AFL field umpire Michael Pell was arrested on Monday after allegedly leaking votes from specific matches this year. Three other men were also arrested over suspicious Brownlow betting that was flagged to the AFL by one of its betting partners.
Under the Brownlow Medal voting system, three AFL field umpires gather after officiating a game and decide on the three best performances from the match, awarding votes that are then sealed and sent to the AFL, and locked away until Brownlow night at the end of the season.
On Monday, police said three of the four men allegedly involved were expected to be charged on summons with using information to corrupt a betting event, meaning they will face criminal charges at a later date and be released by investigators, as the probe into the allegations continues. The fourth man was released pending further enquiries.
The AFL said there was no suggestion of match- or spot-fixing and that the breach did not influence the result of the count.
Pell umpired and helped cast votes for 16 matches during the 2022 season, which gave him access to that information. This is a list of those games and the players who were awarded votes afterwards.
ROUND ONE
Hawthorn v North Melbourne
3. Chiangkuoth Jiath (Hawthorn)
2. Luke McDonald (North Melbourne)
1. Tom Mitchell (Hawthorn)
ROUND TWO
Essendon v Brisbane Lions
3. Lachie Neale (Brisbane Lions)
2. Hugh McCluggage (Brisbane Lions)
1. Zach Merrett (Essendon)
ROUND THREE
GWS v Gold Coast
3. Tom Green (GWS)
2. Tim Taranto (GWS)
1. Josh Kelly (GWS)
ROUND FOUR
Richmond v Western Bulldogs
3. Dion Prestia (Richmond)
2. Jayden Short (Richmond)
1. Shai Bolton (Richmond)
ROUND FIVE
St Kilda v Gold Coast
3. Jack Higgins (St Kilda)
2. Jack Steele (St Kilda)
1. Touk Miller (Gold Coast)
ROUND SIX
Fremantle v Carlton
3. Patrick Cripps (Carlton)
2. Rory Lobb (Fremantle)
1. Alex Pearce (Fremantle)
ROUND SEVEN
Adelaide v GWS
3. Josh Kelly (GWS)
2. Jesse Hogan (GWS)
1. Isaac Cumming (GWS)
ROUND EIGHT
Essendon v Hawthorn
3. Peter Wright (Essendon)
2. Zach Merrett (Essendon)
1. Jai Newcombe (Hawthorn)
ROUND NINE
Sydney v Essendon
3. Callum Mills (Sydney)
2. Chad Warner (Sydney)
1. Tom Papley (Sydney)
ROUND 10
Western Bulldogs v Gold Coast
3. Marcus Bontempelli (Western Bulldogs)
2. Jack Macrae (Western Bulldogs)
1. Aaron Naughton (Wwestern Bulldogs)
ROUND 11
Port Adelaide v Essendon
3. Sam Powell-Pepper (Port Adelaide)
2. Darcy Parish (Essendon)
1. Ollie Wines (Port Adelaide)
ROUND 12
–
ROUND 13
–
ROUND 14
West Coast v Geelong
3. Cam Guthrie (Geelong)
2. Sam Menegola (Geelong)
1. Tyson Stengle (Geelong)
ROUND 15
Port Adelaide v Gold Coast
3. Karl Amon (Port Adelaide)
2. Touk Miller (Gold Coast)
1. Connor Rozee (Port Adelaide)
ROUND 16
Gold Coast v Collingwood
3. Nick Daicos (Collingwood)
2. Touk Miller (Gold Coast)
1. Izak Rankine (Gold Coast)
ROUND 17
–
ROUND 18
North Melbourne v Richmond
3. Cam Zurhaar (North Melbourne)
2. Jy Simpkin (North Melbourne)
1. Luke Davies-Uniacke (North Melbourne)
ROUND 19
–
ROUND 20
Gold Coast v West Coast
3. Touk Miller (Gold Coast)
2. Jack Darling (West Coast)
1. Noah Anderson (Gold Coast)
ROUND 21
–
ROUND 22
–
ROUND 23
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