AFL Coaching Power Rankings: who has been the best coach of 2022?

Let’s face it: while we all pretend to care about what happens on the footy field, whether our team wins or loses and if our favourite players are starring, we all know AFL is really all about the coaches. *winks*

While every man and his dog thinks they could do a better job than the current crop, in reality the18 brave souls at the helm at the moment are trying to tackle the game’s toughest task as best they can.

But it’s a numbers game, and just as every team gets ranked on a weekly basis by, y’know, the ladder, it’s only fair to apply the same scrutiny to the people most responsible for those positions.

So from first-year coaches with surprises up their sleeve to the unexpected shockers of would-be contenders, it’s time to rank all the 2022 coaches – from first to 19th.

Yes, you read that right – 19th.

19. Leon Cameron (GWS)

It doesn’t get much worse in the AFL than getting the axe, so the only casualty of the season so far has to occupy the lowest spot on that list.

Worse still for Cameron, though, the Giants have already shown under caretaker coach Mark McVeigh (more on him later) a far more energetic, powerful game style than their many lifeless showings under the old boss to start the season. Often derided for playing several key players out of position, their starring roles under McVeigh – Stephen Coniglio the prime example – makes him look even sillier.

Are GWS in danger of fading into obscurity? (AAP Image/Julian Smith)

18. David Noble (North Melbourne)

It’s been an utterly wretched season for North Melbourne, and much of the blame is being laid squarely at the feet of the coach.

In Noble’s defence, the Kangaroos’ list is seriously dire: but then again, it’s not that much worse than some other teams in the AFL (hint: one just might find himself very high up on this list), and certainly not worthy of a 1-12 team with a percentage hovering just above 50.

The Roos’ record under Noble is 5 wins, a draw, 29 losses and a percentage of 63.08 – that’s half a win and two and a half per cent more than the undisputed worst coach of the last decade, Mark Neeld, at the point Melbourne finally decided to sack him. It’s genuinely that bad.

(Photo by Michael Willson/AFL Photos via Getty Images)

17. Luke Beveridge (Western Bulldogs)

Now my first controversial pick – the coach of a 6-6 side still very much in the finals reckoning, ahead of some teams with far worse records – including the one in last that they beat by 100-plus points a few weeks ago.

But it’s not just about wins and losses – and the fact is Beveridge’s Bulldogs have taken a seismic step backwards from the one that led a grand final by 19 points just 12 and a half games ago.

Surely few coaches with half their club’s total premierships have ever copped as much criticism from their own fan base as Beveridge has; from puzzling selection decisions to an inability to fix several of the Dogs’ key issues spanning back years – including wretched kicking for goal and a vulnerable defence – it has been a wild ride.

Add to that his farcical clash with The Former Journalist Who Shall Not Be Named in Round 1, and his disgraceful repeat dropping and reinstating of Lachie Hunter in the side at the same time, and it’s been far from Beveridge’s finest year.

The Dogs now find themselves tenth, with the hardest run of any finals contender left. It would take a minor miracle for them to make finals. No side with as much talent as them should be making it this hard for themselves.

16. Adam Simpson (West Coast)

Let’s get it out of the way first: how you rank Simpson’s performance this year depends on whether you view the myriad of problems at the Eagles this season as wholly or only partially under his control.

I’ve ranked him ahead of Beveridge solely because the COVID crisis that basically derailed the Eagles’ start to the year, and left the playing group basically playing without hope from the early rounds on, was one no team in the competition could have come through.

He gets points for somehow conjuring up a win over Collingwood in Round 4 – still the biggest upset of the AFL season – and for somehow conjuring a fight against North Melbourne with a side of rookies and WAFL players two weeks prior.

But what’s happened since has been all on Simpson – and I fully expect him to be lower than Beveridge, and maybe even Noble, on this list by season’s end.

15. Ben Rutten (Essendon)

No doubt plenty of Bombers fans would be keen to see Rutten ranked even lower than this, given the Bombers’ dire start to the season; but I’ve given him a slight edge over Beveridge and Simpson due to the myriad of injuries that has denied the team any sort of continuity.

The forward line has fallen to pieces, with Jake Stringer barely playing, Anthony McDonald-Tipungwuti retiring and key pair Will Snelling and Kyle Langford playing a half and five minutes respectively.

Rutten still undoubtedly deserves to be in the bottom four: the Dons’ game plan has been unwatchable at times, and there’s no doubt they should be performing far, far better.

(Photo by Michael Willson/AFL Photos via Getty Images)

14. Ken Hinkley (Port Adelaide)

After the Power’s 0-5 start to the season, Hinkley was just about at the bottom of this list: but to his credit, he and the team have restored some pride with their from since.

A number of scrappy wins still hasn’t put finals back on the table – at 5-7 in a year where you’ll need 13 wins to have a chance, Port are just about cooked already – but it’s at least salvaged something from the rubble, and continuing it will probably save Hinkley’s job where a complete bottoming out would have had him on the chopping block.

Nevertheless, it’s a dismal failure to have a side that played a home preliminary final last year in such a dire situation. With no forward line, glacial ball movement and weaknesses everywhere, the Power have squandered their chance at a second AFL premiership.

(Photo by Chris Hyde/Getty Images)

13. Matthew Nicks (Adelaide)

The Crows’ progress under Nicks has been slow and steady; and after taking a step forward with wins over Richmond and the Bulldogs earlier this year, they’ve since taken a big step back with five losses from six matches since.

It’s looking like a third consecutive bottom-four finish from the Crows, and considering this is a club that sacked Brenton Sanderson for finishing 11th and 10th two years running, that doesn’t bode well for Nicks. Still, there are enough bright spots for Adelaide in 2022 to keep him from languishing too close to the bottom of this list.

(Photo by James Elsby/AFL Photos via Getty Images)

12. Mark McVeigh (GWS)

It’s too early for the Giants’ caretaker coach to feature any higher on this list, but McVeigh’s start to life in the hot seat has gone swimmingly thus far.

The Giants have had big wins over the admittedly incompetent Eagles and Kangaroos, and were gallant in defeat to Brisbane in between. But it’s been the return of their exciting, attacking style of football, and that of some key players to their very best form, that has been the most positive sign under McVeigh.

He’ll have bigger tests to come – but keep this up, and it will be hard for the Giants to take the job off him.

Giants head coach Leon Cameron and assistant coach Mark McVeigh talk. (Photo by Cameron Spencer/AFL Photos/via Getty Images )

11. Simon Goodwin (Melbourne)

The Demons and Goodwin have had their first real test of the year in the last few weeks – and they’ve flunked it.

The biggest test of a coach in my book is how they respond to adversity, which is why the reigning Jock McHale Medallist finds himself so far down the list despite the Dees’ 10-game winning streak.

It’s one thing to keep the machine purring – and the Demons clearly have the best list in the competition – but if you go to water the minute the check engine light comes on, you might be a shoddy mechanic.

I fully expect Goodwin and the Demons to respond, though – they went through a similar down patch midway through last year, worked through it, and won the flag. But it’s getting harder and harder to separate the coaches at this point of the list, so to the middle of the pile Goody goes.

(Photo by Michael Willson/AFL Photos via Getty Images)

10. Chris Fagan (Brisbane)

This is where the list starts getting difficult – because every coach from here on out has done a legitimately good job this season, to varying degrees.

Fagan falls this low because, despite Brisbane being on top of the ladder at this point, there’s still an air of vulnerability to the Lions that a side as experienced and battle-hardened as they should be past.

They’re looking at a fourth straight season of finishing in the top four, but their defending is still suspect, they’re prone to the odd shocker, and generally feel like they’re performing some way off their brilliant best.

Fagan will surely fly up this list in the run home, but his true test will come in the finals: you can bet the wolves will come for him should the Lions’ 1-5 finals record under his watch get any worse.

9. Damien Hardwick (Richmond)

Again, the Tigers triple-premiership hero is very unlucky to find himself this low: would it help if I said he was a couple of spots lower a couple of weeks ago?

The Tigers have changed their game plan on the fly in recent weeks to return to their famous brand of ‘chaos football’, and it’s worked far better for them than the high-possession game they played to start the year. Points for that – but points off for not getting the other style to work.

It says something about how many good sides there are going around this year that a coach that’s won five of his last six, and has three flags under his belt, is this far down the list!

Damien Hardwick (Photo by Graham Denholm/AFL Photos via Getty Images)

8. Chris Scott (Geelong)

Probably the most derided coach in the game, it’s only fair to acknowledge that the Cats, and Scott, have done an extraordinary job to remain in the hunt for a premiership for basically all but one year of his decade-long tenure.

The Cats have started to make tweaks to the game plan that has served them so well in the home-and-away rounds but fallen flat in finals; they’re moving the ball quicker, more experimental around the ball with the likes of Jeremy Cameron spending time at centre bounces, and they’re notably doing it all without much influence from the great Patrick Dangerfield.

There’s still question marks over the Cats’ place among the year’s true heavyweights, though, which is why he only just scrapes into the top eight. Like Fagan, he’ll probably need a deep run into the finals, if not the flag itself, to lift his ranking up by season’s end.

7. John Longmire (Sydney)

Recent wins over Melbourne and Richmond were awesome and have pushed Longmire further up the rankings than he otherwise would have; but I’m still confident six other coaches have out-performed the Swans maestro this year.

Sydney aren’t the finished product just yet, and the surprise success that made Longmire one of the coaches of 2021 has now moved into expectation, which they haven’t always met.

Highs and lows are a by-product of a young, developing team, so it’s no knock on Longmire’s impeccable coaching record – but even the smallest mark against your name loses you points when the competition is this tight!

6. Brett Ratten (St Kilda)

The Saints have been fantastic this year, and Ratten’s shrewd coaching moves have been a big reason why. Shifting Bradley Hill to half-forward with a licence to roam has been a masterstroke, as has been his ability to transform the Saints’ on-ball brigade, such a major drawback in their poor 2021, into one of the most bruising units going around.

I’ve ranked Ratten this low partly due to my belief that this is how good the Saints should be, and that rather than making a massive improvement from last year, their 2022 form is just reverting back to their excellent 2020.

But with injuries starting to build up, I can guarantee Ratts a top-four spot if he can achieve the same with the Saints – and you wouldn’t put it past him.

(Photo by Michael Willson/AFL Photos via Getty Images)

5. Craig McRae (Collingwood)

Remarkably, of the three new coaches heading into 2022, McRae is the lowest-ranked of the lot. But that’s more to do with the general excellence of that fresh-faced trio this year than any knock on his Magpies.

The Pies’ rise to become a genuine finals contender has shocked many (not me, though! he shouts, acting as if he didn’t have Fremantle and St Kilda in the bottom six), but their frenetic, Richmond-esque style under McRae has helped them take down many a contender, including the teams currently sitting second, third and fourth.

The only reason McRae hasn’t cracked the top four is because the Pies’ worst, notably in a thumping loss to the Bulldogs and somehow losing to West Coast, has still left them with a stack to do to scrape into the eight. But with four massive wins in a row now, ‘Fly’ is going to fl… travel up the rankings very quickly.

4. Michael Voss (Carlton)

The Blues’ turnaround under Voss has been so swift and so natural it can be easy to overlook just how exceptional it is.

Last year, Carlton finished 13th, leaked like a sieve defensively and were wholly reliant on a wounded Patrick Cripps in midfield.

Now, the rejuvenated captain is just one part of the most lethal midfield in the game, and the backline capable of standing up even without the talismanic Jacob Weitering. All without compromising the Blues’ biggest asset – the one-two forward punch of Harry McKay and Charlie Curnow.

The Blues have been a place where coaches go to die for more than 20 years now: Voss has walked in the door, and instantly turned them into a flag contender. What a wonderful job he’s done.

Michael Voss addresses the Blues during their clash with Richmonod. (Photo by Michael Willson/AFL Photos via Getty Images)

3. Stuart Dew (Gold Coast)

I’ll be the first to admit I thought the Suns were doomed when Ben King went down in pre-season with a knee injury. That they haven’t is why Dew is undoubtedly one of the coaches of the year.

It’s been a long, slow burn for the Suns since he took the helm in 2018, but there are now green shoots everywhere. Building the defence was Dew’s biggest priority from day one, and they’re now as miserly as anyone; while recruits Levi Casboult and Mabior Chol have somehow found a way to cover for King in attack.

The Suns have wins over Carlton, Sydney and Fremantle this year: that’s an impressive group of scalps. Even if they don’t make finals in 2022 – and with a very tasty run home, they are in this up to their eyeballs – it feels like the club is going somewhere for the first time in, well, ever.

And to think I thought Alastair Clarkson was the only man who could save them!

2. Sam Mitchell (Hawthorn)

Forget the fact that the Hawks are 4-9. Forget the fact that they’ll probably still finish in the bottom six this year. No coach has done more with the tools at his disposal than Mitchell in his first year at the helm.

You can see how bad Hawthorn are from their only two floggings this year, to Gold Coast and St Kilda: their midfield is just about the weakest in the league, their defence a group of youngsters, some very underwhelming names and James Sicily; and their best player, Mitch Lewis, has been sidelined for key stretches throughout the year to date.

Put simply, this side should be on the same level as North Melbourne or Essendon; yet thanks to Mitchell, they’re taking it right up to the likes of Fremantle, Melbourne and Carlton, and knocking over Brisbane and Geelong. The defence is so, so much more than the sum of its parts, the forward line squeezes every last drop of talent out of itself, and the midfield is able to hold things together for long enough to keep them in every game.

You might think I’m mad for having Mitchell this high; no doubt most of you reading this will vehemently disagree. But for mine, a coach is only as good as the team at his disposal, and no one in the game this year has done more with less than him.

Sam Mitchell addresses his Hawthorn players at three quarter time against Fremantle. (Photo by Daniel Carson/AFL Photos via Getty Images)

1. Justin Longmuir (Fremantle)

Well, if Mitchell at number two was a shock, then I doubt anyone will be surprised with my pick for coach of the year.

Obviously, Fremantle’s rise from mid-table last year to equal top heading into their bye, having beaten both of the sides above them, instantly makes Longmuir’s performance commendable.

But it’s the way they’re playing, too: utterly impenetrable defensively, ruthless in the midfield and with pressure forwards everywhere, they tick every single box required to win premierships in modern footy. I’d say they’re probably one more Melbourne loss away from actually being flag favourites.

The Dockers’ rebuild under Longmuir has been absolutely perfect in every way: nail draft picks, retain most of them, develop them gradually with games under their belt, develop a game plan, improve year upon year, and explode in the third.

(Photo by Jono Searle/AFL Photos/via Getty Images )

It’s the most textbook, ideal build from ground zero since Alastair Clarkson himself took the Hawks from near the bottom when he started in 2005 to a premiership – and even he took FOUR years to get there.

‘Flagmantle’ might not happen – Freo’s time might not be upon them just yet. It’s an even season, too, so even a single misstep could see the Dockers fall off their perch in the run home.

But it’s going to take something quite spectacular for Longmuir to not still be the clear, undisputed coach of the year by the time this season wraps up.