The midfield is arguably the most important position group in footy as they're tasked with being present at most contests and all stoppages while serving as the link between their defence and offence.
Without a strong ensemble of on-ballers, teams are destined to fall apart as middling play in this area results in catastrophic consequences to the outcome of a contest on a given day.
Not all midfields are alike as some prioritise a physical ball-winning style, while others emphasise a run-and-gun outside game and then there are sides that prefer a healthy balance of the two.
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Each club has its own formula for constructing the ideal midfield but not all team's engine room can perform at the highest level.
With this in mind, let's have a look at the league's best midfield groups heading into 2022, starting from sixth down to first.
Every AFL club's midfield ranked: Part I
Every AFL club's midfield ranked: Part II
Despite fielding the reigning Brownlow medallist in Ollie Wines, Port Adelaide lacks depth in the centre.
The aforementioned Wines isn't prone to playing second fiddle to Power stalwart Travis Boak, who himself is a beast in congestion, while the emergence of winger Karl Amon rounds out the club's top tier midfielders.
Ports trio of highly touted youngsters Xavier Duursma, Zak Butters and Connor Rozee all spend portions of games playing through the middle but haven't been able to successfully cement a spot in the guts. They all possess high footy IQs and silky ball skills but are disadvantaged when competing with the bigger bodies most other clubs play in the centre.
The Powers midfield is then completed by ruckman Scott Lycett and defensive-minded onballer Willem Drew, while others, like their dashing half-back Dan Houston and tough nut Sam Powell-Pepper, get runs when needed.
Lycett is very average in the hit out game and struggles to position the ball effectively for his teammates, hence Port Adelaide ranking ninth in total clearances per game. Drew is an excellent tagger but lacks an element of polish that his contemporaries display with ease.
However, the amalgamation of Port Adelaide’s entire midfield group results in an imposing style of play where they tackle hard to win back possession if they fail to outright win the contest, which is evident by them ranking fourth in tackles per game.
Once in control of the ball, the Power’s aggressive nature translates into a barrage of forward entries which sees them ranked fourth for shots on goal per game and fifth for inside 50’s per game.
For Port to take the proverbial ‘next step’ their less established onballers must rely less on their natural talents and figure out how to mimic the aggressive nature of their current leaders in Wines and Boak.
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2. Western Bulldogs
The Western Bulldogs possess the strongest spread of onballers in the competition.
However, they place second due to their deficiencies in the ruck. Tim English is mobile but is routinely afar from stuffing the hit-out portion of the stat sheet, whereas Stef Martin is solid but his play can't exceed that of a tap ruckman.
The Dogs didn't seem to struggle too mightily when it came to winning the stoppages, as they ranked first in total clearances per game despite their midfield's Achilles heel.
Whether it was by sheer force or a carefully orchestrated attack, the Footscray based side had all the answers when it came to playing in the centre. They ranked third in contested possessions per game and fifth in uncontested possessions, which comes as no surprise when your engine room is led by the star-studded combination of Marcus Bontempelli, Jack Macrae, Tom Liberatore, Josh Dunkley, Bailey Smith and Adam Treloar.
Further justifying the validity of the 2021's second-best side is that they are relentless in their forward pursuits given that the Dogs were ranked third for both inside 50's and shots at goal per game.
The reality is that when the Bulldogs have possession it's almost impossible for the opposition to clamp them up as they have a plethora of ways to dismantle whoever is in their way.
If things continue as they are, the Western Bulldogs will continue to remain atop of the leagues' best midfield, but will need to seek an answer to their ruck woes.
