The worst and best
St Kilda v North Melbourne and North Melbourne v West Coast, rounds two and three, Etihad Stadium
Here's Brent Harvey's description of his performance against St Kilda, when he was tagged out of the game by a determined Clint Jones: "It's probably the worst game I've ever played in my career". Jones did a brilliant job to hold Boomer to just five touches, but North Melbourne's skipper responded like all champions do, racking up a career-high 44 touches against West Coast a week later. The icing on the cake would have been a goal after an astounding seven-bounce run down the wing - unfortunately, it faded and hit the post.

Goal of the year, two contenders, five all up
Hawthorn v Essendon, round 13, MCG
Lance Franklin is no stranger to special goals, but in the game against Essendon he produced a couple of gems that had even himself in awe. If his first running goal of the final term - dribbled through from the boundary 45m out, no less - wasn't enough to get the crowd on its feet, his fifth for the night certainly did. Gathering the ball on the wing, Franklin took off towards goal with Essendon defender Cale Hooker in hot pursuit. After three bounces, Franklin was presented with almost the same angle and distance as his last effort, only this time he had an Essendon player waiting in the goal square ready to cut off the bouncing ball. No matter - Buddy just decided to go over his head, all the while leaving Hooker pounding along in his wake. That this incredible piece of football genius put the Hawks a goal up and on the way to a 16-point win is almost forgotten.

Shut down, turn off
North Melbourne v Fremantle, round 19,Etihad Stadium
Taggers don't always get the kudos they deserve; often it's the way they go about their job that turns people against them. But one of the best performances of the year came when Kangaroos veteran Brady Rawlings comprehensively flogged Fremantle's boy wonder Stephen Hill. He not only closed down the young midfielder, but he won the possession count 39-7. North coach Brad Scott praised the performance by saying:"It's one of the more outstanding run-with roles I've ever seen and I've seen some pretty good ones."

Ablett's last stand
Collingwood v Geelong, first preliminary final, MCG
If Geelong supporters ever doubted Gary Ablett's dedication to his club throughout the year, this game would have dispelled those thoughts. Speculation had raged for more than 12 months about a possible move to Gold Coast. In what turned out to be his last game for the Cats, Ablett did everything humanly possible to drag them over the line, with 40 touches in a side that was well beaten.

Swanning about
Collingwood v Western Bulldogs, first qualifying final, MCG
One of the truisms about modern football is that stats lie. With so much possession football, 30 touches is no indication of a good game. But make no mistake, Dane Swan's 39 in the win over the Bulldogs was pure gold. Three goals capped the performance off, but the foundation was an astounding 18 contested possessions.

Hey world, meet Scully
Melbourne v Western Bulldogs, round seven, MCG
Sure, you'd seen him before, but as a kid finding his way in senior footy. This night, he stood up and demanded to be seen as an elite player, irrespective of age. Yes, his side lost a rain-sodden match against the Bulldogs - but only just. Had a couple of contentious umpiring decisions gone the other way, Tom Scully would have been viewed the saviour in an heroic victory over a premiership contender under the glare of Friday night football. Scully's 21 touches in the first three terms was more than good, but his unbelievable 18 in the final term - when everyone around him was grinding to a halt in the slogging rain - was simply phenomenal.