The Norm Smith Medal, inaugurated in 1979 and awarded to the best player on AFL Grand Final day, is one of footballs highest honours.

In this unprecedented survey of the players who strode onto the MCG and dominated the games most important day, Dan Eddy captures some of footys most memorable feats in the words of the men whose brilliance turned the contest. Now, for the first time, football lovers will be taken on a thrilling journey, from each medalists early days in football, right up until the moment he stood on the presentation dais soaking up the roar of the crowd. Riding every bump, celebrating each goal, and savouring in the unforgettable atmosphere of the day, readers will gain fresh and often surprising insights into classic Grand Final performances of the modern era.

Named for the towering figure of the Melbourne Football Cluba man who played in four Premierships for the Demons and led them to six more in the space of a decade, as the games most revered and influential coachthe Norm Smith Medal has for five decades honoured the best of the best: the player who performed most brilliantly when the pressure was greatest: on that final Saturday in September.

Unlike the Brownlow, the Norm Smith Medal is voted by members of the media, with a different panel appointed each year. From Wayne Harmess unforgettable, team-lifting display in 1979, through Gary Ayress brave, narrow-eyed brilliance in Hawthorns swaggering 1980s sides, right up to Dustin Martins flawless, unprecedented finale to the 2017 season, The Norm Smith Medal is a fascinating account of the games greatest individual performances.