Most will accept the AFL era began in 1990, when the competition was renamed from the VFL to the AFL.
Carlton were the most successful VFL era side, with 15 flags, Essendon were next (14) and then followed Collingwood (13), Melbourne (12) and Richmond (10).
Hawthorn, despite securing flags in 1983, 1986, 1988 and 1989 were further down the list, with eight flags.
So, with 1990 as the starting point of the AFL, we now have a lot of AFL footy to analyse – 28 years is a lot of footy! Think of a 15-year-old following the Doggies in 1990 as now being a 43-year-old man, perhaps with a 15-year-old of his own.
Let’s break the AFL era down and look at what defines success. For some fans, nothing short of flags are worth mentioning; others want to be in contention deep into most seasons, rather than patiently wait for rebuilds.
Flags
If your definition of a successful club is only premiership flags, there will be no surprises that Hawthorn is clearly the most dominant club of the AFL era.
If that is your only barometer of success, then the article stops here. The Hawks are the best, as their five flags has no rival.
Some will be a little surprised with the members in the next grouping – Brisbane, West Coast and Geelong.
What an amazing achievement in a non-football state by Leigh Matthews mighty triple flag Lions in 2001-2003.
Once again, if flags are your only barometer of success, looking just at non-Victorian clubs, Brisbane are every bit as successful as West Coast and leave Sydney and Adelaide, Port, Fremantle and the new franchises in their wake.
Flags since the beginning of the AFL in 1990
Hawthorn 5
Brisbane 3
West Coast 3
Geelong 3
Sydney 2
North Melbourne 2
Adelaide 2
Collingwood 2
Essendon 2
Port Adelaide 1
Carlton 1
Richmond 1
Western Bulldogs 1
The Hawks have featured in plenty of grand final classics (AAP Image/Julian Smith)
Grand finals
Some look beyond flags as their definition of success – after all, who doesn’t enjoy the week leading up to the big dance with your team as one of two who just might win the cup?
Surely, we need to give credit for those teams who actually make the grand final?
Club: number of grand finals for flags: conversion to flags
Geelong: seven for three flags: 42.8 per cent
Hawthorn: six for five flags: 83.3 per cent
Sydney: six GF for two flags: 33.3 per cent
West Coast: six for three flags: 50.0 per cent
Collingwood: five for two flags: 40 per cent
Brisbane: four for three flags: 75 per cent
Essendon: four for two flags: 50.0 per cent
It tells a story, don’t you think? Let’s say you are playing your first grand final in 20 years, well you don’t want to be playing Hawthorn, but Sydney will give you a chance.
Finals
Is there anything worse than watching the other teams prepare for the finals, while your side are dressing up as Avengers on Mad Monday?
The smell of the spring grass being cut, the analysis of the upcoming knock-out series, the doubts over injured players, the waiting on the teams being announced, and – best of all – the pre-match feeling of breathless excitement as you walk through the turnstiles.
Surely, this is the ultimate definition of a successful club: one who can regularly give its supporters the finals feeling?
Club: finals appearances: participation rate
West Coast: 20 appearances from 28 years: 71.4 per cent
Geelong: 19 appearances from 28 years: 67.8 per cent
Sydney: 19 appearances from 28 years: 67.8 per cent
Hawthorn: 17 appearances from 28 years: 60.7 per cent%
Essendon: 16 appearances from 28 years: 57.1 per cent%
North Melbourne: 16 appearances from 28 years: 57.1 per cent
Adelaide: 15 appearances from 27 years: 55.5 per cent
Port Adelaide: 10 appearances from 21 years: 47.6 per cent
Bulldogs: 13 appearances from 28 years: 46.4 per cent
Collingwood: 13 appearances from 28 years: 46.4 per cent
St Kilda: 11 appearances from 28 years: 39.3 per cent
All pretty clear there – West Coast give its supporters the most finals appearances, followed closely by Geelong and Sydney.
Others who provide better than 50 per cent include Hawthorn, Essendon, North Melbourne and Adelaide.
The lowest return on investment for fans wanting finals in the AFL era? By a significant margin, it is the 2017 premiers.
Richmond have played finals in just 21.4 per cent of their years in the AFL, with Fremantle next worst (30.4%), then Melbourne (32.1%) and Brisbane (35.7%).
As for Greater Western Sydney (currently 33.3%) and the Suns (no finals), neither have been around long enough to give them a fair rating, while Fitzroy spent their last seven years in the AFL without playing finals.
Average ladder positions
So, after 28 years of this competition, where does your side sit on average ladder positions?
Let’s make it after each grand final, as surely the Doggies finished first, not seventh, in 2016.
Cats = 5.53
West Coast = 6.60
Hawthorn = 7.14
Sydney = 7.14
North = 7.28
Adelaide = 7.44
Port Adelaide = 8.00
Collingwood = 8.17
Essendon = 8.39
Bulldogs = 8.53
St Kilda = 9.14
Carlton = 9.57
Brisbane = 10.28
Fremantle = 10.47
Melbourne = 10.71
Richmond = 10.50
GWS = 12.00
Fitzroy = 13.28
Gold Coast = 15.28
In many ways it’s easier to look from the bottom and claim that any club averaging ninth or worse really isn’t providing fans with return on investment, although Lions fans may argue they’d put up with the rest of the horror for three delicious flags.
A big group are kind of ranking in the middle – up, down, up, down – and the outliers at the top are the Cats and West Coast, with truly remarkable averages.
[latest_videos_strip category=”afl” name=”AFL”]
Wooden spoon table
Life isn’t all positives. Let’s take a look at the biggest accumulators of the dreaded spoons:
Carlton = 4
Melbourne = 3
Sydney = 3
Brisbane = 3
Carlton, the most successful club of the VFL era, have accumulated the most wooden spoons in the AFL era and have a genuine chance of making it five this year.
Summary
The Hawks may have the most cups, but the truth is Geelong and West Coast are the most consistent clubs in the AFL era.
Geelong average a remarkable ladder position of 5.5, have played the most grand finals, and are equal second for finals appearances, after West Coast. The Cats are a remarkably consistent club that seem to continually reinvent themselves, playing finals 67 per cent of the time, having snared three flags – and seem destined for the finals and another flag shot this year.
West Coast are very similar, with an average ladder position of 6.6, the most finals appearances, and six grand finals of their own at a 50 per cent return for three flags.
This is an interstate side who defies the consensus of extra travel equalling less success, who too are back in contention again this year.
Geelong and West Coast are inseparable as the two most consistent clubs in the AFL era. Hawthorn may have the most flags but it is the Cats and Eagles who give their fans the most chances for success.
Ron The Bear
Roar Rookie
Peter Pan or Shadow King?
Michael Adlington
Guest
Yeas and the perfect team to o to Tasmania would be the Hawks, although very successful where it is; Hawthorn gets a lot of sponsorship from Tasmania and frequently plays several games on the Apple Isle per year.
michael RVC
Roar Pro
Imagine a Victorian footy follower passing judgement on fan humility? Geez turn it up.
michael RVC
Roar Pro
This is an AFL article. Both clubs are barely on the radar.
michael RVC
Roar Pro
Myopic Victorian perspective creeping in there.
michael RVC
Roar Pro
Yeah sure. They completely outplayed the hawks after Q time. Even in the face of rampant umpiring bias to the hawks, they prevailed.
michael RVC
Roar Pro
The cola whinge, wahhhhh. 22 versus 22 on any given game day. Money has nothing to do with that. This same sort of commenter will also tell what rubbish lists SYDNEY has had over the years as well, esp compared to those cool Vic teams.
michael RVC
Roar Pro
True. But I agree with him as well.
Jack
Guest
Great article. Could you do it again I suspect WC has moved up the order after last years flag.
PeteB
Guest
I like it. Pretty good reflection of the last 27 years. The Eagles rating I’m guessing is so high because of their performance in the 90s. I’d be happy to be a Tigers supporter right now but they did endure a lot of pain through the 90s and 00s.
andyl12
Guest
Confused- Maybe you could tell us about your research and what this shaky history is?
Confused
Guest
Be careful. hawthorn has a very shaky history. Do some research before you make outlandish claims of being Pure.
Confused
Guest
Getting to the GF and not winning isn't a failure. Demons 11 year finals drought is more of a disappointment for the supporters.
Confused
Guest
It's always been the East Coast vs West Coast way before the Eagles. I bought my West Coast jeans from JeansWest 45 years ago.
Brayden Rise
Roar Pro
Pete, as a fun exercise, how about the following formula? Flags = 25 points GF = 15 points Final = 5 points The formula would be Flag + GF + Final divided by number of seasons. This would result in the following points ranking for return on investment in the AFL era. The interesting part below would be that Collingwood and Essendon with 2 flags each would rate slightly higher than Brisbane thanks to making more finals and in the Pies case an extra grand final. Points ranking for clubs in the AFL era Hawthorn = 125 + 90 + 85 = 300 / 28 = Rating 10.71 Geelong = 75 + 105 + 95 = 275 / 28 = Rating 9.82 Eagles = 75 + 90 + 100 = 265 / 28 = Rating 9.46 Sydney = 50 + 90 + 95 = 235 / 28 = Rating 8.39 Collingwood = 50 + 75 + 65 = 190/28 = Rating 6.78 Essendon = 50 + 60 + 80 = 190/28 = Rating 6.78 Brisbane = 75 + 60 + 50 = 185 / 28 = Rating 6.60 North = 50 + 45 + 80 = 175/28 = Rating 6.25 An interesting aside from this at the lower end of the scale (one flag clubs) would have the Doggies regular finals appearances having them ahead of Carlton and the Tigers.. Bulldogs = 25 + 15 + 65 = 105/28 = Rating 3.75 Carlton = 25 + 30 + 45 = 100/ 28 = Rating 3.57 Richmond = 25 + 15 + 20 = 60/28 = Rating 2.14
Peter the Scribe
Roar Guru
Don't forget WCE the Hawks aren't "always up there" . 1992 - 2007 zero flags and lots of troubles at the club. Footy can go in cycles and as good as they are, there's no guarantees it will just continue for the Hawks.
Peter the Scribe
Roar Guru
Actually I correct myself. If the Bombers or Eagles can snag one this year or next they would join the Hawks as one flag at least for every decade of the AFL.
PeteB
Guest
Yeah if the hawks had won 4 and not made any other finals in that time, I would probably have got more enjoyment from following a club that won 2 or 3 and regularly made finals. If I was to do some rankings on this I’d come up with a formula where a premiership was worth at least twice the value of coming second and second was worth double coming 3rd and 4th etc. And I probably wouldn’t bother going back more than 20 years as it’s too long ago now to really matter. But it doesn’t have to be that hard. Right now I’d say Hawks, Cats and then Swans would have given their supporters the most joy in recent years. All have won premierships in recent times and consistently gone deep into finals.
Football Head
Roar Rookie
Alrighty Brayden lets pick this apart real nice and easily. Brisbane Or Geelong supporter over the last 23 years? Geelong, of course. Hawks or Geelong? Hawthorn, every time. Why? Fair question, because by your reasoning I've just jumped between two ways of deciding who's best: averages for one and then outright premierships the other. How on Earth can that be? Well, I'm glad you asked. See what you seem to intentionally overlook in your article- and each of your subsequent reply's (for reasons I don't fully understand)- is that liking teams that win in season and liking teams that win premierships are not in fact mutually exclusive. Is supporting a good team better than supporting Carlton (shout out to the Carlton supporters)? Heck yes. Is supporting a good team that wins premierships better than supporting a good team? Heck yes. Is supporting a great team that never wins anything important better than supporting that aforementioned good team? Nah, of course not, cause what's the point? So you as a supporter can show up late to a grand final party and in a nasally voice proudly inform the room that the team that just won wasn't actually any good, because this other team finished two places higher on the ladder than them the year before and only one place behind them that year? You can take that as my answer to your question on the tigers (no I'm not a supporter): I'd take a Grand final after years in the wilderness over the St Kilda route circa 2010 of contending but never actually succeeding. By all means yes, admire Geelong and West Coast: their consistency is nothing to be scoffed at, and it places them yet another rung above teams that have also won premierships but who go missing for years in between appearances. While you're at it also admire LG's smartphones, they're also consistently pretty good. But then, much like the teams of this article, you'd probably have a similarly hard time convincing people that they're the best of their era either.
The Runt
Guest
Happy to be a Hawk Always. Just as an aside someone was banging on about how many flags the Dons and Blues have won in the dim dark past 16. How ,any of those were prior to1927 the year the Roos & Hawks came to play, it may of taken a while for both to get on the board but how much head start in years do you want.