Ranking the 10 best games of the 2022 season

The 2022 AFL season provided us with multitudinous memorable contests, throughout both the home-and-away season and the finals series. Thrilling, edge-of-the-seat blockbusters were the norm, with one of the stories of the season being Collingwood's consistent nerves of steel in clutch time. So, we've accepted the challenge of identifying the very best of those noteworthy games, selecting and ranking what we believe were the top 10 games of season 2022. SEE ALSO: THE 10 MOST IMPROVED PLAYERS OF 2022 Adelaide Crows vs. Fremantle -- Adelaide Oval, Round 1 In these two teams' opening game of the 2022 season, it was Heath Chapman's game-winning spoil, dubbed "the hand of God" by some, that sealed Fremantle's maiden victory of the campaign in dramatic and heroic fashion. Chapman, who, to that point, had played just seven league matches, prevented Crows midfielder Ben Keays' goalward strike from registering a score, with the final siren sounding just 15 seconds later to cement the Dockers' one-point triumph. https://twitter.com/AFL/status/1505452395303563264 The narrow win arguably set the tone for Fremantle's season, as the purple haze would go on to stage an unexpected finals assault and progress to a semi-final berth in coach Justin Longmuir's third season at the helm. Collingwood vs. Geelong Cats -- MCG, Round 3 The Cats and Magpies jousted in two enthralling games last season, the first of which was a Round 3 blockbuster that saw Geelong overturn a 30-point three-quarter-time deficit to emerge victorious. The loss, one of the very few tight-game shortcomings for Collingwood last year, was a disappointing one for the Magpies, who were helpless against a Jeremy Cameron-led fourth-quarter onslaught. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_tdJ8XAo-b0 The ex-Giant kicked three of his six majors in the final term to help power his side to an unforgettable victory for skipper Joel Selwood, who celebrated captaining Geelong in the most games in club history. Richmond vs. Brisbane Lions -- MCG, Round 20 The Tigers and Lions, who have clashed in a number of important games in recent seasons, did battle at the home of football in Round 20, with finals implications aplenty for the yellow and black. Much to the distress of the Richmond faithful, Brisbane dominated from the outset, building as much as a 42-point lead in the second quarter, in large part due to Keidean Coleman's instrumental first half (20 disposals at 73% efficiency), and looking likely to leave with four points. However, the Tigers, buoyed by emerging forward Noah Cumberland's five goals, surged in the second half and ensured Brisbane's MCG woes continued, sneaking home by seven points. https://twitter.com/Richmond_FC/status/1553917458838597632 Sydney Swans vs. Richmond -- SCG, Round 11 The Tigers were virtually the inverse of Collingwood last season as it pertained to close-game outcomes, falling short multiple times after coughing up late leads (see also: their losses to Geelong, Gold Coast, North Melbourne, and their elimination final loss to Brisbane) as they did during this particular tussle with the surging Swans, who piled on 10 of the game's last 13 majors to win by six points. The ending to this thriller was mired in controversy, as debate reined during the days following about whether or not Richmond should have been awarded a 50-metre penalty and a subsequent shot at goal from inside 50 after Swans midfielder Chad Warner booted the ball into the stands following a free kick to Dion Prestia. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h0Cd0N6S45Q Nevertheless, the Swans took the spoils after mounting a barnstorming comeback during which Lance Franklin was his vintage, brilliant self, kicking four crucial goals, three of which coming throughout the final stanza. Adelaide Crows vs. Port Adelaide -- Adelaide Oval, Round 3 Jordan Dawson, Adelaide's big-ticket recruit of last year's off-season, elevated this game to all-time status after he slotted a difficult set shot after the siren to down the Power in the first Showdown of the season (the second one wasn't as memorable). Aside from a brief first-quarter lead, Port Adelaide largely owned this contest, keeping Adelaide at arm's length the entire way through until, literally, the final siren, at which point Dawson buried his new cross-town rival with a right-to-left heartbreaker. https://twitter.com/AFL/status/1509864836577972237 In addition to his scintillating game-winner, Dawson also notched up 25 disposals at 72 per cent efficiency, as well as seven contested possessions and another goal earlier on. Sydney Swans vs. Collingwood -- Finals Week 3 (PF) After Geelong trounced Brisbane in the first preliminary final of the weekend, the Swans were well on their way after jumping out to a 36-point second-quarter lead against the Pies. It seemed the both Grand Final deciders were going to be blowouts. However, Collingwood woke everyone up, pushing Sydney to the absolute brink and almost capturing victory from the jaws of defeat in what was an almighty and valiant fightback led by veterans Scott Pendlebury and Steele Sidebottom. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D13teNzEKVw But, ultimately, it was the Swans, led by Callum Mills, Tom Papley, Luke Parker and Lance Franklin, who managed to prevail by a single point in front of a packed SCG and cement a blockbuster Grand Final meeting with Geelong. Geelong Cats vs. Richmond -- MCG, Round 15 Richmond and Geelong, who have built a storied rivalry after numerous unforgettable home-and-away and finals clashes between 2017 and 2020, went toe-to-toe in Round 15 with finals repercussions aplenty. And this occasion did not disappoint. From Tom Stewart knocking out Dion Prestia early into the match, to the Cats outlasting a spirited Tigers comeback, this one had plenty. https://twitter.com/ESPNAusNZ/status/1540611425894207489 With a pandemonium-ensuing Jack Henry mark and goal in red-time, the Cats would seal a three-point victory. Geelong Cats vs. Collingwood -- MCG, Finals Week 1 (QF) Unlike their Round 3 meeting, which was highlighted by a massive comeback, this clash was neck-and-neck and tense all the way through, as all finals should be. With neither side able to build a buffer of more than 20 points at any stage of the match, it was clear the winner of this one was going to be the team that kept the most composure late in the game. With Collingwood's well-documented season-long success late in games, many expected Craig McRae's men to get the job done, however, it was the Cats who booked their early ticket to a preliminary final thanks to a goal in the waning moments from youngster Max Holmes. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=edlqz0EAUw8 Collingwood vs. Essendon -- MCG, Round 19 The Magpies, astonishingly, feature five times in our 10 best games, with forward Jamie Elliott the sole reason why Collingwood managed to emerge victorious in two of them. In the Pies' second matchup with Essendon in 2022, Elliott was the black-and-white hero, slotting the game-winning goal after the siren from an improbable angle after a see-sawing affair that saw the Bombers erase a 37-point quarter-time deficit. After the Bombers took an unlikely three-quarter-time lead, Collingwood would eventually snatch the win in heartbreaking fashion, with Elliott coming up clutch after the siren. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5IDuo2vM-LU Carlton vs. Collingwood -- MCG, Round 23 Jamie Elliott, as he did against Essendon in Round 19, came up enormous for Collingwood in clutch time to bury Carlton's finals chances. Elliott, who makes difficult angles look scarily easy, capped off one of the most pulsating passages of play of the 2022 season with an on-the-run goal to send Magpies fans into raptures and, simultaneously, Blues fans into despondency at the MCG. The outcome of this contest was made all the more memorable by the fact that the Blues, who at many points during the season looked certain to stamp their finals ticket, would not be participating in September action once again, as a result of the Pies' win. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Sk7yFwPNvc

		P	W	L	PTS	%
1	ADEL	23	18	5	72	139.3
2	GEEL	23	17	6	68	141.5
3	BL	23	16	6	66	114.2
4	COLL	23	16	7	64	122.4
5	GWS	23	16	7	64	115.3
6	FRE	23	16	7	64	109
7	GC	23	15	8	60	124.9
8	HAW	23	15	8	60	120.9

Ranking the 10 best games of the 2022 season

We’ve hand-picked the best of the best and ranked them 1-10. Check it out!

2. Collingwood vs. Essendon -- MCG, Round 19

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