After 10 years of competing, Mt Barker man and Hawthorn fanatic Steven Bailey has won The Courier’s tipping competition, coming from behind to snatch first place.
Going into the final round of the 2023 AFL home and away season, Mr Bailey had already jumped five places from 10th to fifth after tipping six winners in Round 23.
Needing another big score to have a chance at winning, he went with his gut and picked Fremantle to win against his beloved Hawks, a move that paid off when he scored seven in Round 24 and jumped four places to finish first.
Mr Bailey tied with five other tipsters on 146, but edged them out after tipping more accurate winning margins throughout the year.
“I’ve always been around the mark but never on top of the ladder until now,” he said. “I chose a few roughies and tipped against my own team which might have got me over the line.”
Mr Bailey said the key to successful tipping was looking for consistency and identifying when one team tended to play better against another.
“I normally follow the favorite, then if I hear something online or on the news that a certain team has an edge I’ll go for that,” he said.
Mr Bailey’s love of Hawthorn began when he was growing up playing football for Mt Barker South, because their yellow and gold colors at the time matched those of the Hawks.
It was a challenging year for the Hawks, finishing in the bottom four, but Mr Bailey said there were positives to take away from the season.
“I was actually quite happy with how we played this year, we didn’t finish too well but throughout the year they showed a lot of promise and you can see the direction they’re heading,” he said.
