We have seen some great footy in the first part of this season as this year’s draft crop have shown their skills in the TAC Cup, SANFL and WAFL. As we head in to the Under 18 Championships it is a great time to see where they compare statistically. Using the BFGN rankings formula, players have been ranked depending on their score each week. The points scale is adjusted depending on the position played. For example, forwards gain extra points for goals, whilst midfielders gain more points for tackles. Statistics like effective possessions are highly rewarded and ineffective disposals are ignored.
Here are the top 50 players from the first two months of the season (please note that players needed to play at least three games to be included in the rankings):
1. Sam McInerney (North Adelaide) 139.3
2. Taylor Grace (Sandringham Dragons) 118.6
3. Nathan Drummond (Murray Bushrangers) 118.4
4. Kyle Langford (Northern Knights) 114.0
5. Kade Answerth (Oakleigh Chargers) 113.0
6. Alec Waterman (Claremont) 112.2
7. Nick Dixon (Geelong Falcons) 111.6
8. Ethan Haylock (Woodville-West Torrens) 111.5
9. Nick Evans (Eastern Ranges) 111.3
10. Angus Brayshaw (Sandringham Dragons) 110.6
11. Touk Miller (Calder Cannons) 108.0
12. Bradley Walsh (Peel Thunder) 107.0
13. Jacob Dragovich (South Fremantle) 106.3
14. Connor Blakely (Swan Districts) 103.9
15. Tom Wilkinson (Sandringham Dragons) 103.6
16. Peter Bampton (Norwood) 100.7
17. Ryan Lim (Claremont) 99.7
18. Jarrod Pickett (South Fremantle) 98.6
19. Damian Cavka (Calder Cannons) 98.5
20. Jack Hayes (Woodville-West Torrens) 97.8
21. Sam Humphry (Claremont) 97.6
22. Jack Cripps (East Fremantle) 97.6
23. Harry Taylor (Claremont) 96.4
24. Corey Ellis (Western Jets) 96
25. Matthew Ah Siu (South Fremantle) 95.6
26. Michael Manteit (Sandringham Dragons) 95.4
27. Alex Carr (Gippsland Power) 94.2
28. Ben Heaslip (South Adelaide) 94.2
29. Clem Smith (Perth) 93.6
30. Ben Hancock (Peel Thunder) 93.4
31. Jared Hardisty (Claremont) 93.0
32. Christian Petracca (Eastern Ranges) 92.5
33. Jack Gaffney (Woodville-West Torrens) 92.4
34. Joe Maishman (Geelong Falcons) 92.3
35. Jayden Laverde (Western Jets) 92.2
36. Peter Wright (Calder Cannons) 92.0
37. Paul Ahern (Calder Cannons) 92.0
38. Aidan Anderson (Swan Districts) 91.1
39. Kieran Ellis (Murray Bushrangers) 90.7
40. Harrison Wigg (North Adelaide) 89.5
41. Samuel Switkowski (Northern Knights) 88.8
42. Callum Wilkie (North Adelaide) 87.7
43. Chris Firns (Swan Districts) 87.5
44. Liam Duggan (Western Jets) 87.3
45. Connor Menadue (Western Jets) 87.0
46. Mark Kovacevic (Calder Cannons) 87.0
47. Matthew Palfrey (Claremont) 86.5
48. Dan Howe (Murray Bushrangers) 86.5
49. Alex Neal-Bullen (Glenelg) 85.0
50. Harry Dear (Sandringham Dragons) 85.0
Unheralded North Adelaide onballer Sam McInerney heads the list by a whopping 20.7 points, although he is playing reserves football this weekend rather than representing his state against Western Australia. Overage players Taylor Grace and Nathan Drummond come in second and third while Kyle Langford and Kade Answerth, who have been surprise packets this year but both possess many draftable qualities, round out the top five.
Other notable players not included in the top 50 are AIS Academy member Dylan Winton (74th, avg 81), Collingwood father-son hopeful Darcy Moore (82nd, avg 79) and Melbourne father-son prospect Billy Stretch (122nd, avg 65), whilst Sam Durdin, Lachie Weller, Isaac Heeney, Patrick McCartin and Hugh Goddard are all yet to play three games, so their scores have not been added to the list yet.
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Interesting read Alex. Just wondering if the most important stat for midfielders is taking into account….clearances. Although tackles is an important facet of a midfielders game, it can sometimes be misleading and infact mean they’re regularly second to the ball! I can understand why goals are rated high for forwards because that’s the most important area that they need to contribute in. And in my opinon for mids it would be clearances and contested ball- not tackles. How high do you rate these two areas?