He wasn't the first, second or third favourite. But Matt Rowell is your Brownlow medallist for 2025, and now second all-time for most votes in a singular season (39), behind last year's winner Patrick Cripps (45).
Most went into the night thinking it was Collingwood's Nick Daicos' to lose, and despite the Pie polling 32 votes himself, it was three surprising games in the first nine rounds of the season that ultimately saw Rowell snatch it away.
In round four against Adelaide, Rowell polled three votes for a modest 17 disposals in Gold Coast's win, despite fellow Brownlow contender Jordan Dawson having 31 disposals and a goal for the Crows. In his defence, Rowell was important in the Suns' narrow victory that day, as he had a game-high 10 score involvements, as well as a game-high eight tackles.
Three weeks later against Sydney, Rowell again didn't exactly light up the stat sheet en route to another three votes, finishing with just 16 disposals and one goal. But he was still impactful, again finishing with a game-high eight tackles, as well as 347 metres gained to help the Suns to a 38-point victory.
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Finally, in round nine against the Western Bulldogs, Rowell again took home maximum votes, thanks to a solid 20 disposals and one goal. While his numbers weren't jaw-dropping, nine of his disposals plus his goal came in the third quarter, in which the Suns piled on 41 points to separate themselves from the Dogs.
Interestingly, in none of the aforementioned games did AFL.com.au predict Rowell to poll heading into the night. Furthermore, in none of those games did Rowell even earn a coaches' vote.
Matt Rowell has polled 3 votes in three games where he didn't poll a single coaches' vote - Round 4 vs Crows, Round 7 vs Swans, and Round 9 vs Dogs.
— Max Laughton (@maxlaughton) September 22, 2025
If he wins the #Brownlow, those games will probably be why. @FOXFOOTY
But to his credit, despite his numbers not jumping off the page, Rowell played crucial roles in each game to help his side to three wins.
Despite receiving more love from the umpires than some might of expected, the 24-year-old is a deserving winner for 2025, earning his first All-Australian blazer this season while also being one of the keys cogs in Gold Coast's first ever finals appearance.