Furious fans say 'ripped-off' footy star Nick Daicos should've won the Brownlow Medal over Patrick Cripps

Carlton skipper Patrick Cripps claimed his second Brownlow Medal on Monday night, polling a record 45 votes to claim the honour in convincing fashion - but many fans believe the award should have gone to Nick Daicos.

Cripps, 29, remarkably had an unassailable lead with four rounds left as Collingwood's Nick Daicos finished second on 38, while Port Adelaide's Zak Butters polled 29 for third.

Daicos, who racked up enough votes to win any other Brownlow count in history, was also a favourite to take home the award last year, but a knee injury late in the season cruelled his chances.

Many fans thought the 21-year-old Pies midfielder was ripped off by the 'absurd' result this time around.

'Nick Daicos polling 38 votes and NOT winning the brownlow gotta be the most absurd result in sporting award history,' posted one X user.

'How it feels watching nick daicos getting snubbed for the second year in a row,' posted another alongside a meme of Hollywood comic actor Michael Cera falling flat on his face.

'Has every person in the room apologised to Nick Daicos?' wrote a third.

Another fan posted: 'I'm taking Nick Daicos over Cripps, I'm taking Bont [Marcus Bontempelli] over Cripps, I'm taking Neale over Cripps, I'm taking Jeremy Cameron over Cripps, I'm taking Heeney over Cripps. I've never seen a player more hyped up that hasn't delivered for his club.'

Footy fans went into meltdown before the results were read yesterday after claims the Brownlow Medal winner had accidently been leaked in a now-deleted post .

A screenshot of the AFL store website shared to Twitter before the code's night of nights got underway on Monday showed an image of some surprising Collingwood Magpies memorabilia.

The item is labelled 'Nick Daicos 2024 Brownlow medalist signed guernsey'.

It was swiftly deleted, but not before it was spotted by eagled-eyed fans and quickly went viral.

Speaking after his win on Monday night, Cripps praised Daicos.

'I'd just like to start off by mentioning Nick, he also broke the record tonight,' he said.

'Nick, I love watching you play, I enjoy going against you, well done on an amazing year mate.'