THE RISERS and sliders at every club are always a talking point. Which young player has taken his game to the next level, or which straggler is holding his side back? Every team has been analysed using the Schick AFL Player Ratings to determine the individuals who have improved and those who have battled since the start of 2015.
An individual's Player Ratings score is a measurement from Champion Data, looking at a player's performance from their past 40 games over a rolling two-year period. Greater weighting is given to more recent games. Read on to see those who are helping - and hindering - your side.
Moving up
EDDIE BETTS
2015 pre-season: 71
Now: 17
Considering the 30-year-old's improvement in recent times, it's not hard to see why Adelaide signed him up until 2020. The Crows superstar has booted the second-most goals of any player since the start of last season with 98. Of players in the top-10 goalkickers in that time, the former Blue has laid the most tackles.
Moving down
SCOTT THOMPSON
2015 pre-season: 119
Now: 153
The 34-year-old hasn't won a berth in the senior team this season after dealing with a variety of injuries. His average of 24 disposals per match last year was his lowest since 2006. The dual club champion wasn't very effective with the footy either, with a disposal efficiency of 65.9 per cent.
Moving up
DAYNE ZORKO
2015 pre-season: 28
Now: 7
The diminutive star was originally on the Gold Coast list as a Queensland priority selection before being traded to the Lions, and has been a consistent improver. Since 2016, he has averaged 24 disposals and 1.2 goals per game. Only three other players in the AFL have had more of the footy while booting a goal a match in that span.
Moving down
TOM ROCKLIFF
2015 pre-season: 18
Now: 40
The former skipper was always going to struggle to maintain a high Player Ratings score after a prolific 2014, when he averaged 33 disposals and nine tackles. He missed some footy in the past two years with a variety of injuries in a turbulent time for the club when it won just seven games, but Rockliff is averaging 30 disposals per game in 2017.
Moving up
MATTHEW WRIGHT
2015 pre-season: 158
Now: 86
Since becoming a Blue at end of 2015 as a delisted free agent, the former Crow has thrived under the tutelage of Brendon Bolton. He won the club's goalkicking last year and has been the second-best shot at goal this season of any player with at least 15 attempts, with a tally of 12.3.
Moving down
LIAM JONES
2015 pre-season: 380
Now: 493
Since the forward was traded from the Western Bulldogs and handed a three-year deal at the end of 2014, he has spent plenty of time in the VFL, hence his falling ranking. In that time, he has played 27 games for the Northern Blues and 17 in the senior side.
Matthew Wright has proved to be a savvy acquisition by the Blues. Picture: AFL Photos
Moving up
JEREMY HOWE
2015 pre-season: 139
Now: 93
The former Demon came to Nathan Buckley's side partly because he wanted to play forward and the Magpies offered that option. However, he was shifted to defence to help an injury-hit backline and has thrived. Since the start of 2016, Howe is equal-sixth in the competition for intercept marks per game.
Moving down
CHRIS MAYNE
2015 pre-season: 175
Now: 228
In Ross Lyon's first two seasons at the Dockers (2012-13), Mayne booted a combined 76.19 and was a gun pressure forward. He has slipped since then and hasn't established a spot in Collingwood's best team. His goakicking accuracy hit a career-low last year of 43 per cent, and he is tracking at 25 per cent in 2017.
Moving up
ZACH MERRETT
2015 pre-season: 398
Now: 29
Since being drafted at No. 26 in 2013, the precise left-footer has proven to be one of the competition's best young players. He thrived last year in the absence of the banned stars and since the start of 2016, is equal-third in the AFL for average disposals per game. In that time, he is second for uncontested possessions per match, with 21.
Moving down
BRENDON GODDARD
2015 pre-season: 26
Now: 47
Goddard was handed the captaincy in 2016 with Jobe Watson suspended and was steady without being brilliant, hence his slight dip in the rankings. However, the 2013 best and fairest is averaging a career-high in the Player Ratings this year on the back of averaging more than 27 disposals per game.
Moving up
LACHIE NEALE
2015 pre-season: 150
Now: 23
In a midfield studded with Nat Fyfe, David Mundy and Stephen Hill, Neale has established himself as an absolute star. He has been the most prolific ball-winner in the competition since the start of last season and is fourth for clearances. He was nominated for the All Australian squad in 2015 and 2016 and will likely be again in contention for a spot this year.
Moving down
LEE SPURR
2015 pre-season: 254
Now: 312
In 2014-15, Spurr averaged one score launch per game, which meant he was the starting point of a scoring chain once a game. That number is down to 0.3 this season. Part of that reduction has to do with Fremantle falling down the ladder but Spurr has suffered a noticeable drop in form in recent years.
Moving up
TOM HAWKINS
2015 pre-season: 102
Now: 50
It seemed the power forward might have been slowing down in recent years but he has posted some impressive numbers so far in 2017. His 3.1 goals per game and accuracy in front of goal of 73 per cent are both career-high marks, while his pressure acts and tackles per game have improved in each of the past four seasons.
Moving down
HARRY TAYLOR
2015 pre-season: 49
Now: 164
Moving to the forward line hasn't been kind on two-time All Australian and he has kicked just 2.5 so far this season. In 2014-15, when his ranking was much higher, Taylor was second in the competition for intercept marks taken and eighth for intercept possessions.
Harry Taylor's form is a long way off his All Australian best. Picture: AFL Photos
Moving up
AARON HALL
2015 pre-season: 203
Now: 41
Despite being dropped last year for a stint in the NEAFL, Hall has established himself as an eye-catching midfielder. He sits fifth in the competition for metres gained since the start of 2016. Meanwhile, his retention rate is the best of all players in the top-10 for metres gained in that time.
Moving down
PEARCE HANLEY
2015 pre-season: 44
Now: 181
Injuries struck the wingman in 2015 while a heel concern has kept him sidelined this year. He went back to Ireland earlier this year for his younger brother's funeral, with the missing games lowering his ranking. However, Hanley looked uninterested at times in his final season at the Lions and was inconsistent.
Moving up
HEATH SHAW
2015 pre-season: 99
Now: 55
Shaw went to Collingwood in a direct swap for Taylor Adams in what has been a win-win trade, and has improved in his time at the Giants. Since the start of 2016, he has recorded 69 more effective kicks than any other player in the competition. His accurate disposal and one-on-one abilities make him one of the premier backmen in the AFL.
Moving down
STEVE JOHNSON
2015 pre-season: 20
Now: 167
There has been plenty of scrutiny around Johnson's quiet start to the season. Since the start of 2016, his goalkicking accuracy is at just 48.5 per cent. The amount of footy he has won has decreased every year since 2014, when he had 26 disposals per game. That number is down to 16 this year.
Moving up
TOM MITCHELL
2015 pre-season: 382
Now: 57
The Hawks have struggled this season but the former Sydney midfielder has been one of his side's shining lights. He couldn't nail down a spot in the Swans' line-up in 2014-15 and played just 25 games, but hasn't missed a match since. The tough onballer is averaging a competition-high 33.9 disposals per match this year.
Moving down
JOSH GIBSON
2015 pre-season: 42
Now: 151
Winning a club championship in a premiership year is considered one of the finest accolades in the AFL and Gibson has done it twice, in 2013 and 2015. In the left-footer's last best and fairest year, he averaged 246m gained per game, a number down to 140m so far this year. His score involvements have dropped by two per game as well.
Tom Mitchell has been the most prolific midfielder in the competition this year. Picture: AFL Photos
Moving up
TOM McDONALD
2015 pre-season: 169
Now: 56
Since the start of 2016, McDonald has averaged the second-most disposals and is equal-third for spoils and marks of all key defenders. There's no doubt he frustrates Melbourne's supporters sometimes with his kicking and decision-making but McDonald has become a gun backman.
Moving down
JORDAN LEWIS
2015 pre-season: 27
Now: 125
The Demons happily accepted Lewis into the fold, with the former Hawk having added leadership and experience to a young list. However, after averaging at least one score assist per game in every season between 2007-15, that number dropped to 0.5 last year and is at 0.8 this year.
Moving up
BEN CUNNINGTON
2015 pre-season: 89
Now: 64
Inconsistency plagued Cunnington last year but he is averaging career highs in disposals, clearances, pressure acts and score assists in 2017. His 6.3 clearances per game since the start of 2016 sits him at 10th in the competition for that stat. Cunnington's strength at the contest has made him an important player in North's competitive start to the season.
Moving down
SCOTT THOMPSON
2015 pre-season: 98
Now: 217
Having turned 31 on Tuesday, Thompson has seen a natural decline with age in the past few years. In 2015, he averaged a career low in metres gained per game, posted his second-lowest ever average tackle figure last year and has never averaged fewer score involvements than in this season.
Moving up
JUSTIN WESTHOFF
2015 pre-season: 46
Now: 36
The lift in Westhoff's game has come off the back of spending less time in attack. In 2014-15, he spent 78 per cent of his time as a deep forward. That number has dropped to 65 per cent in the past two seasons, with the veteran having spent more time on the wing and in defence.
Moving down
TRAVIS BOAK
2015 pre-season: 11
Now: 51
The opposite has happened with the Power skipper – he has spent less time in the midfield. In 2014, when the side lost a nail-biting preliminary final against Hawthorn, Boak averaged 12.5 contested possessions per game. That has dropped every season since and is down to 8.2 per game this year.
Moving up
TRENT COTCHIN
2015 pre-season: 70
Now: 32
The Tigers skipper has been maligned at times but he is back to playing some of the best footy of his career. Despite posting two fewer disposals per game than he did in 2014-15, he is averaging close to 100m more per game. Meanwhile, his tackle numbers have also lifted by 3.3 in that time.
Moving down
BRANDON ELLIS
2015 pre-season: 191
Now: 240
Ellis moved from the wing to half-back at the start of this season and he has continued his trend of winning less of the footy. In 2014, he posted a career-high 26.1 disposals per game and that number is down to 19.6 this year. His kicking and decision-making under pressure have always been a query, and those concerns became particularly obvious early in this campaign.
Trent Cotchin has returned to some of his best form in 2017. Picture: AFL Photos
Moving up
JACK STEVEN
2015 pre-season: 39
Now: 10
Since the start of 2016, Steven is the ninth-ranked midfielder for metres gained. Only one other player in the competition has ranked in the elite category for metres gained and score assists in that time – reigning Brownlow medallist Patrick Dangerfield. Steven's ability to bust out of a contested situation has seen him claim the mantle as the side's best player from Nick Riewoldt.
Moving down
LEIGH MONTAGNA
2015 pre-season: 73
Now: 82
It's a pointer to St Kilda's improving list that there hasn't been a player to have suffered a significant drop in the Schick AFL Player Ratings. There was Jake Carlisle, but he missed all last year with a doping ban. Some older Saints have left in recent times (think Sam Fisher and Sean Dempster) while the rest of the older generation, such as Nick Riewoldt and Sam Gilbert, continues to perform well.
Moving up
JAKE LLOYD
2015 pre-season: 427
Now: 160
The former rookie has been one of the Swans' best players in what has been a down year for the club, with just one win from seven games. He is in the top five in the competition for metres gained, effective disposals, handball receives and uncontested possessions, and is averaging 30 disposals per game this season.
Moving down
KIEREN JACK
2015 pre-season: 12
Now: 100
It was recently revealed the former captain had been playing with a hip injury, which partly explained his poor form. However, it's fair to say Jack's peak has passed. His average disposals have dropped by seven since 2015 (at 15.8 disposals per game this season), and while his kicking efficiency was at 63 per cent that year, it is down to 50 per cent.
Moving up
LUKE SHUEY
2015 pre-season: 45
Now: 19
Since the start of 2016, the reigning best and fairest is one of just six players in the AFL to average at least 25 disposals, six clearances, six tackles and one score assist per game. His speed away from congestion is pivotal in a midfield containing slower ball-winners in Matt Priddis and Sam Mitchell.
Moving down
JACK DARLING
2015 pre-season: 76
Now: 169
Few Eagles have copped more attention since the 2015 Grand Final loss to Hawthorn, perhaps with good reason. In 2017, Darling is posting a career-low average for contested marks. Furthermore, he has never won a lower percentage of one-on-one contests. However, his 2.2 goals per game this season is the equal-highest of his career.
Moving up
LIAM PICKEN
2015 pre-season: 278
Now: 91
Once a dour tagger, Picken has transformed into a player as likely to snare a soaring mark as any other in the competition. His score involvements have climbed from 3.4 per game in 2014 to seven in 2017. Few 30-year-olds are awarded contracts for a further two seasons but Picken was handed such a deal in April.
Moving down
TRAVIS CLOKE
2015 pre-season: 217
Now: 347
Cloke lost his spot in Collingwood's senior team last year and has played just 17 games since the start of 2016. His average contested marks have dropped under two per game for each of those seasons. The dual All Australian showed promising form early in the season before suffering broken ribs in a crunching bump from North Melbourne captain Jack Ziebell and faces more time on the sidelines.
Liam Picken's transformation has been remarkable. Picture: AFL Photos
