Brownlow Medal hangs in balance as Daicos returns to form

Collingwood ace Nick Daicos shrugged off a tough tag to deliver a best-on-ground display against St Kilda at Marvel Stadium on Saturday night. 

The Magpies superstar quickly had his Brownlow Medal odds trimmed into $4.00, equal with Crows captain Jordan Dawson for the league best and fairest. 

The pair are shaded by Geelong recruit Bailey Smith ($4) who was below his best in the Cats’ loss to Brisbane on Friday night. 

Fremantle midfielder Caleb Serong and Gold Coast captain Noah Anderson ($14) have both firmed in recent weeks after huge games, including the former’s 35 touches and two goals against the Bombers last Thursday. 

But round 15 was  highlighted by Daicos’ return to form despite the borderline illegal tagging tactics from Saints stopper Marcus Windhager.

Daicos started slowly but kept running and worked his way into the game, eventually finishing with 30 touches and  an outstanding goal in the last quarter when the game was in the balance. 

Subsequently Windhager received a $1000 fine for striking Daicos behind play in the first quarter, but several other incidents were closely looked at, including a kneeing incident off the ball. 

But in typical Ross Lyon fashion the Saints coach queried the free kicks against Windhager

“I’m not sure they were free kicks, but I think we’ll take that in (to the AFL) and ask the question,” he said.

“Are there two sets of rules going around? I’m not sure.”

The AFL world has since blown up into a furious debate about the boundaries of tagging, with many believing Windhager’s tactics crossed the line and Daicos should have been protected more. 

Undoubtedly how this tagging debate plays out will have a huge impact on Brownlow Medal betting, with teams willing to completely sacrifice a player, to curb match-winners like Daicos.