CLAYTON Oliver's masterpiece against Adelaide on Saturday night was a performance for the ages – and the numbers back it up.
The raw statistics alone were jaw-dropping, but perhaps the most eye-opening number came from Champion Data, who rated his game as the fourth-best of any player since 2010 under its Player Ratings model.
Oliver racked up 40.9 points, to trail only Lance Franklin's 13 goals against North Melbourne in 2012 (50.5 points), Steve Johnson's seven goals and 11 assists in a record-breaking 186-point win over Melbourne in 2011 (48.7), and Mark LeCras' bag of 12 against Essendon in 2010 (43.2).
The 23-year-old's performance against the Crows was so good, it catapulted him past Gary Ablett's 41-disposal, four-goal effort against Adelaide in 2011.
Oliver was simply unstoppable, particularly after half-time, and finished the match with 38 disposals, including a career-high 27 contested.
CROWS v DEMONS Full match coverage and stats
He also won 13 clearances, laid nine tackles, kicked three goals – the most of his 109-game career – and had 11 score involvements.
It was a complete game the likes of which we've rarely seen.
Top 10 AFL Player Ratings performances (2010-21)
| SCORE | PLAYER | OPPONENT | TIME |
| 50.5 | Lance Franklin (Haw) | North Melbourne | R10, 2012 |
| 48.7 | Steve Johnson (Geel) | Melbourne | R19, 2011 |
| 43.2 | Mark LeCras (WC) | Essendon | R16, 2010 |
| 40.9 | Clayton Oliver (Melb) | Adelaide | R10, 2021 |
| 40.8 | Gary Ablett (GC) | Adelaide | R8, 2011 |
| 40.4 | Jake Melksham (Melb) | Carlton | R9, 2018 |
| 39.9 | Lance Franklin (Syd) | West Coast | R1, 2018 |
| 38.4 | Lance Franklin (Syd) | Carlton | R23, 2017 |
| 38.3 | Jeremy Cameron (GWS) | Gold Coast | R12, 2018 |
| 37.4 | Dayne Zorko (BL) | Geelong | R16, 2017 |
