TRAVIS BOAK is set to head the Port Adelaide vote count in the Brownlow Medal for a record fifth time on Monday night.

And if there’s any sort of correlation between the umpires’ 3-2-1 votes and the 5-4-3-2-1 votes of the coaches in the AFL Coach’s Association Player of the Year it will be by a long way.

Boak finished equal 15^th in the coaches award with 67 votes, with Robbie Gray (34) next best of the Power players followed by Scott Lycett (29), Darcy Byrne-Jones (26), Ollie Wines (25), Connor Rozee (22) and Justin Westhoff (20).

If, for the sake of a Brownlow Medal form guide, we convert the collective votes of the coaches into an indicative set of 3-2-1 votes which might be awarded in the Brownlow, Boak will be right in the count through the early stages.

To demonstrate how the conversion has been done, in Round 23, when Port beat Fremantle by 43 points at Adelaide Oval, the combined coaches votes went to Ollie Wines (9), Justin Westhoff (6), Nat Fyfe (5), Tom Jonas (4), Charlie Dixon (3), Darcy Byrne-Jones (2) and Xavier Duursma (1).

This equates to notional Brownlow votes of Wines (3), Westhoff (2) and Fyfe (1).

Understanding that the conversion sometimes creates fractions of votes when there are ties in the coaches votes for the best three players, Boak will sit equal third on the Brownlow leaderboard at Round 14.

Via the conversion he will have 14.5 votes, level with Collingwood ruckman Brodie Grundy and behind only Geelong’s Tim Kelly (19) and Carlton’s Patrick Cripps (15).

But, sadly for Port fans, the former skipper will poll only once in the last nine rounds and will finish tied for 11^th.

Using this system the Western Bulldogs Marcus Bontempelli (27) will win from Geelong’s Patrick Dangerfield (24.5), Tim Kelly (23), Fyfe (21.5), West Coast’s Luke Shuey (21.25), Cripps (20.5), Brisbane’s Lachie Neale (20.33), Grundy (20), Richmond’s Dustin Martin (18.16) and Melbourne’s Max Gawn (18).

Sharing 11^th spot with Boak would be North’s Ben Cunnington and the Bulldogs’ Josh Dunkley.

This conversion suggests Robbie Gray will rank second among Port players, ahead of Westhoff, Lycett, Byrne-Jones, Rozee, Sam Gray and Dan Houston.

Boak leads the all-time Port Brownlow vote count with 102 from Robbie Gray (81), Warren Tredrea (80), Josh Francou (67), Kane Cornes (59), Gavin Wanganeen (56), Wines (55), Peter Burgoyne (54), Brendon Lade and Brad Ebert (53), and Chad Cornes (51).

Hamish Hartlett (27) and Westhoff (24) are next best among other current players.

Boak and Francou have each led the club count four times – Boak in 2010-13-14-15 and Francou in 1998-2000-01-02. Wanganeen, who won the Brownlow playing with Essendon in 1993, topped the Port count three times in 1997-99-2003.

If we use the coaches votes as a guide, Westhoff will start the season with a bang, polling three votes for his five goals in the 26-point Round 1 win over Melbourne. Tom Rockliff (44 possessions) and Boak (34 possessions and a goal) will fight out the minor votes.

In Round 2 Scott Lycett is expected to get three votes after he had 23 possessions, a goal, 33 hit-outs and eight clearances in his second game for Port in a 16-point win over Carlton. Boak (33 possessions) will be in the minor votes.

Boom youngster Connor Rozee is tipped to poll his first votes in Round three when he kicked five goals in a 17-point loss to Brisbane.

After a Round 4 wipe Port’s next votes are expected to come in the 42-point Round 5 win over West Coast in which Ollie Wines had 35 possessions and kicked a goal to show the way from Sam Gray (26 possessions and two goals). 

It was Boak again who was judged best afield by the coaches in the Round 6 16-point win over North when he had 38 possessions and a goal . Sam Gray will be another contender with 28 possessions and four goals.

The coaches votes suggest Port fans should not expect any Brownlow votes in Rounds 7-8, but Boak is expected to figure prominently in the 38-point Round 9 win over Gold Coast, when he had 22 contested possessions in a team-high 36 possession total.  Byrne-Jones, too, could be among the votes with 25 possessions.

Another wipe follows in Round 10 before Boak is expected to pick up three more votes in China, where he had 33 possessions and kicked two goals to win the Shanghai Medal in the 70-point win over St.Kilda. Robbie Gray (28 possessions and three goals) and Dougal Howard (16 possessions and two goals) are favoured by the coaches for the minor votes.

Again the Power are likely to miss out in Round 12, and again it is tipped to be Boak carrying the club’s hopes in Round 13, when they lost by 21 points to Fremantle. He had 36 possessions and kicked a goal, and might pick up one vote.

In Round 14 Lycett was judged best by the coaches again in the 11-point win over Geelong, with 18 contested possessions among a total of 24 to go with 41 hit-outs and nine clearances. Robbie Gray (31 possessions and two goals) and Boak (30 possessions 11 clearances and eight tackles) also were prominent.

In keeping with the on-again, off-again nature of the Port season, Round 15 is expected to be another wipe, with Robbie Gray, winner of the Round 16 Showdown Medal, expected to pick up three Brownlow votes for his 35 possessions and 10 clearances. Wines (34 possessions) and Westhoff (23 possessions and a goal) were favoured by the coaches for the minor votes.

Two more wipes in Round 17-18 will be followed by a possible three-vote pick-up for Boak in a losing side in Round 19 against the Grand Final-bound GWS Giants, according to the coaches. He had 40 possessions in a huge effort.

Dan Houston is tipped to receive three votes in the 59-point Round 20 win over Essendon, when he had 29 possessions and kicked two goals, with Robbie Gray’s four goals expected to earn him two votes.

In Round 21, when Port beat Sydney by 47 points, Byrne-Jones (28 possessions), Rozee (20 possessions, three goals) and Tom Jonas (24 possessions) caught the eye of the coaches.

And then, after one last wipe in Round 22, it was Wines (33 possessions) and Westhoff (23 possessions, two goals) who showed the way in the win over Fremantle.

The count on Monday night will show if the umpires are on anything like the same wavelength as the coaches.