THE TWO best sides in the AFL this season, Melbourne and Fremantle, have broken away from the pack in more ways than one.

While both ladder-leading sides are being lauded for their miserly defences, it's how they're scoring that has also caught the eye after eight rounds.

A ranking of the top two goalkickers for each side so far this year shows an expected correlation with ladder position for the top eight teams, except for the Demons and Dockers.

Team

Player one

Player two

Combined top two goal tallies

Ladder position

Geelong

Jeremy Cameron 24

Tom Hawkins 23

47

5

Carlton

Charlie Curnow 25

Harry McKay 20

45

4

Richmond

Tom Lynch 27

Shai Bolton 16

43

8

Brisbane

Charlie Cameron 19

Joe Daniher 19

38

3

St Kilda

Max King 21

Jack Higgins 16

37

7

Sydney

Lance Franklin 19

Isaac Heeney 18

37

6

Collingwood

Brody Mihocek 18

Jack Ginnivan 17

35

9

Essendon

Peter Wright 23

Nic Martin 10

33

16

Gold Coast

Levi Casboult 18

Mabior Chol 15

33

13

Western Bulldogs

Aaron Naughton 19

Cody Weightman 12

31

10

Adelaide

Taylor Walker 16

Josh Rachele 13

29

14

Melbourne

Bayley Fritsch 16

Ben Brown 13

29

1

Hawthorn*

Mitch Lewis 15

Luke Bruest 14

Jack Gunston

Dylan Moore

29

12

North Melbourne

Nick Larkey 17

Cam Zurhaar 8

25

17

West Coast

Josh Kennedy 14

Liam Ryan 11

25

18

Fremantle*

Rory Lobb 12

Lachie Schultz 12

Matt Taberner

24

2

GWS

Harry Himmelberg 15

Jesse Hogan 9

24

15

Port Adelaide*

Todd Marshall 14

Jeremy Finlayson 9

Sam Powell-Pepper

23

11

* = Only one of multiple players on the same tally has been counted

Melbourne sits sixth for overall points scored and 12th for its combined tally of its two leading goalkickers (medium forward Bayley Fritsch and tall Ben Brown), while Fremantle is eighth for points scored and equal-16th for its leading goalkickers (pick two of Rory Lobb, Lachie Schultz and Matt Taberner).

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Predictably, where these two pacesetters shine is in defence, being the only two teams to have conceded fewer than 500 points this season. Fremantle is ranked first with 459 points given up, or 57.4 points per game, while Melbourne is second with 489 points conceded, or 61.1 per game.

Harrison Petty (left) and Steven May (right) spoil a mark by Max King during round eight, 2022. Picture: AFL Photos

Melbourne and Fremantle are miles ahead of the pack defensively, with only three other sides (Brisbane, Geelong and St Kilda) bleeding fewer than 600 points in eight rounds. Player-strapped West Coast is at the back of the pack, giving up 865 points.

The importance of Peter Wright and pre-season signing Nic Martin to Essendon is underscored by just how many goals they've kicked for the two-win Bombers, while unlikely pair Mabior Chol (ex-Richmond) and Levi Casboult (ex-Carlton) have combined beautifully for Gold Coast.

While the exploits of Geelong's Jeremy Cameron and Tom Hawkins and Carlton's Charlie Curnow and reigning Coleman medallist Harry McKay have captured the attention and excitement of fans, two dominant key forwards aren't overly common across the league.

Harry McKay and Charlie Curnow celebrate a goal in Carlton's win over Adelaide in round eight, 2022. Picture: Getty Images

Only a handful of sides (Geelong, Carlton, Gold Coast, Fremantle, GWS and Port Adelaide) have two talls leading their sides, and of that group, just Geelong, Carlton and Fremantle occupy the upper rungs of the ladder.

Interestingly, adding the third-best player to each side doesn't markedly change the order of teams.

Matt Taberner celebrates a goal for Fremantle against Essendon in R5, 2022. Picture: AFL Photos

The top seven sides do not move when their third-highest individual tally is added to the mix, while Hawthorn jumps from equal-11th to eighth.

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The Dockers also rise up the pecking order, but only to 14th overall.