The AFL regular season is over with Round 24 wrapping up the action for eight teams. Six teams will enjoy a week's rest for the first week of the finals while Melbourne, Carlton, Collingwood and the Western Bulldogs are the four teams who will make history in the AFL's first Wildcard Round. The Blues have all the momentum after they knocked off the Dockers in the final round, while Melbourne had a disappointing loss to the Bulldogs which left them in a do-or-die situation next week!
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 24 Overview
The 2026 AFL home and away season is complete and Nick Daicos will undoubtedly be crowned the 2026 Brownlow medallist, despite his lowest disposal game of the season in Round 24.
Lachie Neale, Sam Walsh, Marcus Bontempelli, Ed Richards, Max Gawn, Bailey Smith, Izak Rankine and Errol Gulden all finish the season strongly and should be in the votes this round.
Check out our 2026 Round 24 Brownlow votes below and our updated 2026 Brownlow leaderboard here!
2026 AFL Brownlow Votes - Round 24 Match Analysis
St Kilda 12.8.80 def by Gold Coast 14.19.103
The Suns ended the season with a win in a lacklustre, and at times frustrating, game for both teams. There were some big statistical numbers in this one with very little pressure in the midfield. Touk Miller (40 disposals, 7 marks, 6 tackles, 1 goal) was excellent, while John Noble (42 disposals, 13 marks), Noah Anderson (37 disposals, 8 marks, 6 clearances, 1 goal) and Matt Rowell (28 disposals, 8 tackles, 11 clearances) also racked up plenty of touches. Brad Hill (42 disposals) swooped on everything in his 300th, while Max Hall (37 disposals, 8 clearances, 1 goal) was also excellent.
Touk Miller - 3
Max Hall - 2
Brad Hill - 1
Collingwood 15.6.96 def by Brisbane 15.9.159
The Lions locked in the double chance with a thumping of Collingwood on Friday night in a high scoring shootout. Logan Morris was the star with 8 goals from 15 disposals and 8 marks. Lachie Neale (35 disposals, 16 clearances) was enormous at the coalface with Josh Dunkley (27 disposals, 6 tackles) also strong. Jordan De Goey (32 disposals, 6 marks, 6 clearances, 2 goals) was best for the Pies, with young gun Sam Swadling (32 disposals, 6 marks, 1 goal) continuing to impress.
Logan Morris - 3
Lachie Neale - 2
Jordan De Goey - 1
Carlton 18.11.119 def Fremantle 12.10.82
The Dockers kicked the first four goals of the game, but nothing could stop the Blues juggernaut as they go into Wildcard round full of confidence. Jagga Smith (31 disposals, 1 goal) and Sam Walsh (32 disposals, 8 clearances, 1 goal) were superb, with Francis Evans (5 goals, 11 disposals) and Ben Ainsworth (20 disposals, 10 marks, 3 goals) hitting the scoreboard. Caleb Serong (23 disposals) was the leading ball winner for the Dockers but hard to see anyone but the Blues in the votes here.
Jagga Smith - 2.5
Sam Walsh - 2.5
Francis Evans - 1
Melbourne 12.15.87 def by Western Bulldogs 16.12.108
Melbourne blew a chance for a guaranteed week off as they were rolled by the Bulldogs at the MCG. Ed Richards (30 disposals, 8 clearances, 1 goal) and Marcus Bontempelli (27 disposals, 11 marks, 2 goals) were the difference as they won the on-ball battle. Josh Kennedy (26 disposals, 2 goals) and Joel Frejah (24 disposals, 7 tackles, 1 goal) were also important in the win. Max Gawn (28 disposals, 59 hitouts, 10 clearances) monstered the ruck duel, while Harrison Petty (17 disposals, 11 marks, 3 goals) plucked everything that came his way.
Ed Richards - 3
Marcus Bontempelli - 2
Max Gawn - 1
Geelong 20.13.133 def Richmond 11.10.76
The Cats were far too good for the Tigers to secure a week’s rest in the first week of the finals. Bailey Smith (40 disposals, 6 tackles, 3 goals) didn’t stop running, while Shaun Mannagh (33 disposals, 7 tackles, 3 goals) was brilliant early to setup the win. Ollie Dempsey (27 disposals, 6 marks, 6 tackles, 1 goal) and Patrick Dangerfield (22 disposals, 7 marks, 3 goals) were also very good for the Cats. Tim Taranto (36 disposals, 7 tackles, 10 clearances, 1 goal) was once again the shining light for the Tigers.
Bailey Smith - 3
Shaun Mannagh - 2
Ollie Dempsey - 1
Adelaide 24.13.157 vs GWS Giants 15.11.101
The Crows also locked up a top six spot with a big win over the Giants. Izak Rankine was once again a star with 35 disposals, 12 clearances and 4 goals, even when sitting out half of the last quarter. Jordan Dawson (32 disposals) won plenty of ball, while the big dogs Taylor Walker (6 goals, 13 disposals) and Riley Thilthorpe (21 disposals, 9 marks, 3 goals) were dominant. Jake Stringer popped up with 6 goals from 12 disposals for the Giants.
Izak Rankine - 3
Taylor Walker - 2
Riley Thilthorpe - 1
Essendon 14.11.95 def by Port Adelaide 16.9.105
The Bombers were close to pinching another win but the Power kicked the last two goals to get the points to leave the Bombers with the wooden spoon. Jase Burgoyne (30 disposals, 8 tackles, 7 clearances, 2 goal) was outstanding, with Ollie Wines (27 disposals, 1 goal), Darcy Byrne-Jones (26 disposals) and Mitch Georgiades (5 goals, 15 disposals, 9 marks) also among the Power best. Will Setterfield (32 disposals, 7 marks, 10 tackles, 7 clearances) and Zach Merrett (32 disposals, 7 marks, 1 goal) won plenty of balls for the Bombers, while Nate Caddy (6 goals, 17 disposals, 6 marks) gave us a glimpse into his future.
Jase Burgoyne - 3
Nate Caddy - 2
Mitch Georgiades - 1
Sydney 17.21.123 def North Melbourne 10.10.70
The Swans overcame one of the toughest weeks in the club’s history to claim an emotional win over the Roos. Errol Gulden (41 disposals, 6 clearances, 1055 metres gained) has finished the season with a massive rush with potentially five best-on-ground performances in a row, and his second week above 1,000 metres gained. Brodie Grundy (26 disposals, 28 hitouts, 7 clearances), James Rowbottom (19 disposals, 12 tackles) and Braeden Campbell (20 disposals, 2 goals) were also good. Jy Simpkin (26 disposals, 8 marks, 8 tackles, 6 clearances, 1 goal) finished off a great season in style, with Luke Parker (26 disposals, 6 marks) and Cameron Zurhaar (19 disposals, 9 marks, 2 goals) useful for the Roos.
Errol Gulden - 3
Brodie Grundy - 2
Jy Simpkin - 1
West Coast 6.9.45 def by Hawthorn 16.11.107
The Hawks got the win in the wet but it wasn’t big enough to pinch 3rd place on the ladder. It was an even performance from the Hawks which will make Brownlow votes interesting. Will Day (23 disposals, 6 clearances, 2 goals), Connor Macdonald (23 disposals, 6 marks) and Josh Ward (24 disposals, 6 tackles) were good, while Jack Gunston (5 goals, 8 disposals, 6 marks) and Nick Watson (12 disposals, 3 goals) hit the scoreboard. Watson’s Mark of the Year contender was also a highlight. Milan Murdock (24 disposals, 3 goals) should be in the votes for the Eagles while Tim Kelly (28 disposals) was the leading ball winner on the ground.
Will Day - 3
Milan Murdock - 2
Jack Gunston - 0.5
Nick Watson - 0.5
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.
