CHAMPION Data is the AFL's numbers king.

Every football statistic you read or hear about comes from the same source, making Champion an invaluable part of the AFL scene.

Karl Jackson is the company's head of data and analytics and joins AFL.com.au's Marc McGowan on this week's Trends podcast.

Find Trends on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts and Spotify

Jackson explains how his AFL Player Ratings project came about, and discusses the sophisticated models designed to judge the game's most efficient kickers and figure out what should be happening in front of goal.

And why was Melbourne – one of the great disappointments this season – rated No.1 in Champion Data's pre-season list rankings, whereas reigning premier West Coast came in 11th?

Trends is a podcast for the hardcore and average football fan who wants to learn more about what they're watching each weekend, plus what's going on behind the scenes.

Podcast summary

1:11 – The unlikely path to creating the AFL Player Ratings

4:37 – Key defenders and taggers remain hard to measure

6:14 – The stat that provides a better gauge of kicking ability

8:20 – Which young Docker's kicking is becoming an issue?

9:38 – Understanding the value of kicking within the game

12:08 – Explaining the 'expected score' of a shot at goal

14:59 – Geelong's two wins that owed greatly to accuracy

17:35 – Why Melbourne was No.1 in pre-season list rankings

20:11 – Developing stats to enable AFL clubs to perform better

22:05 – Is the analytics revolution all it's cracked up to be?

23:36 – Helping the media tell the story behind the game

27:12 – The reason Champion Data doesn't release all its stats