Think of the most famous trios: there’s Larry, Mow and Curly of ‘Three Stooges’ fame, Huey, Dewey and Louie from the world of Donald Duck, and the ‘Three Musketeers’ Porthos, Aramis and Athos. And many more.
But in the Sydney Swans camp today it’s all about Heeney, Gulden and Warner. The midfield trio who last night polled a staggering 76 votes in the 2024 Brownlow Medal to claim a place in club history.
The ineligible Isaac Heeney polled 28 votes to rank equal fourth in the count behind the record-breaking hauls of Carlton’s Patrick Cripps (45) and Collingwood’s Nick Daicos (38), and third-placed Zac Butters of Port Adelaide (29).
Heeney shared fourth place with Fremantle’s Caleb Serong (28), while, completing a group of 13 who topped 20 votes were GWS’ Tom Green (27), Western Bulldogs’ Adam Treloar (26), Gulden and Gold Coast’s Matt Rowell (25), Hawthorn’s Jai Newcombe (24), Warner (23), Brisbane’s Lachie Neale (22) and Fremantle’s Andrew Brayshaw (22).
It’s the first time in Swans history three players have polled 20-plus votes in the same season.
And in 94 years since the introduction of the 3-2-1 voting system in 1931, albeit with a varying number of games, Heeney, Gulden and Warner now rank 3rd, equal 7th and equal 12th for most votes by a Swans player in a season.
Herbie Matthews’ winning total of 32 votes in 1940 in just 18 games remains the club record from Graham Teasdale’s adjusted winning total of 29.5 votes in 21 games in 1977, when separate votes originally awarded by two umpires are halved for comparison purposes.
The top 15 single-season totals in club history are:
32 – Herbie Matthews – 1940 – 18 games
29.5 – Graham Teasdale – 1977 – 21 games
28 – Isaac Heeney – 2024 – 21 games*
27 – Errol Gulden – 2023 – 23 games
26 – Adam Goodes – 2006 – 22 games
26 – Luke Parker – 2016 – 22 games
25 – Peter Bedford – 1970 – 22 games
25 – Josh Kennedy – 2015 – 22 games
25 – Errol Gulden – 2024 – 23 games
24 – Bob Skilton – 1968 – 17 games
24 – Dan Hannebery – 2015 – 22 games
23 – Herbie Matthews – 1937 – 15 games
23 – Ron Clegg – 1949 – 18 games
23 – Josh Kennedy – 2017 – 19 games
23 – Chad Warner – 2024 – 22 games
Also, the Swans’ 2024 total of 103 votes, albeit from 23 rounds, is the second-highest in club history behind 105 votes in 2016, when Parker (26), Dan Hannebery (21), Lance Franklin (17), Josh Kennedy (14) and Tom Mitchell (12) led the way.
The Swans easily won what was a slightly curious team vote from the Western Bulldogs (91), Carlton (87) Fremantle (87), GWS (85), Port Adelaide (84), Brisbane and Hawthorn (82), Geelong and Collingwood (68), Melbourne and Essendon (67), Gold Coast and St Kilda (64), Adelaide (52), North Melbourne (42), West Coast (30) and Richmond (19).
Completing the 2024 Swans vote were Tom Papley (8), Nick Blakey (4), James Rowbottom (4), Joel Amartey (3), Matt Roberts (3), Will Hayward (2), Brodie Grundy (1), Logan McDonald (1) and Callum Mills (1).
The club polled 74.6 per cent of 138 votes on offer in a 17-6 season in which they were minor premiers, polling best afield three votes 19 times – Heeney (7), Gulden (4), Warner (4), Tom Papley (1), Nick Blakey (1), Joel Amartey (1) and Matt Roberts (1).
Blakey polled three votes in the one-point Round 16 loss to Fremantle at the SCG, when he had an equal career-best 32 possessions and seven running bounces, and Gulden polled three votes in the two-point Round 17 loss to St Kilda at Marvel, when he had 28 possessions and the Swans gave up a 19-point lead at three-quarter time.
Only twice did the Swans go without a vote – in the 39-point SCG loss to the Bulldogs in Round 20 and the 112-point hiding from Port Adelaide in Adelaide in Round 21.
Heeney’s 28 votes in 21 voting games in 2024 came after he’d polled 46 votes in 163 games from 2015-23, and Gulden’s 25 votes, on top of his 27 votes last year, gives him the second-best aggregate in consecutive years in club history.
Only Matthews’ 1940-41 aggregate of 54 votes – 32 in 1940 and 22 in 1941 – is better.
Warner’s 26-23 double in 2023-24 is next best, from Adam Goodes’ 26-20 double in 2006-07, Kennedy’s 21-25 in 2014-15, Hannebery’s 24-21 in 2015-16, Teasdale’s 29.5-15 in 1977-78, Matthews’ 20-23 in 1936-37, Parker’s 26-16 in 2016-17, and Goodes’ 20-21 in 2007-08.
Roberts featured in the medal for the first time in his 27th game in Round 24, when he had 31 possessions against Adelaide at the SCG.
Heeney has moved to 16th on the all-time Swans vote, while Gulden and Warner have joined a group of now 28 players who have polled 50-plus votes for the club.
180 – Bob Skilton
163 – Adam Goodes
152 – Luke Parker
146 – Josh Kennedy
121 – Bill Clegg
117 – Herbie Matthews
106 – Dan Hannebery
104 – Lance Franklin
103 – Paul Kelly
90 – Barry Round
89 – Jude Bolton
81.5 – Peter Bedford
81 – Brett Kirk
77 – Ryan O’Keefe
73 – Jack Graham
72 – Isaac Heeney
64 – Graham Teasdale
63 – Greg Williams, Barry Hall
61 – Kieren Jack, Daryn Cresswell
58 – Dennis Carroll
57 – Errol Gulden
53 – Bill Gunn, Jarrad McVeigh
52 – Fred Goldsmith, Chad Warner
50 – Jim Taylor
