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Opinion
The 2021 grand final to be played in Perth between two Victorian teams tops off an amazing season for which the AFL should be given great credit.
Despite the consequences of COVID-19 leading to postponements, relocations and late schedule changes, a full season of (so far) 206 games held at 14 different venues in seven states and territories, all with the underlying challenge of travel, quarantine, isolation and family involvement has been completed.
The season itself saw the major change of the guard in the finals contestants with four of the 2020 contenders failing to make the cut for the 2021 finals series. This was in contrast to 2019, where only two teams missed out the following year in an admittedly shorter series of 17 games played over 18 rounds of the home-and-away season.
The fact that one of the new teams finished on top of the ladder as minor premiers and last year’s premiers missed out altogether adds more weight to my argument that each season the contest becomes more and more even due to the fine-tuning of salary caps, draft choices, player lists and trade periods.
The professionalism of all aspects of a modern football club (including the medical staff) means that nearly all players playing the game in 2021 were trained to the hilt, highly skilled and introduced to the game through a highly organised pathway of development from a young age. The only two attributes that distinguish the champions from the others are now experience and ability.
The last time there was such a change over of the last eight standing was in 2006 and – interestingly – the two teams that fell by the wayside in 2007 were Melbourne and Western Bulldogs.
Another indication of the evening up of the competition is the number of close contests that occurred throughout the season, with three draws, six games won by one solitary point, and a extraordinary total of 51 games won by two goals or less, including five of the nine games in Round 15.
Most good judges discount a win or loss by two goals or less as a no result as they are aware that one critical turnover or wrong decision – no matter by whom – during the game can make a 12-point difference to the result and coaches, while the winners are happy with the four points, will be looking to improve the side’s performance against their opponent so that ‘luck’ plays less of a role next time round.
We had to wait until Round 22 before there was not a game decided by two goals or less and even in this round there were margins of 14, 14 and 15 points.
The way to put a game beyond doubt is to kick plenty of goals and for this reason proven goal kickers are hot property at trade time. In recent years, we have seen some of the best goalkickers about change clubs, including Tom Lynch, Jeremy Cameron, Ben Brown, Garry Rohan, Josh Bruce, Jake Stringer, Joe Daniher and Charlie Cameron.
Strangely, while some have already climbed into the top 100 goalkickers at their second club, none made it into the AFL top 100 goalkickers of all time. Jeremy Cameron was already a member of this elite group, having made it last year, along with Jack darling, Luke Breust and Jack Gunston.
On the other hand – after no new members last year – the AFL top 100-game players club welcomed an impressive total of six new members and by the end of the year the AFL had their fifth 400-game player and the leading game player at seven of the eighteen clubs: an outstanding achievement by any measure.
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The Pies are on FIRE at the 'G!
They've reviewed everything else this year and not THAT?
Outstanding from Nicholas Madden!
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