The midfield is home to the AFL's most recognised names. This line receives the most individual recognition, sweeping the league's suite of awards most years. Those in the engine room shoulder the responsibility of galvanising their side through winning possession and determining field position.
Midfield groups are usually emblematic of a given team - good teams have good midfields, and bad teams do not.
Here's Zero Hanger's ranking of the league's 18 midfield corps for 2025.
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16. Essendon
A disastrous year for Brad Scott's men was capped by their skipper and best player, Zach Merrett, seeking an exit.
An injury crisis the likes of which is really seen crippled Essendon's ability to compete most weeks, laid bare by the numbers surrounding their midfield's lack of production. Further soft tissue injuries limited ball magnet Darcy Parish to three games, and the remaining mix of Sam Durham, Jye Caldwell and Xavier Duursma showed glimpses, but had their colours lowered more often than not.
The Bombers were one of just three sides to average less than 30 points from stoppages on the year, joining the aforementioned Tigers and Eagles. Those same three sides populate the bottom rungs of the total clearance metric.
Scott's men registered the competition's fourth-fewest contested possessions and fifth-fewest tackles - particularly damning given the Bombers had the 4th-worst disposal differential in the league.
