GEELONG fell one half short of a premiership in 2020, did some big-game hunting in the off-season and is again primed for a tilt for a flag this season with the most experienced list in the competition.
Champion Data's analysis of each club's list shows the Cats have an average of 88 games experience for each player, despite losing veterans Gary Ablett (357 games) and Harry Taylor (280) to retirement.
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West Coast (80.5), St Kilda (78.3) and reigning back-to-back premier Richmond (76.6) round out the top four in terms of experience.
Clubs ranked by average games of experience
|
1 |
Geelong |
88.0 |
|
2 |
West Coast |
80.5 |
|
3 |
St Kilda |
78.3 |
|
4 |
Richmond |
76.6 |
|
5 |
Hawthorn |
71.8 |
|
6 |
Port Adelaide |
71.3 |
|
7 |
Melbourne |
70.0 |
|
8 |
Carlton |
68.5 |
|
9 |
Western Bulldogs |
68.1 |
|
10 |
Sydney |
66.0 |
|
11 |
Collingwood |
65.6 |
|
12 |
Brisbane |
62.0 |
|
13 |
North Melbourne |
59.5 |
|
14 |
Fremantle |
58.2 |
|
15 |
GWS Giants |
57.5 |
|
16 |
Essendon |
57.4 |
|
17 |
Adelaide |
56.6 |
|
18 |
Gold Coast |
53.0 |
The Cats have nine players currently aged 30 and over, with 12 players having played 170 games or more, including big-name recruits Shaun Higgins (237), Isaac Smith and Jeremy Cameron.
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They aren't the oldest team in the competition though, with Brett Ratten's Saints narrowly taking that mantle.
Their average age is 25.4 years, slightly ahead of Geelong (25.3), West Coast (25) and Richmond (24.8).
Interestingly, the average age of the top three in that category exceeds that of 2020's oldest team, Collingwood.
Clubs ranked by average age
|
1 |
St Kilda |
25.4 |
|
2 |
Geelong Cats |
25.3 |
|
3 |
West Coast Eagles |
25.0 |
|
4 |
Richmond |
24.8 |
|
5 |
Western Bulldogs |
24.7 |
|
6 |
Melbourne |
24.6 |
|
7 |
Hawthorn |
24.6 |
|
8 |
GWS Giants |
24.5 |
|
9 |
Port Adelaide |
24.4 |
|
10 |
Sydney Swans |
24.3 |
|
11 |
Carlton |
24.3 |
|
12 |
Collingwood |
24.2 |
|
13 |
Fremantle |
23.9 |
|
14 |
Essendon |
23.9 |
|
15 |
Brisbane Lions |
23.9 |
|
16 |
North Melbourne |
23.8 |
|
17 |
Gold Coast Suns |
23.7 |
|
18 |
Adelaide Crows |
23.7 |
At the other end of the spectrum are Adelaide and Gold Coast.
Both teams average 23.7 years of age to be the joint youngest in the AFL, while the Suns (53 games) are the least experienced, just edging Adelaide (56.6), Essendon (57.5) and the rebuilt Greater Western Sydney (57.5).
Brisbane is an interesting case.
Having made the preliminary final last year, and acquiring Joe Daniher in the off-season, the Lions are fancied to challenge for a premiership, but are largely inexperienced.
They are ranked 15th for average age and 12th for average experience.
Clubs' spread of ages at round 1, 2021
|
Club |
18-21 |
21-24 |
24-28 |
28-30 |
30+ |
Total |
|
Adelaide |
14 |
12 |
9 |
4 |
5 |
44 |
|
Brisbane |
12 |
13 |
12 |
3 |
4 |
44 |
|
Carlton |
8 |
15 |
12 |
2 |
5 |
42 |
|
Collingwood |
12 |
11 |
9 |
3 |
7 |
42 |
|
Essendon |
13 |
12 |
11 |
4 |
3 |
43 |
|
Fremantle |
12 |
12 |
11 |
5 |
3 |
43 |
|
Geelong |
10 |
12 |
6 |
7 |
9 |
44 |
|
Gold Coast |
18 |
9 |
13 |
6 |
3 |
49 |
|
GWS Giants |
10 |
13 |
12 |
3 |
6 |
44 |
|
Hawthorn |
12 |
10 |
12 |
4 |
5 |
43 |
|
Melbourne |
11 |
6 |
14 |
6 |
4 |
41 |
|
North Melbourne |
14 |
11 |
8 |
5 |
4 |
42 |
|
Port Adelaide |
12 |
10 |
10 |
2 |
8 |
42 |
|
Richmond |
10 |
11 |
9 |
7 |
5 |
42 |
|
St Kilda |
4 |
12 |
18 |
3 |
5 |
42 |
|
Sydney |
10 |
14 |
10 |
4 |
5 |
43 |
|
West Coast |
9 |
11 |
10 |
7 |
5 |
42 |
|
Western Bulldogs |
9 |
10 |
14 |
7 |
3 |
43 |
All stats supplied by Champion Data. All data correct at round one, 2021
