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Regarded by many as the best player in the AFL today, Dustin Martin is a contender for the unofficial mantle of the league’s dominant figure of the past five years. The 28-year-old Richmond Tigers spearhead is a two-time premiership player – winning the Norm Smith Medal on both occasions – and has clinched a Brownlow Medal and earned All-Australian status three times.

Born in Castlemaine, Victoria, and playing his junior footy in Bendigo, Martin was Richmond’s first pick in the 2010 draft (third overall). He has played 234 games for the Tigers, kicking a total of 261 goals – including a career-high 37 during his staggering 2017 campaign. Dustin Martin’s Brownlow Medal win featured a record tally of 36 votes, and he went on to win the Norm Smith Medal as the club ended a 37-year premiership drought. Martin is perennially among the betting favourites for both awards.

The brilliant, durable midfielder became just the fourth dual Norm Smith Medal winner after again being judged best on ground in Richmond’s 2019 AFL Grand Final demolition of GWS Giants. Martin has more tricks up his sleeve than he has ink in his sleeve tattoos, but it’s his tenacity, competitiveness and ability to cover ground and physically dominate his opponents that sets him apart as arguably the AFL’s best all-round exponent.

Martin has been at the forefront as the Tigers have put an injury-hit start to 2020 behind and begun to mount a compelling case for back-to-back premierships, rocketing into Brownlow contention in the process.

Thanks to Sportsbet’s AFL Player Hub, Dustin Martin betting is easier than ever before. A wide range of Dustin Martin odds and Dustin Martin betting markets – including Dustin Martin disposals and Dustin Martin first goalscorer bet options – are grouped together in the Player Hub so you can easily place a Dustin Martin bet. There are Dustin Martin Brownlow options available as well.

 

DUSTIN MARTIN BROWNLOW MEDAL: BRACE FOR RUSTY DUSTY’S LATE SURGE

Dustin Martin’s Brownlow Medal performances over the past five seasons reflect in equal measure his consistency and his ability to take a game by the scruff of the neck.

Martin finished seventh in 2015 (21 votes) and third in 2016 (25 votes), before surging to victory with an unprecedented 36 votes in 2017. He was seventh in 2018 (19 votes) and placed sixth last year (23 votes) – despite the broad consensus he was slightly down on form across the 2019 season.

But heading into round 10, Martin was on the ninth line of betting for the 2020 prize, with the likes of Brisbane’s Lachie Neale, Carlton’s Patrick Cripps, Geelong’s Patrick Dangerfield, Port Adelaide’s Travis Boak and Melbourne’s Christian Petracca seemingly thwarting Martin’s quest for a second medal.

He’s right back in the frame now, however.

Barring one or two from Richmond’s round 1 win over Carlton, votes for Martin were almost certainly scarce in the first seven rounds. But he was unanimously regarded as best on field in the Tigers’ round 9 win over the Bulldogs – a certain three-vote haul that thrust him back into contention – and he was sensational again in a big win over Neale’s high-flying Lions in round 10.

A modest showing in Richmond’s round 11 loss to Port Adelaide saw Martin slip from second to fourth in the Brownlow Medal betting market (as of 13 August). Check out other players in Brownlow Medal contention at Sportsbet News.

It’s a shortened season but there’s still plenty of footy left for Martin to stake a claim for the award and have punters clamouring to place a Dustin Martin Brownlow Medal bet.

When Martin won the Brownlow in 2017, he picked up the maximum three votes in six of the last nine rounds. Last year, he claimed three votes in five of the last nine rounds. After his recent resounding return to top form, Martin will be vying for the umpires’ attention again as he squares off against Gold Coast Suns in round 12.

 

DUSTIN MARTIN FIRST GOALSCORER: APPROACH WITH CAUTION

Dustin Martin’s odds to be the first goalscorer in Monday’s Richmond–Gold Coast clash were the fourth-shortest as of Thursday, behind Tigers forwards Tom Lynch and Jack Riewoldt, and Suns duo Ben King and Izak Rankine.

Although Martin does have a strong goalscoring strike rate of 1.11 per AFL game, Richmond coach Damien Hardwick generally starts his star midfielder on the ball before sending him forward more as the game wears on. That said, Martin did score the Tigers’ first goal in three of their last four matches in 2019 – although on each occasion it was the second goal of the match overall.

Martin’s sole goal from his first four outings in 2020 came deep in the second quarter of the Tigers’ round 1 win over the Blues. He nailed the third-quarter opener in the round 5 defeat of the Demons.

Martin landed the second goal of the match against the Swans (Riewoldt kicked the first) and the Kangaroos (Marlion Pickett kicked the first), while both of his majors against the Giants came in the third quarter. His first of three goals in a dominant showing against the Bulldogs in round 9 was the third of the match. Martin kicked one goal midway through the second quarter against the Power in the Tigers’ round 11 loss.

Dusty is a decent price to slot the first goal against the Suns in round 12 but the value is questionable.

 

DUSTIN MARTIN TO SCORE TWO OR MORE GOALS: KICKING A BAG AGAINST SOME JUICY ODDS

Dustin Martin has a habit of kicking multiple goals in a game – notably during the 2019 AFL finals, when he slotted an equal-career-high six against Brisbane in the qualifying final, two against Collingwood in the prelim and four against GWS in the Grand Final.

In 23 games last season, he failed to kick a goal on eight occasions and booted one goal in six games. But he managed two or more goals in nine games – including three-plus goals four times.

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Dustin Martin’s odds to boot two, three, four, five or more goals against Gold Coast in round 12 are certainly juicy, given his penchant for kicking a bag. He has managed five-plus goals three times in his glittering career – all during the 2018 and 2019 seasons – although the change to 16-minute quarters has evidently stymied his ability to rack up huge hauls.

Punters have good reason to be tempted by a Dustin Martin–to-score-two-or-more-goals bet, as he’s done so 24 times in his last 63 outings for the Tigers. His early output in 2020 consisted of solitary goals against Carlton, Melbourne and Sydney, before he kicked two in the victory over North Melbourne in round 7 and the loss to the Giants two weeks later. The Tigers talisman slotted a season-high three goals in the round 9 win over the Bulldogs but went goalless despite a highly influential showing against the Lions in round 10. He slotted just one last week against the Power.

Martin will be eager to boost his average further with a round 12 bag – although he failed to get among the goalscorers in last year’s 92-point demolition of the Suns.

 

DUSTIN MARTIN DISPOSALS: SKINNY ODDS BUT SOLID VALUE

The disposals markets are a favourite of punters when it comes to Dustin Martin betting.

Dustin Martin’s odds to get 20 or more disposals against the Suns on Monday are relatively skinny, although still solid value given he has failed to reach that threshold just 15 times in 123 games since early 2015. But he has finished with fewer than 20 just six times in his last 21 appearances.

Martin tallied 24 disposals in round 1 against the Blues and 20 versus the Magpies in round 2, but he was restricted to just 18 by the Saints in his round 4 return. He had an even 20 against the Swans in round 5, behind only Kane Lambert (27) in the Tigers’ line-up, but had only 15 against the Swans in round 6 – his second-lowest tally since the opening round of 2015 – and just 16 against the Kangaroos a week later.

Inspiring a Richmond fightback against GWS in round 8 that ultimately fell short, Martin had his busiest outing since the AFL season’s resumption with 23 disposals, two goals and season-high tallies of nine clearances and five marks. He extended his season-best mark with 26 disposals against the Bulldogs in round 9 and chalked up another 24 to help tame the Lions, before being held to 19 by the Power.

A Dustin Martin disposals bet on the 25-or-more, 30-or-more, and 35-or-more markets gives punters a chance of a big return. He chalked up 25-plus disposals in 13 games last year – going on to tally 30-plus in nine of those games and 35-plus five times.

One important point to consider: the reduction to 16-minute quarters will have an impact on the time Martin has to get those 20-plus disposals… and naturally means that big disposal totals will be much harder to achieve this season, as his stats to date reflect.

 

AFL EXPERT TIP

Richmond Tigers v Gold Coast Suns – Same-game multi: Richmond Tigers 1–39, Dustin Martin to get 20 or more disposals and Dustin Martin anytime goalscorer

Richmond’s surge and Dustin Martin’s sensational run of form hit a speed bump courtesy of last week’s loss to ladder-leading Port Adelaide. With the race for the top four heating up as the regular season heads into the home straight, the Tigers will be hell-bent on bouncing back against the Suns – but Martin needs to lead from the front.