disposals, 7 tackles, 26 hitouts, 8 clearances) was very good for Freo, with Matthew Johnson (24 disposals, 8 marks, 1 goal) the leading ball winner. Jye Amiss kicked 5 goals from 8 disposals.
Tom Sparrow - 2.5
Kysaiah Pickett - 2.5
Luke Jackson - 1
Sydney 26.11.167 def Port Adelaide 10.10.70
The Swans steamrolled the Power to secure their top two spot on the ladder. Errol Gulden (39 disposals, 1 goal) was outstanding and may have secured three Brownlow votes for the third week running. Chad Warner (24 disposals, 3 goals), Nick Blakey (28 disposals, 6 marks), Isaac Heeney (24 disposals, 7 clearances, 1 goal) and Jai Serong (24 disposals, 11 tackles, 1 goal) were all effective for the Swans, while Charlie Curnow (5 goals, 11 disposals) kicked a bag. Jase Burgoyne (34 disposals, 8 marks, 6 tackles, 7 clearances) was a shining light for the Power.
Errol Gulden - 3
Chad Warner - 2
Jase Burgoyne - 0.5
Charlie Curnow - 0.5
Geelong 17.15.117 def Essendon 7.8.50
The Cats were far too good for the Bombers in wet conditions at GMHBA Stadium. Bailey Smith (38 disposals, 6 tackles, 8 clearances) was clearly the leading ball winner but it was the damaging scoring of Ollie Dempsey (4 goals, 19 disposals) and Ollie Henry (4 goals, 13 disposals) that was the difference. Zach Merrett (29 disposals, 8 clearances) and Dyson Sharp (27 disposals, 7 tackles, 7 clearances) were busy for the Bombers while Vigo Visentini (17 disposals, 33 hitouts) was good in the ruck.
Bailey Smith - 3
Ollie Dempsey - 2
Ollie Henry - 1
Adelaide 9.9.63 def Richmond 7.12.54
Adelaide survived an almighty scare from the Tigers in the wet but did enough to fall over the line. Izak Rankine was largely to thank for that as he made a mockery of the wet conditions in one of the highest-rated games in recent times to finish with 36 disposals, 6 marks, 6 tackles, 11 clearances and 1 goal. Jordan Dawson (35 disposals, 6 marks, 1 goal) and Sam Berry (24 disposals, 6 tackles, 7 clearances) are likely to challenge for votes. Jack Ross (29 disposals, 6 clearances) was best for the Tigers.
Izak Rankine - 3
Jordan Dawson - 2
Sam Berry - 1
GWS Giants 11.11.77 def by Gold Coast 11.13.79
The Suns have finally broken their drought of ten consecutive losses as they held on against the Giants. Brownlow medallist Matt Rowell was outstanding as he loved the wet conditions with 40 disposals, 16 tackles and a staggering 17 clearances for 182 fantasy points in a massive game. Touk Miller (23 disposals, 9 tackles, 3 goals), Noah Anderson (24 disposals, 10 tackles, 9 clearances) and Bodhi Uwland (20 disposals, 7 marks) were good for the Suns. Lachie Whitfield (26 disposals, 7 marks) was best for the Giants.
Matt Rowell - 3
Touk Miller - 2
Noah Anderson - 0.5
Bodhi Uwland - 0.5
West Coast 15.9.98 def by Collingwood 17.15.117
The Pies had to withstand a fight from the Eagles but will be happy to come home with the points to lock up a Wildcard berth. As if it wasn’t already a formality, Nick Daicos made sure the Brownlow Medal was his with another superb performance that included 39 disposals, 10 clearances and a goal despite plenty of close attention. Josh Daicos (35 disposals, 6 tackles), Dan McStay (20 disposals, 3 goals) and Darcy Cameron (24 disposals, 30 hitouts, 6 clearances) were also valuable contributors in the win. Harley Reid (29 disposals, 6 clearances, 1 goal) and Elliot Yeo (28 disposals, 6 tackles, 11 clearances, 1 goal) were best for the Eagles.
Nick Daicos - 3
Josh Daicos - 2
Dan McStay - 1
St Kilda 8.14.62 def by Carlton 16.10.106
An early hamstring injury to Nasiah Wanganeen-Milera took the wind out of the sails for the Saints as the Blues are now in the box seat to secure the last Wildcard place. Sam Walsh (26 disposals, 7 clearances, 1 goal) and Patrick Cripps (26 disposals, 6 clearances) were good in the middle, while Marc Pittonet (17 disposals, 25 hitouts, 7 clearances, 2 goals) won the ruck battle, but it was the dynamic Francis Evans (22 disposals, 8 marks, 1 goal) and Will Hayward (19 disposals, 9 marks, 2 goals) who created headaches up forward. Max Hall (30 disposals, 6 marks, 10 clearances, 2 goals) and Brad Hill (31 disposals) lead the way for the Saints.
Francis Evans - 3
Max Hall - 2
Brad Hill - 1
For those who need a refresher on how our Brownlow vote predictor system works, we assign 6 votes per game so that our total votes are the same as the official 3-2-1 system, however we break up those votes as we see fit across potentially more than three players. Some games are really tough to call which way the votes will go, so a better predictive model is to split performances and assign half points to each player where there is doubt. So for example if two players dominate and it's too hard to split their performance, they are given 2.5 votes each, with the remaining 1 vote given to another player(s). This will give us a predictive total closer to their true total, rather than guessing. We can then form a 'range' for each player (i.e. a min and max we think players can poll) with the thinking behind this that the variations from the half votes will even out over the long term.
If you intend on using our Brownlow votes to bet why not consider one of the best Australian sports betting sites which offer some great features for new customers. Also be sure to check out our Twitter page at @Before_You_Bet and continue returning to the site for our AFL tips.
