One of the favourite pastimes of a football fan is to look at the potential in a player and imagine what they could become in the future. With the 2026 season done, there is now more than four months of fantasising and pondering about what each club and player can do in 2027.
Every season, a player from nowhere makes their mark. This year's version of that was Sydney SSP recruit Jai Serong.
Then there are the young stars ready to emerge as some of the league's best, à la Fremantle's Murphy Reid who claimed his maiden All-Australian at 20.
There are breakout stars to watch, but there are plenty of players who hang in the balance of promising talent and potential but failing to deliver, how will they fare next year?
We at Zero Hanger have listed the 10 players to watch and why in 2027:
Hugh Davies
There is a reason the Dockers were not planning on targeting a rival key defender during the off-season, even if skipper Alex Pearce's injury was long-term, and his name is Hugh Davies.
The 22-year-old key defender has long been hailed an AFL-quality player stuck in the WAFL.
At 196cm Davies is a great height, strong intercept marker and very clean distributor for Peel Thunder.
He had interest from other clubs due to his lack of game time at Fremantle, but the Dockers convinced him to stay and sign a three-year extension under the lure of being the next key defender for the club.
Luke Ryan's influence and place in the starting 23 is waning, while the Oscar McDonald-Brennan Cox position is up for debate. This means 2027 could be the year Davies makes it impossible for the Dockers not to have him in the senior side.
Davies will be important early in the year while Pearce recovers from his Achilles injury as he looks to add to his tally of two AFL games next season.
