ADELAIDE
It's all about the future for the Crows as they attempt to cover the departure of club stalwarts Simon Goodwin, Andrew McLeod, Brett Burton, Tyson Edwards, Nathan Bock and injury-ravaged forward Trent Hentschel. Tough young midfielder Rory Sloane has stepped into the role vacated by Edwards, while rookie Ricky Henderson has tried to fill the Burton void as a mid-sized forward. Phil Davis will develop into a fine replacement for Bock at centre half-back and injured defender Andy Otten will be used in the midfield next season. Nathan van Berlo has played at half-back and half-forward, but staked his claim for an onball role with a match-winning final-quarter performance against the Lions at the Gabba in round 20.

BRISBANE LIONS
Brendan Fevola's season-ending groin injury meant Michael Voss needed to restructure his forward line from round 17. He turned to Mitch Clark. The Lions have won two of the last three matches with the versatile big man in attack, and have produced their two largest scores since round seven. Subject to Jonathan Brown's availability, Clark has floated between full-forward and centre half-forward and has averaged 18 possessions and nine marks in the past month. He also kicked an equal career-high five goals against Adelaide, mixing strong hands, a quick lead and good work at ground level.

CARLTON
The loss of Matthew Kreuzer was somewhat overlooked when the heat was turned up on the Blues and Brett Ratten just a few short weeks ago. A lot is always made of the Blues' brigade of quality midfielders, but if they don't get proper service from their ruckmen they're not much chop. It's no coincidence that Carlton hit a rough patch after Kreuzer went down in round 13, but the emergence of Robbie Warnock has gone a long way to righting the ship. He was made to earn his spot, but when he finally came back in round 17 after nearly three months in the VFL, he gave the side the solid big man influence it had been missing. Perhaps even more importantly, he works well with the equally-athletic Shaun Hampson. Ratten favours that pair's ability to go forward and create a contest for his dangerous crumbers, ahead of traditional tap ruckman Sam Jacobs.

COLLINGWOOD
Six weeks ago, Travis Cloke said he regretted striking Power midfielder Travis Boak and that he would make it up to his teammates. The big forward has done just that in the last month and while there has been a lot of scrutiny of his goalkicking, he's getting more of the ball. Statistically, he's in the best form of his career with a four-week average of 18 disposals, 11 marks, 2.5 goals and three tackles per game. But perhaps how he performs over the next four or five weeks will determine how successful his team is in 2010.

ESSENDON
Injuries and viruses have riddled the side recently and their inability to make the finals saw Andrew Welsh and Ricky Dyson booked in for surgery ahead of round 21. For the final round, the Bombers have 12 players unavailable, four facing tests and just five coming off a game in the VFL. Despite their lack of players, Matthew Knights has still experimented somewhat with Brent Stanton playing more off half-back, Leroy Jetta spending time in the middle and key position player Jake Carlisle and midfield pair Stewart Crameri and Marcus Marigliani making their debuts.

FREMANTLE
The last month has been all about player management for Fremantle, culminating in a mass rest against Hawthorn in round 21. The success of the calculated football-department decision will be judged after the side's round 22 clash with Carlton, but it has had crippling on-field effects so far. Routinely beaten in clearances and inside 50s, Fremantle's structural reliance on its top few players has been laid bare. As the club struggles without Michael Barlow, captain Matthew Pavlich has also been forced into the midfield for larger periods, leaving a loosely structured forward line.

GEELONG CATS
Since returning from a foot injury in round 18, Tom Hawkins has played a lot in the ruck and coach Mark Thompson believes the move has helped him "get into the game". But a two-match suspension for James Podsiadly means Hawkins should spend more time in the forward line. Hawkins will line up alongside Cameron Mooney, with Brad Ottens and Mark Blake to share the ruck work. Blake returned to the senior team in round 21 after playing three games in the VFL. At the other end of the ground, Corey Enright has had a few quiet games with opposition teams using a defensive forward to tag him. He struggled with the tactic for a number of weeks but has learnt to deal with it.

HAWTHORN
Eighty-seven is the magic number for the Hawks this season - if the opposition reaches that score then Hawthorn loses (or draws). Al Clarkson has never been one to engage in shootouts but you've got to be able to better a side that produces that reasonably modest total. Clarkson has preferred to strangle teams rather than outscore them, which can be just as effective but not if the cost is losing forward structure. Many times over the past month or so - when the Hawks' form has dipped a little - every player will be backward of centre when the opposition has the ball. It gives the Hawks no one to kick to when they force the turnover.

MELBOURNE
James McDonald might be retiring at season's end but his return to the side over the past few weeks has brought a new level of defensive pressure to Melbourne's midfield opponents. That didn't have much effect last week against Port Adelaide but McDonald's accountable game does give other players such as Cameron Bruce and Cale Morton a bit more freedom to create play.

NORTH MELBOURNE
Help has arrived for Andrew Swallow, who has been central to North's midfield set-up for the last 18 months. While Swallow continues to dominate the contested possession count - collecting 50 in the last five weeks - Levi Greenwood and Ben Cunnington have lifted their impact on centre clearances. Since round 16, Greenwood has won 18 ahead of Swallow (16) and Cunnington (14). Greenwood and Cunnington push straight into the ruck circle, freeing Swallow, Brent Harvey and Ryan Bastinac for the handball out. The perimeter is also tackling territory for Swallow, who is No.1 in the competition.

PORT ADELAIDE
The Power have been more willing to kick long to a contest inside 50 over the past five weeks, with the emergence of Jay Schulz, Justin Westhoff and Daniel Stewart as genuine tall marking targets. The trio has combined for 25 goals since round 17, and won the confidence of their teammates with their ability to take a strong mark or at least bring the ball to ground. Port struggled to kick a winning score after losing retired champion Warren Tredrea to injury in round seven, but kicked its highest return of 2010 against Melbourne last weekend.

RICHMOND
There's been a supply-and-demand problem at the Tigers in the last month - Jack Riewoldt's supply dried up, and he wasn't demanding it enough anyway as he was clearly tired. Decision making that had been crisp fell away for the young side, as did the skills that had improved immensely through the season. However, it came together for round 21's match against St Kilda, with Riewoldt kicking seven goals in a spirited performance.

ST KILDA
Zac Dawson's absence has meant a change-up of St Kilda's defensive structure. Sam Fisher has had to remodel his game from an attacking defender to a more traditional key backman, which has taken him some time to adjust to. Richmond's Jack Riewoldt easily got the better of the All-Australian Saint last week though Sam Gilbert has enjoyed a smooth transition to the duties of creating most of the drive from the back half.

SYDNEY SWANS
Brett Kirk's success in his new defensive forward role against the Western Bulldogs reflected the secret to the Swans' success in the past three weeks - denying the opposition the ball. Kirk's opponents, Daniel Giansiracusa and Lindsay Gilbee, combined for just 17 touches in the Swans' 44-point win at the SCG. Likewise, the Swans have swamped Hawthorn, Fremantle and the Bulldogs in their recent wins, averaging 92 more touches than the opposition in each of those three games. They even managed to hold the prolific Dogs to a season-low 256 disposals, 134 fewer than their average after round 20.

WEST COAST
West Coast has taken the chance to experiment with its centre-square combinations in recent weeks, with senior pair Adam Selwood and Matt Priddis sidelined. The club's highly-scrutinised young midfielders have relished the extra responsibility, with Scott Selwood (eight clearances in his last three games) and Brad Ebert (10 in last two) the standouts. Luke Shuey and even Andrew Strijk, who took first possession from a stoppage six times against Port Adelaide, have shown signs in the middle as the Eagles look to 2011.

WESTERN BULLDOGS
It's not so much what the Bulldogs have been doing lately - it's more about what they'll need to do now they’ve lost Dale Morris and Adam Cooney for the finals. Cooney's absence could have prompted Jarrod Harbrow to move up field but Morris' setback will now prevent that. It will also make it hard for Brian Lake to push forward. Andrejs Everitt can come in and Easton Wood will be back soon to shore up the defence but they'll desperately need leading goalkicker Barry Hall to stay fit. Two scoring options, Brad Johnson and Shaun Higgins, are also injured.

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