Midfielder beats previous record of 45 votes
Marcus Bontempelli and Bailey Smith are runners-up
Collingwood superstar Nick Daicos has claimed his first Brownlow Medal in a victory with a record 47 votes.
The 23-year-old surged to a nine votes from his first three games, led from round 11, then registered six consecutive best-on-ground performances to seal victory by round 21.
Daicos won the AFL’s greatest individual honour from Western Bulldogs champion and three-time runner-up Marcus Bontempelli (34) and Geelong star Bailey Smith (33).
The Magpie had 13 three-vote performances and beat the previous votes record of 45 set by Carlton champion Patrick Cripps in 2024.
Daicos, the son of Magpies great Peter Daicos, prevailed after runner-up finishes in the past two seasons, a third placing in 2023 and an eighth place in his debut year of 2022.
The dynamic midfielder had already snared the AFL Players Association and AFL Coaches Association player-of-the-year awards this season.
It was the fourth consecutive year that Daicos was favourite, and with the umpires able to consult statistics for the first time, the star Magpie was irresistible.
Daicos averaged 34.9 disposals, 5.7 clearances, 6.7 inside-50s and 1.1 goals.
The playmaker was edged out by Gold Coast’s Matt Rowell last year and Cripps the year before, when Daicos polled 38 votes.
The Collingwood vice-captain – widely expected to be named the club’s skipper next season – is the club’s first Brownlow medallist since Dane Swan in 2011.
Sydney stars Isaac Heeney and Chad Warner were not at the ceremony as they polled 26 and 12 votes respectively.
The pair were among five Swans stood down by Sydney for breaching club standards and were not invited to the Brownlow function at Crown Palladium, but remained eligible for the award.
Separately, a police investigation into sexual assault allegations related to what allegedly took place in a room at East Melbourne’s Pullman Hotel in August is ongoing.
Brisbane’s Conor McKenna won goal of the year while Hawthorn dynamo Nick Watson was awarded mark of the year.