WHICH coaches are pleasing the crowd, and who's set to feel the heat from the stands in the second half of 2017?
Giving their mid-season verdict on their team in a series of AFL.com.au surveys, fans were asked if they were happy with their team's coach.
Overwhelmingly, Essendon's John Worsfold enjoys the highest level of crowd support.
An emphatic 99 per cent of Bomber fans gave Woosha their backing, after he guided their team from the wilderness of 2016's anti-doping bans to within a game of the eight after 14 rounds.
The coaches most under the pump from fans this season are Gold Coast's Rodney Eade and West Coast's Adam Simpson.
A wafer-thin majority of 53 per cent of Suns fans support Eade.
Just 54 per cent of Eagles fans are happy with Simpson, following a year that began with high expectations but has been derailed by a series of bad losses, including to the struggling Suns and Hawks.
Here are the full survey results for all 18 AFL clubs.
A rare quiet year for the coaching merry-go-round?
No coach has a negative approval rating, suggesting the AFL may be set for a second unusually stable year on the coaching front.
Justin Leppitsch's axing from the Lions was the only forced senior coaching change in 2016. That made for the least number of sackings or resignations since 2008.
Melbourne's Paul Roos stepped down at the end of last season as part of a planned handover to Simon Goodwin.
Senior coach changes since 2008
| Season | Club | Coach | Timing | Reason | Replaced by |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | Brisbane | Leigh Matthews | End of season | Stepped down | Michael Voss |
| 2009 | North Melbourne | Dean Laidley | During season | Sacked after four wins, eight losses for season | Darren Crocker (interim) |
| Richmond | Terry Wallace | During season | Sacked after 37 wins, 60 losses, two draws | Jade Rawlings (interim) | |
| 2010 | Essendon | Matthew Knights | End of season | Sacked after 25 wins, 41 losses, one draw | James Hird |
| Geelong | Mark Thompson | End of season | Stepped down | Chris Scott | |
| Port Adelaide | Mark Williams | During season | Sacked with a 5-10 record in 2010 after missing finals in 2008-09 | Matthew Primus | |
| Sydney | Paul Roos | End of season | Pre-planned hand over to John Longmire | John Longmire | |
| 2011 | Adelaide | Neil Craig | During season | Sacked after four wins, 12 losses for season | Mark Bickley (interim) |
| Collingwood | Mick Malthouse | End of season | Pre-planned handover to Nathan Buckley | Nathan Buckley | |
| Fremantle | Mark Harvey | End of season | Sacked after missing finals with nine wins, 13 losses for season | Ross Lyon | |
| Melbourne | Dean Bailey | During season | Sacked after 22 wins, 59 losses, 2 draws | Todd Viney (interim) | |
| St Kilda | Ross Lyon | End of season | Resigned, joined Fremantle as senior coach | Scott Watters | |
| Western Bulldogs | Rodney Eade | During season | Sacked after 7 wins, 12 losses for season | Paul Williams (interim) | |
| 2012 | Carlton | Brett Ratten | End of season | Sacked after missing finals in 2012 | Mick Malthouse |
| Port Adelaide | Matthew Primus | During season | Sacked after 5 wins, 13 losses for season | Garry Hocking (interim) | |
| 2013 | Brisbane | Michael Voss | During season | 8 wins, 11 losses for season | Mark Harvey (interim) |
| Essendon | James Hird | During season | Suspended by AFL with one game remaining in season | Simon Goodwin (interim) | |
| Melbourne | Mark Neeld | During season | Sacked after 5 wins, 23 losses | Neil Craig (interim) | |
| St Kilda | Scott Watters | End of season | Sacked after 17 wins, 27 losses, no finals | Alan Richardson | |
| West Coast | John Worsfold | End of season | Stepped down | Adam Simpson | |
| 2014 | Adelaide | Brenton Sanderson | End of season | Sacked after missing finals in 2013-14 | Phil Walsh |
| Essendon | Mark Thompson | End of season | Replaced by James Hird returning from suspension | James Hird | |
| Gold Coast | Guy McKenna | End of season | Sacked after 24 wins, 64 losses, no finals | Rodney Eade | |
| Western Bulldogs | Brendan McCartney | End of season | Sacked after 20 wins, 46 losses | Luke Beveridge | |
| 2015 | Carlton | Mick Malthouse | During season | Sacked after 1 win, 7 losses for season | John Barker (interim) |
| Essendon | James Hird | During season | Resigned after 5 wins, 14 losses for season | Matthew Egan (interim) | |
| 2016 | Brisbane | Justin Leppitsch | End of season | Sacked after 14 wins, 52 losses | Chris Fagan |
| Melbourne | Paul Roos | End of season | Pre-planned handover to Simon Goodwin | Simon Goodwin |
Read more
• Your mid-season reviews and fans' verdicts
• Chris Scott's three-quarter time catnip, plus eight extraordinary numbers from the weekend
