Star GWS defender Sam Taylor wins yet another one-on-one contest against Hawthorn on Sunday. Photo: GETTY IMAGES

FULL BACKS

Jordan Ridley (Essendon)
One of Essendon’s increasingly reliable pillars in defence, Ridley had yet another strong game in the big win over Melbourne. Bayley Fritsch started on fire with two first-quarter goals and another assist, but Ridley moved across and restricted him to just five disposals for the rest of the game, while gathering 23 of his own at 87 per cent efficiency.

Nick Murray (Adelaide)
An undersold element of the Crows’ impressive resurgence has been the form of their rock-solid full back Nick Murray. He was miserly against both of Carlton’s power duo, conceding a single loss from his nine one-on-one contests, and also sending the ball beyond defensive 50 on seven occasions.

Callum Wilkie (St Kilda)
Another brilliant display from Wilkie, who simply does not play a bad game. The impassable Saint took 11 marks – six of which were intercepts – and held Jamie Elliott relatively quiet. Saints fans have known for a while, but the wider football public is now starting to acknowledge him as one of the absolute top tier backmen in the game.

HALF-BACKS

Nick Daicos (Collingwood)
There are innumerable impressive things about Nick Daicos, but chief among them is his absolute consistency – he never even has an OK game, let alone a poor one. This week it was 42 disposals, eight inside 50s, 856 metres gained and some exquisite field kicking that had the travelling Magpies supporters cheering as they would a Jeremy Howe screamer.

Sam Taylor (GWS)
The most off-Broadway game of Gather Round produced one of its most brilliant individual performances, with Sam Taylor totally dominating against an inexperienced Hawthorn attack. The 2022 All-Australian showed that he’s still one of the premier defenders in the league with a ridiculous 16 intercepts from his 20 disposals, the majority of which were contested.

Nick Blakey (Sydney)
Blakey has been good without being outstanding following an interrupted pre-season, but Friday night’s performance saw him back to his powerful, dynamic best. The proactive Swan was too quick for the Tigers, and notched 30 disposals for the second time in his career. His kicking from the back half is an absolute delight to watch.

CENTRES

Chayce Jones (Adelaide)
This was undoubtedly a career night for Jones, as he worked hard back into defence and into attack to compile a highly effective game consisting of 28 touches, nine score involvements and eight intercepts. Clubs see rapid improvement when long-term players improve en masse, and perhaps Jones is yet another Crow keen to join the party.

Caleb Serong (Fremantle)
While Fremantle’s season is just stuttering along, their midfield dynamo Caleb Serong is stamping himself as a genuine star of the competition. Already one of the outstanding players of season 2023, Serong reinforced his claim against a strong Gold Coast midfield in amassing 37 disposals and eight clearances.

Jack Lukosius (Gold Coast)
Lukosius looks a much-improved player, with the highly-talented Sun much more consistently involved throughout matches this season. Although he missed a chance to pinch the game in the final term, he was clearly the most influential player in the first three quarters, working all over the field to claim 12 marks, 11 inside 50s and three goal assists.

HALF-FORWARDS

Tom Papley (Sydney)
An electrifying performance from Sydney’s talismanic forward. Richmond defenders simply could not lay a hand on Papley, as he barnstormed his way to a match-winning performance that featured individual brilliance around goals and vital clearances at big moments. He made hay with six second-half goals, but his first half was equally as damaging.

Joe Daniher (Brisbane)
The last two weeks have seen an excellent response from the maligned forward, with Daniher backing up a strong effort last week with his first five-goal haul since his All-Australian year of 2017. North Melbourne’s key defenders are no slouches, but Daniher simply outworked them to find himself free inside 50 time and time again.

Jake Waterman (West Coast)
Waterman continued his impressive run of form with a diligent, four-quarter performance against the Cats. Working well alongside fellow forwards Oscar Allen and Jack Darling, Waterman gave the Geelong defence plenty to worry about as he worked up and back to find himself in dangerous positions, ultimately finishing the match with four goals.

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FORWARDS

Michael Walters (Fremantle)
With his second bag of four goals so far this season, Walters has continued building on the strong form he worked into at the end of 2022. His zealous start gave Fremantle an early lead, and while he was quelled somewhat through the middle of the match, he broke free again in the last term with his fourth goal bringing the Dockers back to within a kick.

Darcy Fogarty (Adelaide)
After some fits and starts over the early part of his career, Fogarty is clearly demonstrating that he is here to stay after last season’s impressive second-half breakout. The usually sure-footed Fogarty was a touch wayward against the Blues, but was still among the best afield with five goals, 10 marks and two assists.

Brad Close (Geelong)
Always a workhorse for Geelong, Close managed to get on the end of a few with an equal-career-high four goals against the Eagles. Although they were too far behind to truly threaten, when West Coast booted five straight third-quarter goals, it was Close who snuffed out the challenge with two quick ones to finish the term.

FOLLOWERS

Tim English (Western Bulldogs)
For a man of his size, English’s performances are somehow going under the radar this season. He is averaging more than 20 disposals, something no ruckman has done since Brodie Grundy in 2018, while also fourth in the league for hitouts to advantage. He dominated on Saturday night, clearly one of the cleanest and most skilled players in torrid conditions.

Jordan Dawson (Adelaide)
In what was essentially his third league game as a full-time inside midfielder, the new Adelaide skipper produced perhaps the most comprehensive performance of any player in that position this season. A magnificently skilful addition to Adelaide’s engine room, Dawson repeatedly found his forwards with powerful yet polished work from the centre square.

Lachie Neale (Brisbane)
Things weren’t necessarily going the Lions’ way early in the match against North Melbourne, until Neale stepped in and wrested the contest back. Playing in his home state, Brisbane’s No.1 midfielder produced an expert clearance game, winning a remarkable 10 from the centre among his total of 13.

INTERCHANGE

Brad Crouch (St Kilda)
Crouch has been valiantly holding down the role of chief onballer in the absence of injured skipper Jack Steele, and he was at it again on Sunday with an energetic display against Collingwood. He accumulated clearances and disposals as he always does, but also had impact forward of centre with two goals and a game-high 10 inside 50s.

Zak Butters (Port Adelaide)
A telling midfield performance from Butters was chief among the reasons that Port Adelaide notched its third win of the season on Saturday. Well-suited to the soggy conditions, Butters was frenzied defensively and skilful in attack, and it was fitting that he slotted the match-sealing goal with a few minutes to spare.

Sam Draper (Essendon)
An awaited breakout season is looming for Draper, who is finding a way to impact the contest every single week. Realistically he should split this spot with ruck comrade Andrew Phillips, as they worked in tandem to overcome opposition star Brodie Grundy and to provide a dangerous option up forward, but it was Draper who set the scene with three early goals.

Jai Newcombe (Hawthorn)
Newcombe hasn’t found it easy as the true centrepiece of Hawthorn’s inexperienced midfield, but he bounced back to form in a big way against the Giants’ strong midfield on Sunday. With 31 touches, 10 clearances and a goal, Newcombe consistently kept his side in touch, and was particularly dominant in the third term as the Hawks made their move.

STIFF TO MISS
Aliir Aliir (Port Adelaide), Mark Blicavs (Geelong), Errol Gulden (Sydney), Darcy Parish (Essendon), Will Setterfield (Essendon), Tom Green (GWS), Darcy Moore (Collingwood), Liam Jones (Western Bulldogs), Sean Darcy (Fremantle), Eric Hipwood (Brisbane).