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AFL top 100: Round 2 review

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Roar Guru
28th March, 2021
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In 2020, new goal-kicking members were welcomed into the top 100 goal scorers of all time but only one game player (Nathan Jones, Melbourne) made it into the league’s game playing elite.

But 2021 could see five players make their way into the AFL top 100 game players by the end of the season, however only one player, Richmond’s Tom Lynch, appears a chance to climb into the top 100 goal scorers by season’s end. And that would be rated a 50-50 proposition with two weeks of the season now gone.

With Lance Franklin – a member of both lists – now back in action, the current elite lists are only missing Eddie Betts (also a member of both lists) and Jack Gunston, an elite goal scorer who currently sits in 100th position and is the only player on the list with less than 400 goals to his name.

Lance Franklin

(Photo by Ryan Pierse/Getty Images)

This weekend saw only umpire Nathan Williamson achieve AFL top 100 status when he umpired in the game between Geelong and Brisbane at Kardinia Park on Friday night and equaled the total games of Steven Hanley (1996-2001) and Mike Henry (1971-1977).

Coincidentally, the bar was set at 88 games, the same number coaches Simon Goodwin and Chris Fagan reached in Round 1 to make the coaches elite list.

While Taylor Walker impressed again, scoring six goals this week after five in Round 1, his progress up the chart of goal kickers was nowhere near as impressive as last week, taking him past no one in Round 2 but drawing level with Fitzroy’s Garry Wilson and Travis Cloke, who after ten years at Collingwood played his final year at the Western Bulldogs in 2017.

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The three players now share 73rd position on the AFL top 100 goal scorers list. Hawthorn’s Luke Breust kicked two goals to take his tally to 411, the same as former Melbourne champion Fred Fanning, who in his last year of league footy kicked 18 goals in a game against St Kilda in 1947. This is still the record number of goals in a game.

Geelong’s Tom Hawkins moved above Richmond star of the 1970s and 1980s Michael Roach. Josh Kennedy moved past the 650-goal milestone with four goals and teammate Jack Darling scored three goals to move up the AFL top 100 goal scorers list ahead of Fred Fanning and Bob Skilton.

At a club level, the dynamic Dustin Martin scored his 275th goal and is now level with legend Perc Bentley at Richmond, and the thrilling match between the West Coast Eagles and Western Bulldogs saw three players on each team kick at least three goals.

One of these was Marcus Bontempelli, the current leading goal scorer at the Bulldogs.

Marcus Bontempelli

(Photo by Chris Hyde/Getty Images)

His three goals meant that he passed former teammate Shaun Higgins (now at Geelong) and Don McKenzie, and equaled the tally of Bernie O’Brien, who had a two-year gap in his career and finished with one year at Carlton in 1931.

At a club games played level, at long last Franklin made it into the Sydney top 100 game players of all time with his 119th game. He now sits in the hot seat alongside Brownlow Medalist Fred Goldsmith and 1960s Traralgon recruit Paul Harrison.

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At the elite level, David Mundy (Fremantle), Scott Pendlebury (Collingwood), Joel Selwood (Geelong) and Lance Franklin (Hawthorn and Sydney) all moved up a notch.

The five possible new members by seasons end – Shannon Hurn (West Coast Eagles), Marc Murphy (Carlton), Travis Boak (Port Adelaide), Jack Riewoldt (Richmond) and Tom Hawkins (Geelong) – all finished the round with their form and fitness in tact while Patrick Dangerfield (Adelaide and Geelong) may need to wait until 2022 as a result of his enforced holiday.

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