The Crows were the big winners in Round 21 as they climbed to the top of the AFL ladder with a great win over Hawthorn, while Brisbane too care of Collingwood. It leaves the Hawks vulernable with a massive clash against the Pies next week. The Bulldogs, Suns and Cats look to be peaking at the right time of the year as they also had thumping wins in Round 21.
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 2025 Brownlow Medal Leaderboard page and check out the latest Brownlow Odds.
2025 AFL Brownlow Round 21 Overview
Some predictable results but some fantastic performances during Round 21 action that could potentially shake up the Brownlow leaderboard late in the season. Noah Anderson is right back in contention after a best-on-ground performance while rival Nick Daicos might miss out in a Collingwood loss. Meanwhile the form of Nasiah Wanganeen-Milera and Brodie Grundy has been astounding as they are making rapid climbs up the leaderboard. Other notables in the votes this round include Max Holmes, Bailey Smith, Jordan Dawson, Marcus Bontempelli, Max Gawn and Hugh McLuggage.
Check out our 2025 Round 21 Brownlow votes below and our updated 2025 Brownlow leaderboard here!
2025 AFL Brownlow Votes - Round 21 Match Analysis
Western Bulldogs 19.18.132 def GWS Giants 6.8.44
It was billed as a battle of two emerging contenders, but the Dogs absolutely obliterated the Giants in an awesome performance. Marcus Bontempelli (27 disposals, 9 clearances) led from the front, Tim English (20 disposals, 11 marks, 22 hitouts, 2 goals) was enormous in the ruck while the twin towers of Aaron Naughton (20 disposals, 8 marks, 5 goals) and Sam Darcy (13 disposals, 5 goals) were unstoppable. Lachie Ash (36 disposals, 12 marks) and Lachie Whitfield (29 disposals, 13 marks) were kept extremely busy in defence while Finn Callaghan (23 disposals, 6 marks) tried hard on a poor night for the Giants.
Aaron Naughton - 2.5
Marcus Bontempelli - 2.5
Tim English - 1
Adelaide 15.11.101 def Hawthorn 13.9.87
A cracking Friday night game full of twists and turns saw the Crows come out on top and leave the Hawks staring down the barrel of missing the top eight. Jordan Dawson (21 disposals, 11 tackles, 2 goals) turned the game around in the second quarter, while Izak Rankine (16 disposals, 3 goals) was the match winner in the last. Josh Worrell (20 disposals, 5 marks) and Mark Keane (21 disposals, 6 marks) were immense in defence while Riley Thilthorpe (12 disposals, 8 marks, 4 goals) was a presence all evening. Will Day (19 disposals, 9 tackles, 7 clearances, 1 goal) was good before cramping up late while Josh Battle (22 disposals, 8 marks) tried hard in the Hawks defence. Great game.
Jordan Dawson - 3
Izak Rankine - 2
Josh Worrell - 0.5
Riley Thilthorpe - 0.5
Melbourne 21.13.139 def West Coast 8.8.56
Melbourne did what they had to do as they smashed the Eagles for a much-needed win. Max Gawn (21 disposals, 8 marks, 29 hitouts, 1 goal) led from the front, with Jack Viney (25 disposals, 8 tackles, 13 clearances, 1 goal), Christian Salem (30 disposals, 9 marks) and Kysaiah Pickett (26 disposals) good ball winners. Bailey Fritsch continued his good recent form with 4 goals from 17 disposals and 6 marks. Ryan Maric (29 disposals, 1 goal) was good for the Eagles.
Max Gawn - 3
Jack Viney - 2
Bailey Fritsch - 1
Gold Coast 16.11.107 def Richmond 2.11.23
The Suns thumped the Tigers in a big percentage booster. Noah Anderson was again one of their best with 38 disposals and 8 clearances to push closer to the top of our Brownlow leaderboard. Matt Rowell (27 disposals, 9 tackles, 12 clearances), Touk Miller (25 disposals) and Brayden Fiorini (24 disposals, 7 marks, 1 goal) were dominant in the middle, while Ethan Reid (13 disposals, 9 marks, 2 goals) provided a great target. Nick Vlastuin (20 disposals, 8 marks) was excellent for the Tigers.
Noah Anderson - 3
Matt Rowell - 2
Nick Vlastuin - 1
Sydney 9.14.68 def Essendon 7.12.54
It was a scrap for the Swans but they did enough to hold off the gallant Bombers. Brodie Grundy dominated with a massive 39 disposals, 8 marks, 32 hitouts and 13 clearances and should be on his way to a spot in the All Australian side. Errol Gulden (30 disposals, 7 marks, 1 goal) and Nick Blakey (28 disposals, 10 marks) seem likely to fill out the minor votes. Justin McInerney (27 disposals, 8 marks, 2 goals) and Isaac Heeney (28 disposals, 7 marks, 7 clearances, 1 goal) were also good. Andrew McGrath (26 disposals, 7 clearances) was best for the Dons.
Brodie Grundy - 3
Errol Gulden - 1.5
Nick Blakey - 1.5
Collingwood 10.5.65 def by Brisbane 14.8.92
In a heavyweight bout on Saturday night, it was the Lions who upset the Pies at the G to see Collingwood slip from top spot on the ladder. Hugh McLuggage (34 disposals, 7 tackles, 8 clearances), Lachie Neale (36 disposals, 12 clearances) and Josh Dunkley (31 disposals, 6 tackles, 9 clearances) were excellent in the middle while Logan Morris was a star up forward with 6 goals from 14 disposals and 6 marks. Nick Daicos (29 disposals, 6 clearances, 1 goal) and Josh Daicos (29 disposals) tried hard but may not be in the votes this round.
Hugh McLuggage - 2.5
Logan Morris - 2.5
Lachie Neale - 1
St Kilda 11.12.78 def North Melbourne 10.9.69
It was a tight scrap at Marvel but the Saints held their nerve once again to inflict more pain on the Roos season. Nasiah Wanganeen-Milera was again sensational as he amassed 36 disposals, 9 clearances and 9 score involvements. Rowan Marshall (24 disposals, 6 marks, 32 hitouts, 1 goal) was the best big man on the ground, while Hunter Clark (25 disposals, 7 marks) and Jack Sinclair (26 disposals) were useful. Harry Sheezel (33 disposals, 1 goal) and Colby McKercher (36 disposals, 8 marks, 1 goal) couldn’t have done much more for the Roos.
Nasiah Wanganeen-Milera - 3
Rowan Marshall - 2
Harry Sheezel - 0.5
Colby McKercher - 0.5
Geelong 23.15.153 def Port Adelaide 9.11.65
The Cats are purring at the right time of the season with a thumping win over a hapless Power. Max Holmes (35 disposals, 7 marks, 2 goals) was superb, with Gryan Miers (30 disposals, 6 tackles, 1 goal), Bailey Smith (30 disposals, 7 targets, 8 clearances) and Jack Bowes (24 disposals, 2 goals) also having a good day. Jeremy Cameron was subdued but still bobbed up to bag 6 goals from 8 disposals. Ollie Wines (32 disposals, 8 tackles, 8 clearances) was good for Port, while Jordan Sweet (16 disposals, 53 hitouts) controlled the ruck.
Max Holmes - 3
Gryan Miers - 2
Bailey Smith - 1
Fremantle 15.4.94 def Carlton 10.7.67
The Blues threatened to cause an upset but the Dockers surged in the last quarter to get the points and remain in finals contention. Luke Jackson (27 disposals, 6 tackles, 18 hitouts, 8 clearances, 1 goal), Jordan Clark (30 disposals) and Andrew Brayshaw (23 disposals, 8 tackles, 10 clearances) were best for Fremantle but votes will likely also go towards the Blues. Patrick Cripps (36 disposals, 9 tackles, 9 clearances) and George Hewett (36 disposals, 6 tackles, 7 clearances) both stood up in the middle in a better performance for the Blues.
Luke Jackson - 3
Patrick Cripps - 2
Jordan Clark - 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.
