Opinion
It’s that time again. With the 2023 AFL season just a month away, it means The Roar’s annual countdown of the Top 50 players in the AFL is back underway.
We haven’t done a list like this since 2020, so here’s how it works in case you’ve forgotten: five of our AFL experts here at The Roar have put our heads together and listed our top 50 players each. Then, points were awarded based on how high they ranked on each expert’s list.
Said points were then tallied to give you our definitive top 50 for season 2020. If you haven’t checked out our list so far, you can do so below.
>> The Roar’s AFL top 50 players, 50-41
>> The Roar’s AFL top 50 players, 40-31
Today, the countdown continues as I dive into the players we ranked 21-30, featuring a couple of club captains and a bevy of young stars looking to continue their competition takeover in 2023.
Essendon | Midfielder
Arguably Essendon’s most accomplished player, Merrett’s 2022 season was just as prolific as ever. He averaged over 30 disposals and ranked second in the league for uncontested possessions, eighth for inside 50s and 10th for score involvements per game across the home-and-away rounds.
As a three-time best-and-fairest and two-time All-Australian, the 27-year-old already has an impressive resume and continues to be the one consistent part of an Essendon team on the rebuild – he landed in the top 35 in three of our experts’ lists, with only one of us having him outside the top 50.
If there’s one thing Bombers fans can rely on, it’s Merrett being an important player in 2023, spreading away from the contest and driving the ball deep into attack.
Geelong Cats | Utility
One of Geelong’s many examples of players getting better with age, Blicavs enjoyed a stellar 2022 season that saw him win both his first premiership and pick up an All-Australian blazer for his crucial role at the Cats.
He did just about everything, averaging nearly 18 disposals, 15 hitouts and five tackles per game, while still pushing into defence on occasion to help out.
The 31-year-old is entering his 11th season and will be a vital utility for the Cats as they look to re-establish themselves as the best team in the league – and don’t forget, he was a steeplechaser back in the day.
He was somewhat of a polarising figure among our experts, with two of us ranking him inside the top 20 and two not finding room for him in our top 50s at all – I was somewhere in the middle, listing him 32nd.
Sydney | Midfielder
After making a name for himself despite limited opportunities in 2021, Warner took the competition by storm in 2022.
The 21-year-old went from a young player who showed some exciting signs to arguably everyone’s favourite player from an opposition club.
Entrenching himself in the Sydney midfield, Warner averaged 23 disposals, five inside 50s, four clearances, four tackles, two scoring shots and a goal assist per game, which was good enough to earn 12 Brownlow votes and catapult him into the All-Australian squad.
With quality performances like his 29-disposal, two-goal effort playing a lone hand in the Swans’ grand final demolition, Warner has shown that he can stand up against adversity and deliver for his team.
I was seemingly a little low on Warner, ranking him 38th on my list where three of our other experts had him in the top 30; but it all seems to simply be a checkpoint on the fourth-year midfielder’s way to becoming a top 20 player in the league… and maybe even higher.
Adelaide Crows | Midfielder
The most prolific ball-winner in the league, Laird’s 2022 season perhaps flew a little under the radar, not making the All-Australian team despite picking up his third Adelaide best-and-fairest award.
His average of 33 disposals and eight tackles per game were career-highs and had him ranked first and second in the AFL respectively; and finishing fifth for clearances and eight for score involvement per game, you couldn’t say Laird’s possessions weren’t impactful.
Moving him from the back pocket into the guts has certainly helped give the Crows first hands on the ball at ground level, and with the development of fellow inside midfielders Sam Berry and Jake Soligo in 2022, the 29-year old can be expected to push a little further outside the contest to utilise his clean kicking in 2023.
Interestingly, while three of us – including myself – had him ranked in the 35-50 range, two of our experts valued his impact enough to place him 17th.
Brisbane Lions | Midfielder
With the likes of Lachie Neale and Charlie Cameron at the Lions hogging the spotlight, McCluggage doesn’t quite get the love he deserves league-wide. But his standing as a quality player hasn’t been lost on us here at The Roar, with all of us giving him a place in our top 50 and three of us ranking him in the top 30.
2022 saw another excellent season from the 24-year-old, averaging 25 disposals, five tackles and four clearances a game, while adding 20 goals and 19 goal assists to the tally. He was a top-20 AFL Fantasy player, if you’re that way inclined.
The beauty of McCluggage is his ability to cause as much damage inside as he does in space – against Richmond in the elimination final, he had 26 disposals, six clearances, six tackles, six rebound 50s, five inside 50s and a goal, yet still played a comfortable second fiddle to Neale.
On the back of 14 Brownlow votes, an All-Australian jacket should arrive in the coming seasons for a young gun I had ranked 36th on my list.
St Kilda | Midfielder
Such is the reputation St Kilda’s skipper has carved for himself in the last couple of seasons that a season where he averaged 27 disposals, seven tackles, five marks and five clearances was slightly disappointing.
Between 2020 and 2021, Steele collected 46 Brownlow votes, and he was clearly vital to the Saints’ strong start in 2022. Yet an injury midseason, which saw him miss a month, coincided with the team’s significant drop-off; as such, interest in both club and player drastically diminished.
The 27-year-old is the heart and soul of his footy team and will want to be leading from the front as they fight for a finals spot under new coach Ross Lyon.
One of the most consistent players in our rankings, four of us slotted him in somewhere between 20 and 31, including myself. (One of us did leave him out of the top 50 entirely, which I struggle to fathom!)
Port Adelaide | Midfielder
I’ve been one of many to beg Ken Hinkley to play Rozee as a full-time midfielder for the last couple of seasons, and the results were hardly surprising when the Power coach finally obliged in 2022.
The 23-year-old picked up his first best-and-fairest award, and his first All-Australian nod, as he strung together a damaging season of consistent brilliance. In 18 games after making the move into the middle, Rozee averaged 26 disposals, five inside 50s, four clearances, four tackles and a goal a game, failing to reach 21 disposals on just one occasion.
The umpires noticed too, with the Power’s brightest prospect collecting 12 Brownlow votes in his last 10 games. The sky’s the limit with Rozee and he reaches the top half in our countdown, finishing just a spot ahead of where I had him. One of us even had him as high as the top 10!
Connor Rozee. (Photo by James Elsby/AFL Photos via Getty Images)
Geelong Cats | Midfielder
Legacy is a funny thing. Despite being one of the most individually successful players in the modern era and, objectively, one of the best players since the turn of the century, apparently none of it mattered unless Dangerfield could win the big one.
Well, 2022 saw the veteran silence the doubters in a massive way, nursing himself through the home-and-away season before averaging 26 disposals, 16 contested possessions, eight clearances and six inside 50s during the finals series, as well as a lazy six goal assists in the grand final.
While he didn’t need it, it has helped cap off an extraordinary career that continues on in 2023. Three of us had the champion inside our top 25s, including one appearance in the top 10. For what it’s worth, I had him sliding in at 22.
Western Bulldogs | Midfielder
While he isn’t the big-name star that some of his Bulldogs teammates may be, Macrae has arguably been the most consistent midfielder in the AFL over the past four seasons.
He has been ranked in the top three in the league for effective disposals every year since 2019, ranked inside the top 10 for inside 50s and clearances since 2020, and has collected more touches than anyone in that time period.
2022 saw him average 31 disposals, six clearances and five inside 50s per game, while finishing with 18 or more goal assists for the third time in four seasons.
I ranked him slightly lower than most of our experts at 29, but aside from one of us leaving him out of their top 50 entirely, the rest of us had him somewhere from 13-23, which is where he eventually landed.
Hawthorn | Defender
The fill-in skipper who will likely take the reins in 2023, Sicily is a divisive personality, but clearly one of the best players in the competition.
Perhaps we didn’t appreciate his 2022 season enough. He played every game after not playing since Round 12, 2020, and ended the home-and-away season ranked first for marks, second for intercepts, third for metres gained and fourth for kicks across the league, picking up his first best-and-fairest award as a result.
Mix all that with the fact he has acted largely as Hawthorn’s main key defender, despite being just 187 centimetres, and performed well in one-on-ones against the game’s best big forwards, and we’re looking at the best player on his team by far.
Sicily’s the sort of guy you love having on your team (though maybe not at training) and hate to come up against, and it’s why I had him ranked as the 19th-best player in the league. Ultimately, two of us placing him in the 30s has cost him a spot inside the top 20.
50. Angus Brayshaw
49. Jordan Dawson
48. Bailey Smith
47. Aaron Naughton
46. Tom Papley
45. Lance Franklin
44. Tyson Stengle
43. Dustin Martin
42. Nat Fyfe
41. Tom Barrass
40. Dion Prestia
39. Scott Pendlebury
38. Josh Dunkley
37. Jacob Weitering
36. Jack Crisp
35. Charlie Cameron
34. Sam Taylor
33. Harry McKay
32. Luke Parker
31. Jordan De Goey
30. Zach Merrett
29. Mark Blicavs
28. Chad Warner
27. Rory Laird
26. Hugh McCluggage
25. Jack Steele
24. Connor Rozee
23. Patrick Dangerfield
22. Jack Macrae
21. James Sicily
Check back in on Thursday to find out who we picked from 11-20!
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