Angry footy fans lash out over stunning detail in Patrick Cripps’ record Brownlow Medal win
As Carlton fans pay tribute to their historic captain following Monday night’s Brownlow Medal ceremony, many football fans believe Patrick Cripps has highlighted a major problem with the award.
The 29-year-old broke the Brownlow vote record on Monday night with 45 to win his second medal in three seasons. Collingwood youngster Nick Daicos also broke the old record, finishing second with 38.
This has led many football fans to accuse referees of favouring players and basing votes on a player’s name rather than his performance.
Western Bulldogs supporters were furious that their star player Marcus Bontempelli was 26 points behind Cripps.
‘Patrick Cripps is a worthy #BrownlowMedal winner but was he 23 votes better than Neale and 26 votes better than Bont!?’ asked one football fan.
‘Daicos also broke the all-time record, losing by 7 votes. It feels like referees are just failing at this point.’
‘To put the seriousness and absurdity of 45 votes into perspective… Patty Cripps got 4 more votes than Marcus Bontempelli and Lachie Neale COMBINED,’ noted another.
‘Don’t get me wrong, Cripps is incredible but Bontempelli only got 19 votes and made many more huge mistakes. Seriously @AFL you guys need to look into this seriously,’ warned another football fan.
Others pointed out that umpires rated Cripps’ season 10 votes better than 2017, when Dustin Martin dominated the AFL and led his Tigers to the championship title.
“If Cripps gets 45 votes, Dustin Martin should have gotten 60 in 2017,” posted one Dusty fan.
“Anyone who thinks this was better than Dustin Martin’s best season is mistaken,” added another.
Carlton star Patrick Cripps was delighted after receiving his second Brownlow Medal
Cripps joined Carlton icon Chris Judd (left) as winners of two Brownlow Medals, but not all football fans believe the voting system was fair
St Kilda fans were furious that Cripps scored the maximum three points in round 24 despite Carlton losing to the Saints.
Three Carlton players had more possession than Brownlow’s winner, while a host of St Kilda players were ignored, including Jack Higgins, who took the game from Carlton, and youngster Mattaes Phillipou, who put in a great performance.
‘Ridiculous. Did nothing until the third when Stocker got injured. Wasn’t even the best Carlton player,’ fumed one Saints fan.
‘It’s a bloody joke. Carlton lost a few games but he gets 3 votes. Definitely the umpires favourite,’ posted another.
Others pointed out that Brisbane Lions star Lachie Neale received the same preferential treatment when he won the award last year.
‘Lachie Neale (37 disposals, 7 marks, 6 tackles, 10 clearances) and no votes. The umpires have certainly changed their favourites this season,’ someone posted.
‘How am I supposed to explain to my children that Patrick Cripps and Lachie Neale have as many Brownlows as Goodes, Ablett and Judd?’ asked another.
But Cripps did have his defenders, with many arguing that he was the clear standout player in an injury-plagued outfit, which explained why he got so many votes.
The fact that Cripps (pictured with his wife Monique after winning his second Brownlow) received more votes than Marcus Bontempelli and Lachie Neale combined raised alarm bells among some fans
Coleman Medal duo Charlie Curnow (ankle) and Harry McKay (quad) missed large parts of the season, as did key players Sam Docherty (knee) and Tom De Koning (foot).
“Did Carlton have many other good players? I think that’s the biggest problem with the current voting system,” one fan posted.
“He doesn’t have any teammates taking votes from him so he’ll do well in the polls. That said, he’s a great player and a worthy winner,” added another.
Cripps was proud to receive the award again but said the club was eager to end its Championship drought.
“We are a good club at the moment, but not a great club yet. We feel we can be a great club,” Cripps said.
“We still have some work to do. I know we can do great things.”