Sean Lemmens was one of the reasons Gold Coast almost caused a huge upset against Melbourne. Photo: GETTY IMAGES

FULL BACKS

Sean Lemmens (Gold Coast)
Lemmens was able to do at the weekend what no other player has done since Round 21, 2021, in keeping Melbourne’s Bayley Fritsch goalless. Although it didn’t result in a victory for the Suns, his efforts in blanketing the prolific Demon naturally meant that the game was tighter for longer than many predicted.

Jack Payne (Brisbane)
A big improver and solid contributor all year, Payne’s efforts on the Friday night stage against Charlie Curnow earned the adulation of the broader footy world over the weekend. Coming off nine goals last week, Curnow was kept to just one by the Brisbane defender, who grew in confidence and even began playing off his man in the second half.

Callum Wilkie (St Kilda)
The St Kilda backman has been one of the most consistent, standout performers of 2023 so far. His terrific form rolled on in what was a clunky affair at Docklands, with Wilkie winning the ball back from North Melbourne on nine occasions, and repeatedly sending it beyond defensive 50 with typical precision.

HALF-BACKS

Isaac Quaynor (Collingwood)
There are bigger names at the Magpies, but few would be pencilled into Craig McRae’s team sheet before Quaynor. Not only does he provide run and exquisite ball use from defence, but he rarely loses one-on-one contests anywhere on the ground. His work on the rebound, but also accounting for Tom Papley, were crucial to Collingwood’s win over Sydney.

Esava Ratugolea (Geelong)
The experiment of playing Ratugolea as a defender appears to be working well, with noticeable improvements week-on-week. His display on Saturday on Taylor Walker was his best in the role, with some impressive contested wins and intercept marking under duress. Walker still managed three goals, but he never threatened to take control of the game.

Nasiah Wanganeen-Milera (St Kilda)
Another player who has been building all season into what was a career-high game, certainly in terms of numbers at the very least. Handed the reins as the Saints’ main distributor off half-back this year, Wanganeen-Milera put his sharp disposal to effect against the Kangaroos with 28 touches at 82 per cent efficiency.

CENTRES

Errol Gulden (Sydney)
Gulden produced huge numbers against Collingwood, with the highly-skilled Swan finding his way up the periphery of the MCG from half-back to the forward 50 whilst gathering 37 disposals. He’s clearly both willing and able to bite off difficult kicks, and in doing so he not only helped control the tempo, but opened up space for attacking forays.

Tom Green (GWS)
The traits and moments that Green showed over his first few seasons are coalescing this year into the profile of one of the game’s truly elite on-ballers. Against the Bulldogs, who have a few handy midfielders, Green produced a game featuring 38 touches, eight clearances, nine tackles and three goals – two of which came in the final term to give GWS an unlikely sniff.

Scott Pendlebury (Collingwood)
Handing the bulk of the centre square duties over for the afternoon, Pendlebury spent most of the clash against Sydney working the wings and helping out in defence. Time still slows down around him, and his angular ball use is even more impactful now that Collingwood employs such run. Another best-on-ground to add to his pile.

HALF-FORWARDS

Shai Bolton (Richmond)
For Richmond’s sake, and for his own, Bolton needed a big game against West Coast, and a big game is what he produced. One of the Tigers’ few four-quarter contributors, he was excellent at the coalface, with 18 of his 31 possessions won in contests. Three goals and two further assists capped off what was a pretty comprehensive display.

Brody Mihocek (Collingwood)
When Collingwood needed a spark, response or circuit-breaker against the Swans, it was Mihocek who delivered. Some individual brilliance brought the win home in the last quarter, with the fourth of his five goals an astonishing out-of-the-air kick that finally finished Sydney off.

Dion Prestia (Richmond)
Not an especially noted goalkicker, Prestia eased his way back from some hamstring “awareness” by playing less time at centre bounce and more across half-forward. The move paid dividends for player and club, as the highly-valued Tiger booted three consecutive goals in the third term that very much broke the contest in Richmond’s favour.

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FORWARDS

Charlie Cameron (Brisbane)
With another thrilling display on Thursday night, Cameron notched his fourth bag of four or more goals from the first eight rounds of the season. Nic Newman had been in top form on the competition’s most dangerous small forwards, but he proved no match for Cameron, who booted two goals and set up another as the Lions ran away with it in the third term.

Oscar Allen (West Coast)
The definition of a shining light. Allen has kicked multiple goals in every game this season, despite featuring in a team that is third last for centre clearances and dead last for inside 50s. His four goals, and ability to outbody Dylan Grimes and Noah Balta, were almost the sole reason why the Eagles stayed in the game for so long.

Arthur Jones (Western Bulldogs)
This wasn’t a game rich with numbers, but the influence of Arthur Jones in just his sixth match of AFL footy was significant. In a side that has lacked forward spark at ground level, Jones energised the Western Bulldogs with two cracking first-quarter goals, the second of which came as a result of a rock-solid contested mark and long set shot.

FOLLOWERS

Tim English (Western Bulldogs)
English’s outstanding campaign continued on Saturday night, with the inclement conditions posing no impediment to the 207cm ruck. The 23 disposals and 40 hitouts he accumulated against GWS were just about par for the course now for English, and some of his defensive efforts at ground level in the second half were quite striking.

Marcus Bontempelli (Western Bulldogs)
That Tom Green somehow was not the best player on the ground speaks to the rare form of the Bulldogs skipper. It’s never about numbers with Bontempelli, but the fact that he managed career-highs in both clearances (14) and contested possessions (25) gives an indication of his dominance. He’s producing footy as consistently excellent as anyone has played in years.

Josh Dunkley (Brisbane)
A standout game in the maroon, gold and blue, Dunkley ticked all the boxes against Carlton and ultimately smashed its on-ball unit. With Lachie Neale uncharacteristically quiet and Dayne Zorko out injured, Dunkley took to the contest with vigour, finishing with 33 touches, 13 tackles and a clear victory in the head-to-head against Patrick Cripps.

INTERCHANGE

Noah Anderson (Gold Coast)
Anderson’s form over the past month is that of an elite, top-line midfielder, and against a side (Melbourne) full of them on Saturday night, he was again clearly the best. The star Sun’s penchant for kicking crucial last-quarter goals was also on display, with a major at the 21-minute mark bringing the margin under 10 points.

Zak Butters (Port Adelaide)
It’s very much Connor Rozee and Zak Butters’ midfield at Port Adelaide these days. The pair were excellent again against Essendon, with Butters the clear pick for best-on-ground for his impactful and well-rounded game in which he gained 615 metres with his 28 touches. His brutality in the contest continues to be a standout attribute.

Luke Jackson (Fremantle)
Jackson proved that he can be much more than just a second ruck or make-shift forward with a dynamic display all over the park against the Hawks. Rucking at times, resting forward, but predominantly playing as a roaming midfielder, Jackson clocked a career-high 24 touches while also contributing on the scoreboard with two goals.

Andrew Brayshaw (Fremantle)
It’s fair to say that as with his side, Brayshaw hasn’t quite captured the routinely high-level output that ran through 2022. A gradual return to form hit top gear on Saturday night, with the reigning AFLPA MVP hitting his markers to add 34 touches, nine marks, eight tackles and two goals.

STIFF TO MISS
Darcy Moore (Collingwood), Jack Ziebell (North Melbourne), Tim Taranto (Richmond), Jack Buckley (GWS), Brandon Zerk-Thatcher (Essendon), Darcy Parish (Essendon), Max Holmes (Geelong), Miles Bergman (Port Adelaide), Max Gawn (Melbourne), Adam Cerra (Carlton).