Andrew Gaff and Jack Crisp are very different footballers.

But the Victorian left-footers have both travelled difficult paths to forge successful AFL careers.

Gaff was a high draft pick, sublimely-talented but forced in his early career to work through the stigma of being viewed as a one-trick pony who could use the ball on the outside, but struggled to impact games when opponents wanted to shut him down.

Crisp had to shrug off the disappointment of missing out in the national draft altogether, before taking his chances at the Brisbane Lions as a rookie and eventually becoming the so-called 'steak knives' in a trade involving Dayne Beams.

At Etihad Stadium on Saturday, it was Gaff who celebrated his 100th game with a win.

But both these emerging onballers showed that a little adversity can go a long way to shaping a quality AFL player.

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Performances at Etihad Stadium 

Gaff's role from the day he debuted for West Coast has been to run, create and run some more.

The 23-year-old's career has unfolded mostly on a wing, with the wide-open spaces at Domain Stadium much to his liking.

But with West Coast targeting a more versatile midfield mix, Gaff has added toughness at the contest to his natural strengths - his pace and laser-precise left-boot.

Against the Pies, the emerging star continued his outstanding 2015 campaign, going head-to-head with one of the games best onballers – Steele Sidebottom – for long stretches.

Sidebottom was also terrific, gathering 32 touches and booting a goal, and the pair (who spent 39 minutes as direct opponents) was vying for best-on-ground honours at the final siren.

Gaff worked tirelessly from end-to-end at Etihad Stadium. He was the linkman from deep in defence, presenting an option across half-back and using his pace to break the lines through the midfield.

His second quarter was significant, with the young leader sensing the Pies' challenge and willing himself to contest after contest.

Gaff finished with 34 touches in a tireless display, and his Gatorade shower and post-match praise from Adam Simpson was hard-earned.

Presented with a shut-down role on Luke Shuey by his coach Nathan Buckley, 190cm midfielder Jack Crisp took to the task with a relentless mindset.

Crisp almost completely nullified the Eagles' danger man, restricting Shuey to just 13 touches – his lowest tally for the season.

But it was much more than just a stopping role, with Crisp pushing forward at every opportunity and gathering a career-high 31 disposals.

And in a tense third term, the 21-year-old had a direct hand setting up important goals.

His hurried clearance on a wing was marked by Alex Fasolo, with Sidebottom getting on the end of the chain to slice the Eagles' lead to eight points.

Minutes later he was involved again, marking on 50m and dishing the handball to a red-hot Travis Varcoe, who set up Dane Swan for another major.

It remains to be seen who has 'won' the Dayne Beams trade, but Crisp is proving to be anything but 'steak knives'.

Andrew Gaff is showered with Gatorade after the match. Picture: AFL Media

High point

It was only a small thing, but Gaff lifted at a crucial point in the second term after Josh Hill had kicked a miraculous goal off the ground to level the scores.

Collingwood was pressing hard with five of the past seven scoring shots, but Gaff won the hard ball at the next centre clearance.

West Coast retained possession and halted the Pies' momentum, finishing the half strongest with the next four scoring shots – although all were behinds.

Low point

It's nit-picking, but Jack Crisp made a rare error in the final term when Collingwood desperately needed some clean possession to bite into a 19-point deficit.

After taking a mark on the half-back flank, Crisp wheeled around onto his normally trusty left boot and kicked up the line to a one-on-one contest, but he put the ball out on the full – allowing the Eagles to lock the ball back inside their forward 50m from the next possession.

The stats sheet

Andrew Gaff

Jack Crisp

What they said in the rooms

"I'm playing a bit more inside. You keep changing things up and you get a different look at different situations in the game. It's one of those things that Brady Rawlings, the midfield coach, wants us to have so we don't just play the one position each week. It was tough (being tagged), initially, it's a mental battle. With a lot of guys up and about teams have got to decide what they want to do. We've got a lot of guys who can step up. It's an offensive midfield group, but we know we've got a lot of work to do." – Andrew Gaff

"He's been sensational this year. He plays for the team. It was his 100th (game) tonight, so there's always that little bit of motivation but pressure as well. He's just growing as a player and individual as well, what he does around the club, he's in our emerging leaders group. I've seen players like him develop into really good A-grade players. He's still not quite there yet, he's got a bit of time to go, but we're really happy for him." – Adam Simpson on Gaff

"As much as it sucks that we lost, given the role on Shuey, the coach reckons it was one of the biggest tests for me this year because Shuey is such a damaging player. I was really looking forward to playing on him. My main focus was on his explosiveness from stoppages. I played on (Port captain Travis) Boak last week and they're very similar – they're both aggressive with how hard they run forward and they're hard to stop. (Shuey) still had a little bit of influence but I tried to keep my offensive game going as well and play my natural game. It's a good role to have because people have trust in you to play that role on very good players and get the job done, so it makes me feel good about myself in my ability to do that." – Jack Crisp

"He continues to go from strength to strength. I had a chat with him this week about the 'steak knives' call. We wouldn't have done the deal (with the Lions) unless we got one of a couple of players that we were looking for, and 'Crispy' was one of them. We knew what we were getting, although we have been massively impressed with what we have got. He's a Collingwood footballer now and he's loving it, and we're lovig’ that he's wearing our stripes and he's playing some great footy." – Nathan Buckley on Crisp

How will they fare next week?

Gaff's consistency has been unbelievable this season – he's racked up 30 touches a game on average and hasn't had fewer than 23 disposals in a match.

West Coast will need another performance from him in a crunch game against the Sydney Swans' powerful midfield at home next Sunday.

The Pies have lost four straight for the first time since 2006, and their finals hopes would take a massive hit if they can't get over the Western Bulldogs next round.

Crisp could expect another tagging role after his stellar job on Shuey. A match-up with Dogs prodigy Marcus Bontempelli would be worth tuning in to watch.

Jack Crisp (centre) contemplates the Pies' defeat at the hands of the Eagles. Picture: AFL Media