10. Code switcher
Greater Western Sydney revealed its name - the Giants, and colours - orange and charcoal, late in the year but the big announcement for the new club was the signing of NRL star Israel Folau. The former Melbourne Storm and Brisbane Broncos centre said his decision was based on a desire to play football in the area in which he was raised. Coming just a year after fellow Kangaroos representative Karmichael Hunt's defection to Gold Coast (more on that later), it was a huge fillip for the game's expansion into rugby league territory.

9. Im-Pres-sive
Ever the team man, 233-game Collingwood veteran Simon Prestigiacomo made a gut-wrenching decision pull out of the Toyota AFL Grand Final despite passing a fitness test less than 24 hours earlier. Named at full-back, Presti was left with the uneasy feeling his troublesome groin wouldn't stand up in the sort of heat only a grand final can create. His replacement, youngster Nathan Brown, did a sterling job on Saints superstar Nick Riewoldt, and was always going to hold his place for the rematch. Presti would retire without a premiership, but with acres of respect from the entire football community.

8. Double take
It was a surprise when Chris Scott saw off challenges from favourite Cat sons Ken Hinkley and Brenton Sanderson to replace Mark Thompson as Geelong coach. But the real news was that in 2011 the AFL would see for the first time a pair of twin brothers pitted against each other in the coaches' box. No one will ever really know how much influence Brad's impressive first year at the helm of North Melbourne had on his twin brother's appointment at Skilled Stadium, but it surely didn't hurt.

7. Never too old
Plucked from Werribee in the 2010 NAB AFL Rookie Draft, Fremantle's Michael Barlow exceeded every expectation in becoming the AFL's hottest player in the first half of 2010. He missed just one match until round 14, but late in a cruising win over Port Adelaide he broke his leg in a horrific clash with teammate Rhys Palmer. His season ended there and then, however it wasn't enough to stop him picking up the AFLPA's award for best first-year player. His success, and that of Geelong's James Podsiadly, also drafted as a mature-aged player from VFL ranks, has forced recruiters to rethink placing age restrictions on potential recruits.

6. More Fev follies
While no single story reached quite the same lows as his infamous Brownlow Medal shenanigans in 2009, Brendan Fevola did find himself in the media on a number of occasions throughout his first year with the Lions. Where do we start? Being seen at dawn at a Melbourne nightclubs while supposedly undergoing intensive injury rehab, a post-season police investigation - and club suspension - for alleged lewd behaviour (which was subsequently dismissed), continuing gambling issues, hitting a baseball through a car window at a club promotion - the Fev show had it all. Oh, and did we mention his 48 goals from 17 matches, including the usual assortment of 'specials'?

5. Sunny side up
With Gold Coast's AFL entry slated for 2011, the competition's 17th team was always going to provide multiple talking points, with nickname, jumper, song and players to be unveiled. The side also played in the VFL with varying success, where it unveiled a future star of the competition in David Swallow, who was subsequently drafted by the Suns amid much fanfare in November. Karmichael Hunt's form in the VFL was also a constant talking point, however the club's biggest moment was still to come (see below).

4. The bold and the beautiful
Once again, the soap opera that is Ben Cousins played out in the papers and on TV screens across the land. From punching drunk teammate Daniel Connors in Sydney, to being rushed to hospital after a reported sleeping tablet overdose, to his heavily publicised and scrutinised documentary, and his retirement, Cousins was never far from the news. His notoriety even reached Beatle-esque proportions when rumours of him dying in a Perth nightclub surfaced in November.

3. Roo's awakening
Are the Saints finished? That was the question on everyone's lips after Nick Riewoldt tore his hamstring tendon off the bone in his side's round-three win over Collingwood. Initial reports suggested he would miss 14 weeks and after months of speculation about his return, he was back to face the Brisbane Lions by round 15. After a steady build-up, the skipper was back to his best for the club's first two finals, starring in wins over Geelong and the Western Bulldogs. His season appeared set for a fairytale ending until Collingwood defender Nathan Brown proved the spoiler by comprehensively outplaying him in both grand finals.

2. Drawn and quartered
Only the third drawn grand final in history, the game itself was a ripper. What followed was a spirited debate over whether the AFL should have another game or just play extra time, as is done for all other finals. It took until December for the AFL Commission to confirm that the replay would stand. The biggest upside of the replay, at least for the fans, was that more of the hardcore supporters of the competing teams saw the rematch than the original match, with corporate invitations kept to a minimum.

1. Going, going ... gone
The ongoing saga of Geelong star Gary Ablett's prospective move to the Gold Coast to be the face of the AFL's 17th club cast a shadow over every other news story in 2010. Former Geelong coach Mark Thompson has since said he was "scared" to go to media conferences through the season because of the barrage of the 'will he or won't he?' questions he was sure to receive. Gazza eventually accepted a lucrative multi-million dollar offer as Gold Coast's major signing, thus severing the ties that bound him to the club his father Gary served with distinction between 1984 and 1997.

The views in this article are those of the author and not necessarily those of the clubs or the AFL.