Carlton AFL captain Patrick Cripps has won his first Brownlow Medal in a thrilling count, sneaking past favourite Lachie Neale in the final round.
Cripps snatched the lead with three votes in Carlton's heartbreaking round-23 loss to Collingwood to win the AFL's highest individual honour on 29 votes ahead of Brisbane gun Neale (28 votes) and Gold Coast's Touk Miller (27).
He is the first Blue to win the Brownlow since former skipper Chris Judd in 2010.
"Mate, I don't know whether to laugh or cry," Cripps said as he accepted the prestigious medal.
"I loved footy growing up as a kid, and I still remember being at boarding school back in WA, and I used to always ask my mum, 'Make sure you sign me out, give me leave on Brownlow night', because I used to love watching it.
"My older brother Daniel used to sign me out and we always used to watch it together. It's unbelievable.
"I can't put it into words at the moment but it's a massive honour and I'm absolutely pumped."
Sunday night's count, moved from the traditional Monday night timeslot due to the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II, went down to the wire.
Miller went into the final round with the lead, but failed to poll, while Neale snatched a slender lead with one vote against Melbourne.
But Cripps, in the final announcement of the count, drew the maximum votes for 35 disposals and 12 clearances in the one-point loss to Collingwood that ultimately cost the Blues a finals berth.
Overall, Cripps polled in 13 games and earned the maximum three votes seven times.
He arguably could have added a couple more votes to his tally but received just one for his three-goal, 30-disposal effort against Richmond in round one.
The 27-year-old was also nearly ineligible.
Cripps was suspended after round 21 for a bump that concussed Brisbane's Callum Ah Chee — which would have ruled him ineligible for the Brownlow — but had it overturned at the tribunal.
Cripps, 27, first took the lead in round seven but was pegged back by Neale, who led for much of the count from round eight.
Fremantle star Andrew Brayshaw finished fourth on 25 votes but failed to poll in the final three rounds.
Look back at how the count unfolded in our live blog.
Key events
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Live updates
By Dean Bilton
Leaderboard
- Patrick Cripps - 29
- Lachie Neale - 28
- Touk Miller - 27
- Andrew Brayshaw - 25
- Clayton Oliver - 25
- Christian Petracca - 24
By Dean Bilton
Congratulations Patrick Cripps
A deserving winner to close out a pretty memorable Brownlow night. In a very 2022 touch, it took until the very last votes of the night for the result to be settled, and Patrick Cripps's inspiration efforts in that round 23 epic against Collingwood was enough to win him the medal.
It was a stunning season for Cripps, who shrugged off years of injury restrictions and doubts over his ability to recover to become the most dominant midfielder in the game. His combination of size, strength and intelligence around the ground make him a fearsome prospect, and this year he became more of an attacking weapon than ever before.
Cripps has been a Brownlow Medallist in waiting for years, and it certainly feels right to see him standing there with the medal around his neck.
Thanks so much for joining me tonight! Turned out to be a pretty good one, hey? Stay close to ABC Sport all week as we have more from tonight's festivities and then start to build up to Saturday's grand final, where Geelong and Sydney will play off for the ultimate glory. Until then, have a great night.
By Dean Bilton
Patrick Cripps on that round 23 heartbreaker
The Blues didn't get the win, but Cripps got the three votes he needed to win the Brownlow. Of course, he says he would trade those results in a heartbreak.
"It was a weird time. The one thing I did notice was the crowd in the last game. Carlton and Collingwood fans are so passionate, and that game was so special to play in. I remember as a kid, I just wanted to play AFL footy in front of big crowds. When I walked out that day, I thought 'this is what footy is all about'."
By Dean Bilton
Patrick Cripps on coming out of his shell
He is speaking so well tonight, but it wasn't so easy for this country boy from WA.
"I couldn't string two words together in front of the media. No lie, in 2015 I was so nervous. It's probably lucky we didn't play too well at that time, because I was always trying to avoid the media. I used to stutter in front of the media. I remember I was at the club one day and Marc Murphy did a press conference, and he spoke so well. At the time, I thought that I'd really love to be able to speak that well one day. A lot of people helped me for a long time, and after six months of practice interviews it got to the point where I was comfortable."
By Dean Bilton
Patrick Cripps receives his medal
He's speaking now, about his upbringing, his family and his footy.
"I was in Europe recently with my parents, and when I was a kid they gave me the best upbringing possible. Farming is tough, you have your up years and down years. I spoke to my dad about the drought, and it gave me an idea of what they went through. I didn't realise how tough that time was because my parents just showed up every day. I look back now and have even more appreciation for what they did.
Chris Judd gave me so much time when I first got to Carlton. I've had a lot to do with Lachie Neale and Tom Mitchell, which has helped too. As a kid, you idolise people and Ben Cousins and Chris Judd were those guys for me. When kids have my number on their back, I still feel like I'm their age. You start to realise what impact you can have on young people."
By Dean Bilton
Patrick Cripps has won the 2022 Brownlow Medal
By Dean Bilton
Round 23
It all comes down to this. Who wins it?
Giants vs Freo... nothing for Brayshaw. Andy Brayshaw will not win the Brownlow.
North vs Suns... nothing for Miller. He'll have to cross his fingers and hope for the best.
Lions vs Dees... one vote Neale!!!! Incredible! He might have it now! Two for Oliver and three for Petracca.
Blues vs Pies... THREE VOTES PATRICK CRIPPS! HE HAS WON THE 2022 BROWNLOW MEDAL!
By Dean Bilton
Round 22
Absolutely no idea which way this is going to fall to be honest with you. Could be a four-way tie.
Freo vs Eagles... nothing for Brayshaw. It's getting tougher now.
Dees vs Blues... nothing for Cripps. Or Oliver. Or Petracca.
Saints vs Lions... nothing for Neale.
Suns vs Cats... two votes Touk Miller! He is tied for the lead!
Mama mia!
By Dean Bilton
Round 21
Here we go. I think we're gonna get through these last three rounds here and now. The winner is not far away from being confirmed.
Dogs vs Freo... nothing for Brayshaw. Ooooh.
Hawks vs Suns... nothing for Miller.
Dees vs Pies... three votes for Oliver. Nothing for Petracca. OOOOOH.
Lions vs Blues... three votes Lachie Neale! Nothing for Cripps! OOOOOOOOOOH.
By Dean Bilton
Round 20
Four rounds to go. We currently have two-way tie at the top.
Tigers vs Lions... nothing for Neale. He might be running out of votes here.
Freo vs Melbourne. This is big. One vote Brayshaw. He's in the lead.
Two votes Petracca... and nothing for Oliver.
Three votes Touk Miller! He is tied for the lead!
Three votes Patrick Cripps! He is now the standalone leader!
Goodness me, we've got a count tonight folks!
By Dean Bilton
Round 19
Getting spicy now.
Nothing for Oliver or Petracca.
Lions vs Suns... Miller takes the three votes! Nothing for Neale!
Two votes for Patrick Cripps.
One vote for Brayshaw, who is now tied for the lead.
By Dean Bilton
Round 18
Six rounds of counting to go.
One vote Petracca. Nothing for Oliver.
Nothing for Cripps.
Nothing for Brayshaw.
Nothing for Neale.
Nothing for Miller.
Geez, not much doing there.
By Dean Bilton
Jeremy Cameron catching everyone by surprise
Some cue up the Curb Your Enthusiasm theme.
By Dean Bilton
Round 17
Getting serious now. Lachie Neale is putting a gap in them.
Nothing for Oliver or Petracca against the Cats.
One more for Miller.
Nothing for Neale this week either.
One vote for Cripps against West Coast.
Three for Andrew Brayshaw! He closes within one of Neale!
By Dean Bilton
Round 16
Three votes for Jeremy Cameron lifts him to 16, which is quite something.
Nothing for Brayshaw in a win over Port.
Two votes for Touk Miller against the Pies.
Two for Oliver against the Crows, and three for Petracca in the same game.
Three for Lachie Neale against the Dogs!
Nothing for Cripps in there either.
By Dean Bilton
Libba
Nothing but respect for MY Brownlow Medallist.
By Dean Bilton
Round 15
We're out of the bye rounds and into the business end.
Carlton vs Fremantle then. Nothing for Cripps or Brayshaw.
Melbourne vs Brisbane. Nothing for Oliver, Petracca or Neale.
Two votes for Touk Miller against Port.
A bit of a stalemate in that round.
By Dean Bilton
Round 14
Nothing for Touk Miller in this one.
What about Cripps? He takes two against the Tigers and moves up to 20.
That's all there is of interest in one of the bye weeks.
By Dean Bilton
Goal of the year
What do we say here then? The nominees are:
- Shai Bolton
- Sam Draper
- Josh Daicos
Again, the AFL Round-Up has already called this one in favour of Daicos. But I am less confident about that prediction than I was for Georgiades.
The winner of the 2022 goal of the year is... Sam Draper! Was the third of the three in my books, but there's a good reason that my opinion doesn't matter.
