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35-631: The voting procedure for the award is: Prior to 2011, each player cast a single vote for the award. The award is roughly analogous to the Brownlow Medal , the traditional " best and fairest " award in the league. However, the voting system is completely different: the Brownlow Medal awards votes on a game-by-game basis, while Leigh Matthews Trophy awards a single vote based on the entire season. In particular, this has meant that key-position players have been more likely to win this award than

70-437: A footballer was something that over-shadowed his liabilities. Fothergill made an impact straight away as he played brilliant football, winning a Copeland Trophy as Collingwood's best and fairest in his debut season. In 1938, Fothergill was once again a dominant member of the side, winning his second consecutive Copeland Trophy at the age of 18, and two years later, in 1940, Fothergill won his third Copeland Trophy and topped

105-712: A player from contention for the Matthews Trophy. In 1996 , Corey McKernan finished tied in the Brownlow voting with that season's winners James Hird and Michael Voss , but he was disqualified from the Brownlow because of a disciplinary suspension. However, McKernan won the AFLPA MVP award that season. The following players have won the Leigh Matthews Trophy multiple times. Brownlow Medal The Charles Brownlow Trophy , better known as

140-557: A two-match suspension. Fothergill had signed with Williamstown until the end of 1943, but when VFA competition was suspended from 1942 until 1944 due to World War II, his career at Williamstown came to an end as the contract he signed had lapsed. He joined the army in 1942, and was forced to move on after a knee injury when in Darwin, Northern Territory . When the VFA resumed competition in 1945, Fothergill, having never formally been cleared from

175-535: Is primarily because players who are most valuable to their teams in key or defensive positions tend not to attract enough attention to feature amongst the top three players on the ground. It is also perceived that umpires may not be best suited to judging the quality of gameplay. This view has existed for a very long time, appearing in opinion columns even as early as the 1930s. Several prominent coaches, including Kevin Sheedy and Leigh Matthews , have publicly criticised

210-572: The Brownlow Medal (and informally as Charlie ), is awarded to the best and fairest player in the Australian Football League (AFL) during the home-and-away season, as determined by votes cast by the four officiating field umpires after each game. It is the most prestigious award for individual players in the AFL. It is also widely acknowledged as the highest individual honour in the sport of Australian rules football . The medal

245-525: The Recorder Cup and VFA Medal as best and fairest in the VFA, polling a record 62 votes and winning by a huge margin of 29 votes. In his 20 games, Fothergill kicked 78 goals and also won the Williamstown best and fairest award. He was made vice-captain but captained the side for much of the season due to the absence of captain-coach, Gordon Ogden, due to illness, injuries, business commitments and

280-539: The WAFL 's Sandover Medal first being awarded since 1921. Over time, all three awards have migrated towards similar rules regarding voting and eligibility. Excluding the change of the monogram from VFL to AFL in 1990, the design, shape and size of the medallion have been virtually unchanged since 1924. To determine the best player, the four field umpires (not the goal umpires or boundary umpires) confer after each home-and-away match and award 3 votes, 2 votes and 1 vote to

315-516: The Australian War Memorial. It is variously claimed the medal was originally a piece of an aircraft wing or part of a kitchen utensil. The War Memorial states that it may have been an old soccer medallion found in stores and refashioned and engraved. The presentation was made by former Brownlow Medallist Wilfred Smallhorn , who was too ill to play. Des Fothergill Desmond Hugh Fothergill (15 July 1920 – 16 March 1996)

350-428: The Brownlow Medal. For example, Wayne Carey , generally regarded as one of the league's all-time great key-position players, never won the Brownlow Medal, but he won this honour twice. The Leigh Matthews Trophy is strictly for the most valuable player , not the best and fairest as is the case with the Brownlow Medal. A league disciplinary suspension, which renders a player ineligible for the Brownlow, does not exclude

385-509: The Tribunal's Match Review Panel judged as being worthy of a one-game suspension, before applying adjustments based on a player's good or bad record, or for accepting an early guilty plea – meaning that players with a good record or early plea could be ineligible despite avoiding suspension, or a player with a bad record could be eligible despite having been suspended. Umpires cast their votes for each game independent of eligibility criteria of

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420-451: The award is upheld by the tight security and secrecy surrounding the votes. Once the umpires make their decision, the votes are locked away and transported by armoured security vehicles. No one except the three umpires knows exactly who has been voted for, and as different umpires vote on different games, no one can be sure of who will win. Unlike most award ceremonies, the votes are not tallied or even opened until they are actually announced on

455-577: The award's inception in 1924 has the count been held outside of Melbourne: when it was held in Sydney in 1999, and in 2020 and 2021 when the event was held virtually due to the COVID-19 pandemic preventing the event from being held in Melbourne. In years past, prospective Grand Final players have attended the ceremony in person, but in recent years non-Victorian Grand Final teams have declined to attend

490-485: The ceremony due to the inconvenience of travel in such an important week; a live video link to Brownlow functions in their home city is done instead. The event itself consists of the votes for each match being read out in succession by the CEO of the AFL, interspersed with a retrospective look at highlights from each round of the season and commentary from the broadcast network's usual football commentary team. The integrity of

525-536: The club, returned to Collingwood that season after his three-year VFL ban for crossing without a clearance expired. He dominated at half-forward for the club again, despite being slower and having injury problems. In 1946 Fothergill kicked 62 goals in seventeen games and was the VFL's leading goalkicker in the home-and-home season, although he ultimately finished second for the League's Leading Goalkicker Medal after his total

560-445: The clubʼs goalkicking with 56. Also in 1940, Fothergill and South Melbourne player Herbie Matthews tied for first place in Brownlow Medal voting with a then-record 32 votes. At the time, neither player won the Brownlow Medal itself, as their records could not be separated on countback and there was no provision for a shared medal, but both men were awarded Brownlow Medals in 1989 when the VFL decided to retrospectively eliminate

595-425: The countback from the award. In September 1937, The Argus selected Fothergill in its team of 1937's first-year players. In 1941, Fothergill followed teammate and friend Ron Todd to Victorian Football Association (VFA) club Williamstown without receiving a clearance from the VFL, as many other high-profile League players had done during the VFA's throw-pass era . In his sole season with Williamstown, he won

630-482: The decision to have the votes cast by the umpires), as the 1924 illuminated facsimile expressly states: You were selected as the fairest and best player and we have pleasure in presenting the accompanying Gold Medal in recognition of those sterling qualities. The VFL was the last of the three elite leagues to strike an award for league best and fairest, with the SANFL 's Magarey Medal being first awarded in 1898, and

665-413: The finest small players of his era, winning almost every available accolade at both club and league level. From Collingwood Tech , Fothergill was a gifted sportsman who made his VFL debut aged 16, for Collingwood in 1937. Fothergill was a small midfielder/half-forward who seemed too small at the start, at 172 centimetres (5 ft 8 in) and 73 kilograms (11 st 7 lb), but his brilliance as

700-490: The night, so the drama is maintained until late on the actual night, when the result sometimes comes down to the final round of votes. From 1959 until 1974 radio stations including 3UZ , 3KZ and 3AW broadcast the vote counts. 1116 SEN now covers the count. Direct television telecasts began in 1970, when the venue was the Dallas Brooks Hall , and have occurred every year since. Some bookmakers offer bets on

735-418: The number of votes he has received. A player remains eligible for the Brownlow Medal under the following circumstances: The application of the ineligibility criteria has remained fairly consistent throughout the history of the award, with some subtle changes, since it was introduced in 1931. The main exception was from 2005 until 2014, when a player would become ineligible if he committed an infringement that

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770-488: The original medal and award replica medals to the two winners. In 1989, the eight players who since the inception of the award had tied on votes but lost on a countback were awarded retrospective medals. The fairest component of the medal is achieved by making ineligible any player who is suspended by the AFL Tribunal during the home-and-away season. An ineligible player cannot win the Brownlow Medal, regardless of

805-424: The past: Since the rules were changed after the 1980 season, if two or more eligible players score the equal highest number of votes, each wins a Brownlow medal. Up to 1980, if two or more players were tied, a single winner was chosen on a countback: Even with these considerations, these countbacks failed to separate Des Fothergill and Herbie Matthews , who tied for the medal in 1940. The league decided to keep

840-412: The players they regard as the best, second best and third best in the match respectively. On the awards night, the votes from each match are tallied, and the player(s) with the highest number of votes is awarded the medal (subject to eligibility – see below). The current voting system has been used for the vast majority of Brownlow Medal counts. There have been different voting systems for short periods in

875-424: The players; i.e. umpires can cast votes for players who have already been suspended during that season if they perceive them to be amongst the best on the ground. Prior to 1991, votes could not be awarded to a player in a match in which he was reported, but this rule was eliminated in 1991 so that a player would not be disadvantaged if he would have gained votes in a match in which he was reported but later cleared by

910-437: The tribunal. On three occasions, an ineligible player has tallied the highest number of Brownlow votes: The voting system has come under scrutiny because the medal is almost always won by midfield players, with relatively few key-position players ever winning. Some of the game's greatest players in these positions never even came close to winning the Brownlow despite having high reputations amongst their peers and coaches. This

945-452: The voting process. The eligibility system has also come under criticism. The argument has been made that many offences worthy only of a one-match suspension are caused by negligent play, rather than intentionally unfair play, and hence that suspension is not a reasonable measure of fairness. The temporary break from tradition under the demerit points-based tribunal system (which saw player being ineligible despite not having served suspensions)

980-400: The winner of the Brownlow Medal. A number of well-publicised plunges on the betting odds of supposed winners has led to increasingly elaborate security measures to ensure the Brownlow votes are kept secret until the vote count. Since 1987, the theme used in the moments after the winning player has been announced is the end credits theme from The Untouchables . During World War II, there

1015-538: The years, the award ceremony has become increasingly elaborate, with footballers and their dates gradually becoming more fashion-conscious. This aspect of the night has become widely reported by gossip columns, with the red carpet arrival often humorously referred to as the 'Gownlow'. The ceremony is currently held at Crown Melbourne on the Monday five days prior to the AFL Grand Final . Only three times since

1050-583: Was also an accomplished cricketer, playing cricket in the summer throughout his football career. A right-handed batsman and leg-break bowler, he played 27 first-class cricket matches for Victoria , making 1404 runs at 39.00 with one century. He made his hundred against South Australia in 1947 and once made 99 against the Australian Services XI . He played district cricket for Northcote , appearing in 149 matches between 1935–36 and 1952–53 with strong all-round performances, averaging 41.05 with

1085-399: Was also criticised as confusing. Prominent players, including dual-winner Chris Judd , have indicated a desire to have the eligibility criterion removed from the award (effectively eliminating the fairest component altogether); but this view is not universally held, and 1958 winner Neil Roberts stated in 1988 that he would hand back his medal if the fairness criterion were removed. Over

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1120-646: Was an Australian rules footballer who played for Collingwood Football Club in the Victorian Football League (VFL) and for Williamstown Football Club in the Victorian Football Association (VFA). He was also a noted cricketer , representing Victoria in the Sheffield Shield . In a short but brilliant football career interrupted by World War II and ended by injury, Fothergill was recognized as one of

1155-508: Was an Australian rules football competition amongst the prisoners of war held at Singapore 's Changi prison. There were four teams named "Geelong", "Essendon", "Collingwood" and "Carlton". The standard was reportedly high, with some of the players having appeared in the major league in Australia. At the end of the final season in 1943, Corporal Peter Chitty won a makeshift award known as the "Changi Brownlow", which his family later donated to

1190-541: Was first awarded by the Victorian Football League (VFL). It was created and named in honour of Charles Brownlow , a former Geelong Football Club footballer (1880–1891) and club secretary (1885–1923), and VFL president (1918–19), who had died in January 1924 after an extended illness. Although the award is generally spoken of the best and fairest , the award's specific criterion is fairest and best , reflecting an emphasis on sportsmanship and fair play (this also explains

1225-757: Was passed in the finals by Essendon 's Bill Brittingham . He was forced to retire in 1947 due to a leg injury. Fothergill was named in the Collingwood Team of the Century , and was inducted into the Australian Football Hall of Fame in 2000. The award for the best young player in the modern Victorian Football League (which is the successor to the former VFA) is named the Fothergill–Round–Mitchell Medal in honour of Fothergill, Barry Round and Sam Mitchell . Fothergill

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