AFL is a team game but there is a reason some player names are more familiar than others.

As we near the time of year where individual player awards are handed out at club and league level, we’ve taken a look at which players are leading the pack in key stat areas, plus where the top Lions rank in comparison.

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Disposals

23 year old ball winner Tom Mitchell from the Hawthorn Hawks tops this list with 35.6 disposals per game (641 total in season).

Dayne Beams is the highest placed Lion for disposals, sitting 24th on the league average table with 27.3 per game (409 total).

Clearances 

The ‘clearance kings’ of the AFL are an elite list. Names like, Ablett, Shiel, Martin, Dangerfield, Cribbs, Selwood and Kennedy join Ben Cunnington from North Melbourne at 1st place for clearances per game (7.8) and Tom Rockliff at third (7.2 per game).

Contested Possessions

2016 Brownlow Medallist Patrick Dangerfield leads the pack with 17.6 per game, whilst Lions danger-men Rockliff (10.9pg), Zorko (10.8pg) and Beams (10.6pg) all just squeeze themselves into the Top 40. 

Goals

Thanks in some part to his 5 goal haul against the Lions, Eagle Josh Kennedy leads the Goals Per Game average with 3.8, but it is Joe Daniher from Essendon who has kicked the most this season (53), nudging out Lance Franklin (Swans - 51 total) and Ben Brown (North Melbourne - 51 total). 

Thanks to his stellar debut, Sam Skinner is currently the highest placed Lion for average goals per game, but it is emerging star Eric Hipwood who has done the bulk of goal kicking for the Lions this season, sitting 26th overall with 28 goals for the season (1.6 average).

Fantasy Points

The algorithm gods hold Hawk Tom Mitchell higher than anyone else as he averages 128.8 points per game this season.

The Lions' own ‘Fantasy Pig’ Tom Rockliff sits at 17th this season (105.4 points per game). Rockliff has performed some key defensive leadership roles this season that don’t always show on the stats sheet, allowing teammate Dayne Zorko to earned his spot at 6th for Fantasy Points earned per game this season (116.6). 

Tackles

The league’s most exciting attacking players are also some of the highest tacklers, with Tom Mitchell (Hawthorn), Scott Pendlebury (Collingwood) and Marcus Bontompelli (Western Bulldogs) all ranking in the Top 20 for average tackles per game.

Rory Sloane (Adelaide) and Brad Ebert (Port Adelaide) lead the pack with 137 and 136 total tackles respectively this season.

Geelong Cat Scott Selwood also deserves special mention. Due to missed games his total tackle count is lower but he is averaging the most tackles per game in the league at 11.1.

Lions star Dayne Zorko has made the 4th most tackles in the league this season at 125, whilst Rockliff’s 103 tackles earn him 17th place. 

For a deeper dive into player and team stats visit: http://www.afl.com.au/stats