Voted on by the coaching staff, it is a 5-4-3-2-1 system. However, a five is extremely rare and unlikely to be a common occurrence on the night.
kangaroos.com.au takes a look at some of the candidates sure to feature heavily in the voting.
Andrew Swallow
In his first season as captain, Swallow raised his game to another level. Consistently racking up possession counts well into the 20's and 30's, Swallow barely turned in an average performance in his 23 games.
Coming off a Syd Barker Medal in 2011, the captain is the favourite to make it two in a row at the Crown Palladium.
Scott Thompson
The reliable key position defender took on a variety of crucial roles throughout 2012 and very rarely lowered his colours. His opponents throughout the year ranged from the tall (Travis Cloke) to the not-so-tall (Eddie Betts).
Alongside Nathan Grima and Michael Firrito, Thompson was a vital piece of the puzzle in the second half of the year. While Thompson only collected six Brownlow votes, internally he was rated highly and expect that to play out during the vote count.
Drew Petrie
A career high 58 goals for the season will undoubtedly have Petrie in the running for his first Syd Barker Medal. If he isn't too far off the mark with 10 weeks to go, Petrie could have a real chance of storming home to beat the field.
23 goals in four weeks between Rounds 16-19 will have him right in the votes and potentially a five-voter or two amongst them.
Brent Harvey
Consistent as always, Harvey played every game and kicked goals in all but three. Outings like his 29-possession, 4-goal game against Gold Coast in Round 12 and his 21-possessions and 3-goals against Essendon in Round 20 will ensure another finish near the top.
Harvey already has a record five Syd Barker Medals to his name, a feat unlikely to be matched anytime soon.
Daniel Wells
Although Wells played the least games out of the listed candidates (20), his scintillating burst of form mid-season is sure to rocket him up the leaderboard. However his good form in North's victories may mean he is unable to steal a break on his teammates, many of which also played well in those respective games.
Do you have a dark horse for the medal? Who do you think will win? Have your say in the comments below.
