After just over a month of footy, the 2024 AFL season is starting to take shape.
Some of the best-laid plans have been consigned to the dustbin, while a few left-field ideas are working out.
The AFL Record & SEN.com.au team runs the tale of the tape through every club and examines what is working and what is not through the opening stages of 2024.
It’s fair to say not much has worked for the Crows this year as their start to the season has them long shots to make the eight.
What hasn’t worked? The midfield is has looked one-paced, although there was major improvement against Carlton last week. Matt Crouch has returned to form, but put him alongside Rory Laird, Jordan Dawson and Sam Berry and you’ve got a group lacking pace and burst that doesn’t break tackles. Adelaide’s backline has also struggled, with Brodie Smith the only player providing any rebound.
What has worked? They Crows have found a few players to persist with in Mark Keane, Jake Soligo and Max Michalanney, who continues to grow.
Nic Negrepontis
The 2024 season did not start well for the Lions on the back of last year’s narrow Grand Final defeat to Collingwood.
The fallout from an end-of-season trip to the US has been blamed for their slow start, but the club insists the playing group is united.
What is working is that their very best football still looks like it might be the best in the competition. They showed that last week against Melbourne, a win that has helped steer the ship back on course after a torrid beginning.
Top draft pick Darcy Wilmot appears like he’s taken his game to another level.
Andrew Slevison
Carlton has come into 2024 with a very different looking game style – and it’s worked.
The Blues have become an outstanding team at scoring from transition and turnover, thanks to their run from half-back and the gut-runners they have around the ground. Couple that with elite forward-half pressure and you have a 4-1 side.
Strangely, that has come at the expense of their clearance and contest game, which has dropped right away. They have been belted out of the middle this season, particularly by Fremantle and Richmond.
They will hope to find some balance between the styles as the year goes on.
Nic Negrepontis
Much less is working at Collingwood in 2024 compared with their premiership-winning 2023 campaign.
In their 0-3 start (before winning two on the trot), the Pies’ main issue was turnovers and where they were giving the ball up. In 2023 they ranked fourth for giving up the footy least, in 2024 they are far closer to the bottom in that statistic.
One area that’s still working is their intercept game with Darcy Moore, Billy Frampton, Jeremy Howe, Brayden Maynard and Isaac Quaynor picking off opposition attacks. They’d like far less ball coming into defensive 50, though.
Lachlan Geleit
Brad Scott put the heat on his side’s training standards in the lead-up to season 2024 and the ‘Essendon Edge’ has originated as the by-product. But there’s been no noticeable difference from an Essendon outfit whose defence is worse, despite the recruitment of Ben McKay.
Opposition have found Essendon one of the easiest teams to score against, while the Bombers’ ball movement has fallen off from last year.
The win over the Western Bulldogs last Friday was by far the most complete performance of the year, but the fans will be looking for some repeat showings over the next few weeks before clearing their September schedule.
Seb Mottram
Fremantle has surprised many in 2024 and its midfield has been running hot with Luke Jackson in the No.1 ruck role during first month.
The Dockers are one of the competition’s best general stoppage teams with Caleb Serong a clearance beast and they’re also handballing at a more efficient rate than the other 17 sides. Nat Fyfe’s on-ball inclusion has also helped.
Long considered a defensive side, one concern for the Dockers is that they’re still not a heavy-scoring outfit with their backline and cautious game-plan still the backbone of the way Justin Longmuir wants to play.
Lachlan Geleit
Few predicted what Geelong is putting forward, but maybe we were wrong to doubt Chris Scott.
Often regarded as the greatest home and away coach of the generation, Scott has his side humming with a fresh best 23. Undefeated and awaiting the returns of Patrick Dangerfield and Cameron Guthrie, Scott looks to have orchestrated another Geelong resurgence in 2024.
Gryan Miers, Ollie Dempsey, Tanner Bruhn and Jack Bowes are all in career-best form, while the elder statesmen remain as solid as ever. Tempering the excitement over the Cats is that their opponents in the first five rounds have won five games between them.
Seb Mottram
The Suns have got their midfield mix right this season.
Damien Hardwick has come in and perfected the balance, with Matt Rowell one of the premier clearance players in the League and Noah Anderson partnering nicely with a mix of inside and outside. Touk Miller and Sam Flanders have also been strong.
They have the talent to make a push into September, however their backline woes may cost them. Gold Coast has conceded at least three goals to small forwards on multiple occasions, including six for Cody Weightman and five for Toby Greene.
The Suns’ small defenders need to tighten up, or they will continue to leak goals and potentially cost themselves important results in their push for finals.
Jaiden Sciberras
Adam Kingsley is getting plenty right in the early stages of the season.
After winning 11 of their last 14 in 2023, the Giants have picked up where they left off with five straight wins in 2024. Their forward line is working a treat with Jesse Hogan in career-best form, captain Toby Greene up and going, and players such as Callum Brown, Aaron Cadman, Jake Riccardi and Brent Daniels chiming in.
The midfield unit of Tom Green, Stephen Coniglio and Josh Kelly is flying while Lachie Whitfield has been deadly off half-back. Coniglio hurt his knee against the Saints last weekend and will miss a couple of weeks, while star backman Sam Taylor will miss at least week with concussion.
The Giants appear to have depth but it will be tested ahead of a huge three weeks against Carlton, Brisbane and Sydney.
Andrew Slevison
The first quarters have been horrific.
Through five games the Hawks have kicked just 5.14 to their opponents’ 24.11. Little wonder they have started the season 0-5 for the first time since 1970.
The midfield has been smashed every week and the forward line remains a work in progress with little chemistry at times.
Only three Hawks appear to have improved on last year – James Worpel, Sam Frost and perhaps Jack Scrimshaw.
The only reason to watch the Hawks so far? Jack Ginnivan, who has brought some flair and excitement. And he’s having a good year.
Ash Browne
A big reason for the Demons’ 4-2 start this season has been from their defence. The Dees rank top five in both goals conceded and scoring shots conceded per inside 50 to begin their 2024 campaign. This could take them a long way.
But they continue to have a key forward dilemma which threatens to halt their chances of a premiership in 2024. With options limited, Ben Brown, Harrison Petty and Jacob van Rooyen have only kicked 15 goals between them after six games.
This issue must be sorted quickly or else it’ll just be the same result as 2022 and 2023 for the Demons.
Zac Sharpe
It’s hard to judge the Roos given the brutal fixture they’ve been given to start the season.
On the positive side, they have numerous pieces of their eventual best 23 in place. Harry Sheezel continues to look like a star of the competition, Tristan Xerri is thriving as the solo ruckman, draftees Colby McKercher and Zane Duursma have clear talent and George Wardlaw is finding his feet in his first full season.
What hasn’t worked is the backline, as most anticipated. They simply don’t have enough truly AFL calibre players down there, which makes it tough to compete.
Nic Negrepontis
One area that’s working brilliantly for the Power is their centre clearance work.
Through four games, they were easily the best centre clearance team and that’s no shock with the likes of Connor Rozee, Jason Horne-Francis, Zak Butters, Ollie Wines and Willem Drew running through the middle. They’ve been well supported by recruit Ivan Soldo who has helped feed his on-ball unit.
Goalkicking accuracy is an area that could be improved as the Power rank well in the bottom half of the competition for converting their opportunities.
If they straighten up in front of the big sticks, look out.
Lachlan Geleit
Life under Adem Yze hasn’t been too bad for the Tigers (West Coast loss aside).
A change of coach has provided more opportunities for the club’s youngsters. Seth Campbell, Thomson Dow, Rhyan Mansell, Maurice Rioli, Tom Brown and Mykelti Lefau have all contributed, while Tylar Young and Ben Miller have held down defence admirably.
The effort and intent of a largely undermanned team has also been a highlight. Once again, though, key players have been missing due to injury.
Tom Lynch will miss a large chunk of footy, Dion Prestia has soft tissue issues again, Josh Gibcus has to spend another year on the sidelines and Jacob Hopper is again battling. In the past week, Tim Taranto (fractured wrist) and Jack Ross (stress fracture) joined that mounting injury list.
Andrew Slevison
It’s been up and down start to the year for the Saints with __Ross Lyon__’s side playing some of the best and worst footy.
Their win over reigning premiers Collingwood on the big stage in Round 2 was emphatic; the Saints put the Pies to the sword that night and looked ready to launch off the back of that. The fortnight following saw the Saints play some of their worst footy, coughing up a win against the Bombers and almost botching it against Richmond in Gather Round. They flew home against GWS in Canberra last Saturday but fell short by a point, before a disastrous loss to the Doggies.
They’ve had their fair share of injuries with recruit Liam Henry suffering a serious hamstring injury which will sideline the classy forward/midfielder for another month. Max King also hurt his knee and the names on the injury list do not stop there.
The next few weeks are crucial for the Saints.
Hugh Fitzpatrick
The Swans have had a strong start to the season, anchored by an unlikely midfield source.
We all know how good Isaac Heeney is, however, his permanent move to the midfield has proved a masterstroke. Heeney would be leading the Brownlow Medal voting, improving in every numerical category and taking charge in an injury-hit Swans midfield. Will he stay there when Callum Mills returns?
While the Swans are off to a flyer, coach John Longmire must ensure his players don’t become complacent. Losing to an injury-riddled Richmond and failing to put away the Eagles until the final term may prove costly.
Once they put it together for four quarters, they will be tough to stop.
Jaiden Sciberras
To the surprise of few, not much has worked for West Coast this season.
Once again, the Eagles are in the thick of the wooden spoon race and that is reflected on the stat sheet, with the Eagles ranking near the bottom in almost every conceivable category.
What has worked then? Jeremy McGovern is arguably having a career year, Elliot Yeo is BACK and Harley Reid has showed flashes of the supreme talent that the West Coast faithful are banking on.
The past fortnight has been most encouraging. The Eagles took it up to Sydney in Gather Round and franked that form with an impressive win over Richmond last Sunday.
If they can channel more of those performances, some optimism could return.
Jack Makeham
The start to 2024 has been the definition of a mixed bag for the Bulldogs.
Luke Beveridge has tapped into the youth movement, replacing All-Australian Jack Macrae with the 19-year-old Ryley Sanders and moving away from an Aaron Naughton-led forward line in favour of Jamarra Ugle-Hagan and Sam Darcy.
These adjustments have worked, with their vaunted midfield dominating and their attack looking its most cohesive in years. Strangely enough, however, Macrae and Naughton were supreme in the 10-goal win over the Saints.
However, it hasn’t been enough to cover their flaws that change on a weekly basis. One match the Dogs’ defence gets completely picked apart, the next their clearance game goes missing.
If these one-off displays become a trend, Beveridge could have a real problem on his hands. He will be hoping they can carry on their Round 6 form into the coming weeks.
Jack Makeham
