Who is the greatest side of the modern era?

The dust has settled on an enthralling 2015 season. The Hawks yet again ran out champions, completing their historic three-peat.

The mighty Hawks now become the third to secure three premierships in the 21st century, joining both the Lions and the Cats. So after 15 years we are now faced with the following question – which side is the best of the modern era?

Coached by legends Leigh Matthews, Mark Thompson and Alastair Clarkson, each of these sides played the game in completely different fashions. They all in their own way set the trend for how AFL football is played today.

With superstars lining up all over the ground, it is almost impossible to split them. They all managed to dominate the competition for extended periods of time. However one side has to reign supreme. Will it be the Lions of 01, 02 and 03 the Cats of 07, 09 and 11 or the Hawks of 13, 14 and 15?

Brisbane Lions (Premiers 2001, 2002, 2003)
After the Bombers kicked off the 21st century with an extraordinary 2000 campaign, it is safe to say the Lions dominated the early parts of the century. They had four straight grand final appearances from 2001-2004 including three premierships.

Led by inspirational captain Michael Voss and coach Leigh Matthews, the Lions would completely dominate opposition sides in the early 2000s as their all star line up just continued to get the job done in big matches. Although the Lions didn’t claim a minor premiership in any of their flag years Leigh Matthews just knew how to get it done in finals as he marshalled his troops to play with a whatever it takes manner with contested ball in particular being a highlight of their success.

With the likes of Mal Michael, Justin Leppitsch and the Scott brothers down back, Michael Voss, Jason Akermanis, Simon Black, Nigel Lappin and Luke Power in the middle and Jonathan Brown and Alastair Lynch down forward, it’s safe to say the Lions had champions of the game lining up all over the ground. The Lions midfielders were also complemented well by the ‘September Specialist’ Clark Keating in the ruck, as he always seemed to find his best football come finals time.

Despite having all of these champions it was their lower end players that made the Lions such a great side as their team first mentality saw a relatively even spread between all 22 players on the ground.

The Lions put fear into all opposing sides in the early 2000s as their bullish attack on the footy and win-at-all-costs mentality saw them bully teams until they were well and truly on their knees. The philosophies of legendary coach Leigh Matthews would change the game forever as more focus would turn to winning the contested ball around stoppages and using strength and power to genuinely scare opposition sides.

Brisbane’s best
FB: Chris Johnson Mal Michael Darryl White
HB: Luke Power Justin Leppitsch Nigel Lappin
C: Jason Akermanis Michael Voss (C) Martin Pike
HF: Ashley McGrath Jonathan Brown Robert Copeland
FF: Craig McRae Alastair Lynch Daniel Bradshaw
FOLL: Clark Keating Simon Black Shaun Hart
I/C: Jamie Charman Blake Caracella Marcus Ashcroft Richard Hadley
Coach: Leigh Matthews

Geelong (Premiers 2007, 2009, 2011)
As the early 2000s came to a close the Cats, swiftly went about building a champion side from the bottom up, with the appointment of coach Mark Thompson prompting some very clever moves on the draft table. Following the Lions’ dominance in the first half of the decade the Cats looked to be on the slide after a very poor 2006 campaign.

With Mark Thompson on the ropes the Cats came out of nowhere in 2007, as a phenomenal end to the season would see the men from Geelong claim their first flag in over 40 years.

Lead by inspirational captains Tom Harley (07 and 09) and Cameron Ling (11) the Cats had almost the perfect team.

Starting in the middle they were truly unstoppable. A line up of Gary Ablett Jr, Joel Selwood, Jimmy Bartel and James Kelly being complemented by big man Brad Ottens in the ruck, this star-studded on-ball brigade would always give their forwards silver service. These midfielders were supported by an ever-conquering forward line, which at its prime featured the likes of Cameron Mooney, Tom Hawkins, Paul Chapman, Steve Johnson and Travis Varcoe.

If this isn’t good enough to cement the Cats as one of the best sides of the modern era, then their defence definitely gets them over the line. With key talls such as Matthew Scarlett, Harry Taylor, Tom Harley and Darren Milbun along with rebounding smalls like Corey Enright and Andrew Mackie, in their prime the Cats were almost impossible to kick a winning score against.

Although they had superstars all over the field it was their depth that made the Cats such a dominant force over such a long period of time. Many say a great team is defined by their bottom six players, this theory can definitely be seen through the Geelong of the late 2000s and early 2010s. Every single person that donned the hoops played a very significant role in the overall success.

Geelong’s best
FB: Darren Milburn Matthew Scarlett Corey Enright
HB: Andrew Mackie Harry Taylor Tom Harley
C: Joel Corey Cameron Ling James Kelly
HF: Jimmy Bartel Cameron Mooney *Travis Varcoe
FF: *Steve Johnson Tom Hawkins *Paul Chapman
FOLL: Brad Ottens Joel Selwood *Gary Ablett Jr
I/C: Mark Blake *Shannon Byrnes Max Rooke David Wojcinski
Coach: Mark Thompson

*Moved to another club

Hawthorn (Premiers 2008, 2013, 2014, 2015)
Although the Hawks were premiers in 2008, their reign of dominance did not truly begin until their grand final appearance in 2012. Although they lost to the Swans that day in an absolute thriller, it was evident a new empire had been born.

The Hawks returned the next season to dominate the competition and win a very well deserved premiership over the Dockers. With the 2013 premiership under their belt, nobody could have predicted what would occur in seasons 2014-15.

With a game plan so clever and beautiful the Hawks became the goliath of the AFL, as they seemed to improve after the loss of superstar key forward Lance Franklin. Much like the Lions of the early 2000s, the Hawks always get it done in September.

Lead by inspirational captain Luke Hodge, this current Hawthorn side looks to be one of the most balanced football establishments in history. With a dynamic midfield led by Hodge, Sam Mitchell and Jordan Lewis, they are complemented beautifully by the class and speed of the likes of Isaac Smith, Bradley Hill and Shaun Burgoyne.

This class and speed can also be seen through their defence, which along with its solidness against the opposition scoring also does a fantastic job in triggering the Hawks attacking movements. The back six balance themselves out beautifully as each player has a specific role to play.

Despite their class both in the midfield and down back, Hawthorn’s number one asset is without a doubt their firepower up forward. With key talls such as Jarryd Roughead and Jack Gunston providing dominant targets inside 50 and smalls Luke Breust, Cyril Rioli and Paul Puopolo picking up the crumbs and putting on pressure the Hawks definitely have the best attacking set up in the competition.

Along with their extremely balanced squad of players the Hawks are also renowned for having the best coaches in the business. This game plan has seen the Hawks transform into one of the most watchable sides ever to play the game.

Hawthorn’s best
FB: Ben Stratton Brian Lake James Frawley
HB: Grant Birchall Josh Gibson Shaun Burgoyne
C: Bradley Hill Sam Mitchell Liam Shiels
HF: Cyril Rioli *Lance Franklin Isaac Smith
FF: Luke Breust Jarryd Roughead Paul Puopolo
FOLL: Ben McEvoy Luke Hodge Jordan Lewis
I/C: *Matt Suckling Taylor Duryea David Hale Jack Gunston
*Moved to another club

Verdict
With champion players on each line, legendary coaches and exquisite game plans, it is extremely difficult to split these three fantastic sides. Personally I feel the Cats deserve the title as the best side of the modern era as they displayed the most consistency in performance, had true champions of the game across every line and most importantly managed to keep their period of dominance going for the longest period of time.

My rankings
1. Geelong
2. Hawthorn
3. Brisbane