B: Jake King (Richmond), MatthewScarlett (Geelong), Craig Bolton (Sydney)
HB: Campbell Brown (Hawthorn), JoelBowden (Richmond), Daniel Bell (Melbourne)
C: Travis Boak (Port Adelaide), JimmyBartel (Geelong),Matt Rosa (West Coast)
HF: Lance Franklin (Hawthorn), JonathanBrown (BrisbaneLions), Shaun Higgins (Western Bulldogs)
F: Brett Deledio (Richmond), MatthewPavlich (Fremantle), Ben Holland (Melbourne)
FOLL: Dean Cox (West Coast), Luke Hodge (Hawthorn), Nathan Foley (Richmond)
I/C: Daniel Gilmore (Fremantle), Joel Corey (Geelong), Daniel Kerr (West Coast), PaulHasleby (Fremantle)
BACKS
JakeKing (Richmond)– The tenacious Tiger and promoted rookie gave hisside plenty of drive out of defence in his side's second win of the season. Finishedwith 26 disposals, including 11 touches in the final term.
MatthewScarlett (Geelong) –The brilliant full-back not only shut down Crow Nick Gill, he also provided therun and rebound that has been instrumental in Geelong's season. Had 21 possessions andchipped in with a goal.
CraigBolton (Sydney) – Held the ‘G-Train’ to just two goals and in the process accumulated22 disposals. Excellent in the first term with 10 touches and also made animpact in the final quarter.
HALF-BACKS
Campbell Brown (Hawthorn) – Backed up his excellent performance on Scott Lucas with anothertop effort on in-form Lion Jared Brennan, restricting him to just seven touchesand no goals.
JoelBowden (Richmond)– Outstanding on Collingwood big man Anthony Rocca.Although Rocca booted three goals, Bowden was pivotal in setting up Richmond's rebound and notchedup 31 disposals.
DanielBell (Melbourne)– One of Melbourne's best performers in its fourthwin of the season. Played an important role in keeping Jason Akermanis incheck.
CENTRES
TravisBoak (Port Adelaide) – The fifth player selectedoverall in last year's NAB AFL Draft, Boak played his best match of his eightso far the Power, against Carlton. Won 28 disposals at an efficiency rate of 96per cent and booted two goals.
JimmyBartel (Geelong)– One of this year's Brownlow Medal favouritesproduced yet another superb performance. Had 35 disposals – including 21 in thefirst half – plus two goals in a best on ground performance.
MattRosa (West Coast) – The vastly underrated wingerwas a crucial component in West Coast's 17-point win over the Kangaroos. Had 28disposals, sent the ball inside 50 on six occasions and also chimed in with twogoals.
HALF-FORWARDS
LanceFranklin (Hawthorn) – ‘Buddy’ turned it on withanother first-class display against the Brisbane Lions, booting five goals.This included a superb checkside goal after the half-time siren, lifting theHawks immensely going into the main break.
Jonathan Brown (BrisbaneLions) – Arguably the form player in thecompetition, Brown continued his scintillating form with another six goalsagainst Hawthorn. Now has 39 majors in his past seven matches and heads thegoalkicking table.
ShaunHiggins (Western Bulldogs) – One of the shininglights for the Bulldogs in their otherwise disappointing performance against Melbourne. Booted five goalsfrom seven scoring shots.
FORWARDS
BrettDeledio (Richmond) – Played one of his finest matches for the Tigers, booting acareer-best five goals against Collingwood. He also laid six tackles in aninspired performance.
MatthewPavlich (Fremantle) – It was hard to go pastPavlich as the player of the round after his scintillating display againstEssendon. Booted six goals and had 30 disposals at an efficiency rate of 97 percent, took 16 marks and sent the ball inside 50 eight times.
BenHolland (Melbourne) – One of Melbourne's best inits win over the Western Bulldogs, he booted four goals and was an excellentmarking target up forward, taking 12 grabs – with five of those contested.
FOLLOWERS
DeanCox (West Coast) – Pivotal in West Coast's win, Coxwas particularly dominant in the second half when the game was in the balance.He dribbled through a remarkable goal from the pocket, collected 19 touches andwon 30 hit-outs for the match.
LukeHodge (Hawthorn) – Produced a commandingperformance against the Lions, amassing 33 disposals, nine inside 50s and twogoals. His 188 Champion Data player ranking points was the best of any playerfor the round.
NathanFoley (Richmond) – Oneof the success stories in an otherwise disappointing Richmond season. Shone again againstCollingwood with 27 disposals, nine clearances, five tackles and six inside 50s.
INTERCHANGE
DanielGilmore (Fremantle) – The versatile Docker playedthe best of his 30 AFL matches against the Dons, as a mobile ruckman. His 31disposals, 10 inside 50s, eight clearances and one goal may prove a turning pointin his career.
JoelCorey (Geelong) – Continuedhis vastly underrated season – particularly his second half of the year – againstAdelaide. Won35 disposals and cracked 500 possessions for the season.
DanielKerr (West Coast) – Played a cracking final term –winning 11 of his 34 disposals – to help West Coast over the line in a crackingencounter against the Kangaroos. Won eight clearances and booted a goal tocontinue his brilliant season.
KaneCornes (Port Adelaide)– Set the tone for Port Adelaide with a magnificent15-touch opening term, before finishing the match with 33 touches. Thecompetition's leading ball-winner, Cornes also chipped in with two majors.
The views inthis story are those of the author and not necessarily those of the clubs or theAFL.
