PORT ADELAIDE defenders Dan Houston and Tom Jonas were the only players to receive votes from the coaches in the third week of the AFL Finals for the Gary Ayres Award.
The Gary Ayres Award, named after the five-time premiership and two-time Norm Smith Medallist Hawthorn superstar, recognises the player adjudged as the best player throughout the AFL Finals series, as voted by the competing coaches after every game of the AFL Finals series, with each coach providing their 5-4-3-2-1 for the match.
Houston received four votes from coaches Ken Hinkley and Damien Hardwick for his solid showing off half back against Richmond in Friday night’s Preliminary Final.
He had 22 disposals and nine intercepts, while both of his marks were contested. The 23-year-old led the game for metres gained, racking up an impressive 681 metres from his 19 kicks.
Jonas was his usual reliable self in the backline, leading the group with his actions.
He had 14 touches at 85.7% efficiency, two marks and three tackles, as well as three clearances.
The skipper posted 349 metres gained and intercepted the ball a game-high ten times.
For his efforts he got awarded two votes from the coaches.
Despite the narrow six-point final margin, the Tigers dominated the votes.
Dustin Martin was given the perfect ten votes for his 21 disposal, two goal effort.
He had four clearances and six score involvements as well.
Ruckman Toby Nankervis got six votes, Kane Lambert and Trent Cotchin each got three and Shai Bolton was awarded two from the coaches.
Geelong’s Mitch Duncan also received the maximum 10 votes in the only other game of the weekend, in his side’s win over Brisbane.
Ollie Wines, who polled nine votes in the Qualifying Final for Port Adelaide, is his club’s best placed in the overall leaderboard with Duncan leading by one vote over Martin, although they have each played one more game.
The only other player in contention for the award is Patrick Dangerfield from the Cats, who is ten votes behind Duncan and would need to rely on both Duncan and Martin missing out on any votes in Saturday night’s Grand Final.
Preliminary Final – votes v Richmond
10 votes – Martin (Richmond)
6 votes – Nankervis (Richmond)
4 votes – Houston (Port)
3 votes – Lambert, Cotchin (Richmond)
2 votes - Jonas (Port), Bolton (Richmond)
Overall leader board
19 votes – Mitch Duncan (Geelong)
18 votes – Dustin Martin (Richmond)
10 votes – Nic Naitanui (West Coast), Daniel Rich (Brisbane)
9 votes - Ollie Wines (Port Adelaide), Paddy Ryder (St Kilda)
7 votes - Caleb Daniel (Western Bulldogs), Dougal Howard (St Kilda), Toby Nankervis (Richmond)
6 votes - Harris Andrews (Brisbane), Shai Bolton (Richmond), Charlie Cameron (Brisbane), Hugh McCluggage (Brisbane), Brandon Parfitt (Geelong)
5 votes - Sam Powell-Pepper (Port Adelaide)
