When the 2012 season of AFL finishes up in about seven weeks from now, you will be hard pressed to find anyone saying it’s been a dull, boring year of footy.
There have been that many twists and turns, it’s been incredible. Before the year started we thought only three teams could win it: Collingwood, Hawthorn and Geelong.
How wrong have we been?
All you could have asked for has happened.
Hawthorn has emerged as a real contender after a shaky start to the year. We have seen the Cats struggle early but are now peaking towards another go at the flag. Sydney has risen from nowhere to sit at the top once more. And Port Adelaide has hit rock bottom, the first club this year to lose their coach.
We have even seen Greater West Sydney win not just one but two games!
Clubs that were once contenders have fallen by the wayside. St Kilda, desperate to make another final series, were pipped at the post by Collingwood. And the Bulldogs, bereft of a key forward after Big Bad Bazza left their kennel last year.
Some teams have improved. Adelaide seem rejuvenated under Sanderson, and Fremantle are learning what defense really means under Lyon.
We have also seen changes off the footy field as well. Fantasy footy has gripped the nation, with over 400,000 people taking part.
NSW as a whole has had to deal with another AFL invasion and for now they are struggling to get a feel for the game. But in time they will see how great it is. The Swans stole the hearts of Sydney, why can’t GWS do it in Blacktown?
Whatever happens from here will just be the icing on the cake. No other year will be able to top this one. Not one team has felt safe. Each week they are hunting for that safety net. Their footy window is in jeopardy.
But no matter what happens on the field, they should be safe in the knowledge that they are part of a great game.
Frankie
Guest
Have pity on Queensland AFL fans. While it may be a great AFL year elsewhere, here in Southeast Queensland it has been a bummer. All the other major cities have at least one team headed to the finals. We here have two losing teams. (Though the principle of diversification suggests the odds are one of our two teams should at least be doing well, as is the case in Adelaide, Perth and Sydney, we fans here aren't benefiting from diversification because both teams are losing.) The Gold Coast Suns have one win and 17 losses as I write this. Never have won a game at their home stadium (Metricon) so far. Their record this year is worse than last year, and we were expecting improvement. The Brisbane Lions have gone from near bottom to lower middle. That, after many years of poor performance, is not enough to cheer us up. Some of us opposed the appointment of Michael Voss as Head Coach of the Lions without any coaching experience, so it looks as though the Lions' poor performance is due to a problem we opposed in the first place. So maybe when you say "best AFL season ever" put an asterisk by it, that says "except for SE QLD fans."
Harry
Guest
Answer: No.
TW
Guest
Like your optimism overall - However your comments about the Sydney market in particular are not realistic - Our game up there was neglected for too many years and we have a huge job to even get a reasonable base up there. The TV ratings reflect the true situation.
nathan savino
Roar Pro
yes i agree theres been a lot of unpredictable seasons. But this one in my opinion has been better as there hasn't been one standout team all year. Sydney might fit that bill, but they still haven't played the pies and yeah the MCG is a bit of a hoodoo for them. I've only started to really follow footy since 2007, but i've watched footy since 2000. So yeah im young but in my lifetime this is the best year, including 1997.
Franko
Guest
If you have only been watching football for half a dozen seasons then you might consider this year pretty good. There have been loads of seasons over the years that were unpredictable. What about the Crows winning from 5th position in the 90s to Carlton winning from 3rd in 82. Too many great years to mention.
nathan savino
Roar Pro
I reckon the Bulldogs arent too far off actually. They haven't had any trouble getting it inside 50, just finding a forward to mark it has been the problem. Losing Hall last year hurt, and now Jones has been found out. The bloke is clearly not ready to be a forward. Maybe they should go after Kurt Tippett? :)
mat
Guest
The only teams who havnt had an exciting season are Port, Dees and bulldogs... all strugglers and fans will continue to suffer for a few years yet.