The 2022 AFL season has officially kicked off, and what an exciting opening round it was.
There were upsets, statement wins and crazy finishes throughout the whole round with Melbourne continuing where they left off last year whilst Geelong looked as impressive as ever.
On the other hand, Essendon and St Kilda were the main disappointments of the round given their expectations for 2022 and beyond.
Check down below to see where your team is at after the first round of the season.
1. Melbourne
The Demons continued proceedings from their drought-breaking premiership season last year, with an impressive 26-point win in the grand final rematch over the Western Bulldogs.
The match played out eerily similar to last year's grand final, with the Dees jumping out to an early lead, before the Dogs came rushing back to take the lead, only for the Dees to flex their muscles and win the contest in the end.
The Demons don't get fazed when they find themselves down, they have the belief within their group to get the game back on their terms, and Christian Petracca dominated the Dogs again with 38 disposals and two goals.
Still the benchmark team of the competition.
2. Geelong
Geelong completely demolished Essendon from the very start on the weekend on route to a 66-point win at the MCG.
Patrick Dangerfield looked like his bruising Brownlow best in the midfield whilst Tom Hawkins looked strong up forward with four goals.
New recruit Tyson Stengle looked rejuvenated in the AFL, booting four goals amongst seven scoring shots.
The Cats looked fresh and had a more attacking game style than previous years, which should hold them in good stead for the season.
3. Brisbaneย
The Lions showed great resilience to grind together a tough win over a talented Port Adelaide outfit by 11 points at the Gabba.
The Lions found themselves 25 points down in the third quarter but were able to climb out of the hole on the back of Lachie Neale's midfield brilliance with 31 disposals and Joe Daniher's impact up forward with four goals.
Many have the Lions going all the way this year, and while it wasn't a great performance on the weekend, they found a way to win ugly, and that's what the good teams do.
4. Sydney
It was the game of the round between cross-town rivals Sydney and GWS, and Sydney came out on top by 20 points in an entertaining affair.
Luke Parker starred with five goals whilst Isaac Heeney impressed with three goals of his own and 25 disposals.
The Swans have seamlessly rebuilt before our eyes and should be right near the top in terms of contention this season.
With experience and youth in all parts of the ground, their list is in a great spot and it was a great start to the season.
Another strong test this Friday against Geelong at the SCG.
The Bulldogs lost to the premiers again in Melbourne, and it was in the same fashion as the grand final.
Many would have the Dogs finishing in the top four this year, but they come in at fifth just because they didn't rectify the problems that saw them fade out of the grand final so badly and it led to a similar result.
Failing to put work into Norm Smith medallist Christian Petracca turned into a big mistake as he would've been awarded the Norm Smith if they handed one out last Wednesday.
Their loss came against the best team in the competition, so it's not alarm bells for Dogs supporters, but they get a good chance to bounce back against Carlton in what should be a cracker of a game at Marvel Stadium on Thursday night.
6. Carlton
The Blues announced themselves to the competition on Thursday night with a strong 25-point win against Richmond, the first time overcoming their rivals since 2013.
It was an impressive performance as the Blues were able to come back from 20 points down in the third quarter to dominate the rest of the game to give Michael Voss his first win as coach of the storied club.
Sam Docherty was inspirational with 26 disposals and a memorable goal, whilst Patrick Cripps was back to his brilliant best with three goals and 30 disposals.
The Blues smashed the Tigers out of the middle, and with Sam Walsh set to return to the lineup, the sky is the limit for where this Carlton team can go.
Port put in a gutsy display on Saturday at the Gabba against Brisbane but ultimately were unable to get the job done.
The Power's recent performances at the Gabba were not good and had seen them get smashed, but they were in the box seat to grab a win and failed to do so.
Travis Boak and Dan Houston were standouts for the Power whilst Zak Butters continues to break out into one of the best smalls in the competition.
Port should still be towards the top of the ladder in 2022 and should bounce back strongly against Hawthorn on Saturday night at home.
8. Fremantle
The Dockers had arguably the gutsiest performance of the weekend, putting in a good display against Adelaide at the Adelaide Oval, coming away with a one-point victory in a crazy finish that saw Heath Chapman deny the Crows a score by punching the ball back into play.
Heath Chapman, take a bow ๐
He spoils it on the line to save the game for the Dockers!#AFLCrowsFreo pic.twitter.com/HDpZS4dVhG
— AFL (@AFL) March 20, 2022
Andrew Brayshaw, Caleb Serong, Sam Switkowski and Rory Lobb all stood out for the Dockers, winning the ball out of the midfield and punishing the scoreboard.
With Nat Fyfe, Sean Darcy and Matt Taberner to return in the coming weeks, there is no reason as to why they can't make a run at the finals this year.
They did beat Adelaide however, who are expected to make the bottom four again, but Adelaide have been proven tough to beat at the Adelaide Oval, and the Dockers found a way to grind out a win.
Look for the Dockers to have an impressive display against St Kilda next Sunday night.
9. GWS Giants
The Giants performed strongly against Sydney but were unable to come away with the chocolates.
It was still an impressive performance, highlighted by the dominant display of Tom Green, who had two goals and 31 disposals, whilst defender Phil Davis held Buddy Franklin to just one goal.
The Giants did have some defensive problems, giving up 112 points which cost them in the end.
Leon Cameron's side are still a strong team, and making some adjustments and responding to their loss against the Tigers at the MCG this Sunday would see them bounce back this list.
10. Collingwood
They were one of the surprise packets of the weekend, with Collingwood able to upset the Saints at Marvel Stadium on Friday night by 17 points.
The Pies looked fresh and fast in Craig McRae's new system, with new recruit Patrick Lipinski impressing with 30 disposals and a goal, whilst rookie Nick Daicos lived up to the hype with 27 disposals across half-back.
It was an entertaining brand of footy that the Pies produced on the weekend, and if they can play in a similar fashion throughout the year, then they may upset a few teams in the process.
A perfect opportunity for Craig McRae's men to make it two from two this weekend when they host the Adelaide Crows at the MCG on Saturday afternoon.
11. Richmond
The Tigers were upstaged by the Blues for the first time since 2013, and whilst it's only one round, there were some concerns for Damien Hardwick and his team.
The Tigers were smashed out of the middle, with the Blues midfielders convincingly outplaying the Tigers midfielders.
The hamstring injury to midfielder Dion Prestia doesn't help their cause, but they are a quality outfit and don't be surprised if they bounce back against the Giants at the MCG on Sunday afternoon and remind the competition just how good they can be.
Until that happens, the Tigers sit lower than expected on our Power Rankings.
12. Gold Coast
It was a great night for the Gold Coast Suns, getting a much-needed win to give the team a big boost following lots of off-field talk on the future of their head coach Stuart Dew.
The win relieves the pressure for a bit on Dew, with the Suns having a commanding 27-point win over West Coast in Perth.
The Eagles were depleted with injuries, but it was a really tough win for the Suns, only their second win in Perth in their existence as a club, highlighted by the magnificent and courageous play from Touk Miller and Matt Rowell.
Those two were the standouts, but the Suns had contributions all over the board.
They host the reigning premiers in Melbourne on Saturday night and it will be interesting to see how competitive they are against the benchmark team of the competition.
13. Adelaide
The Crows had a rollercoaster of a game on the weekend, going from getting demolished in the first half to Fremantle, to then kicking seven goals in a row to hit the front, before conceding the final three goals to lose in a nail-biter.
There were some positives to take out of the game with the hard running and ball movement in the third quarter proving to be really exciting for the Crows and the play of draftee Josh Rachele was amazing, with the first gamer booting five goals.
However, sustaining that for only one and a bit quarter won't win many games, and consistency is something that Matthew Nicks will look to drill into his inexperienced side.
The Crows have a chance to bounce back against Collingwood on Saturday, in what is another winnable game for the side.
14. Hawthorn
A solid first win for Sam Mitchell as coach, defeating North Melbourne by 20 points at the MCG on Sunday afternoon.
The play of Mitch Lewis and Jack Gunston up forward was exciting, whilst gun defenders in Changkuoth Jiath and James Sicily were impressive with their skills and drive off half-back.
The win did however come against North Melbourne, which is why the Hawks don't feature higher on this list, as both teams are projected to finish in the bottom four.
Don't count the Hawks out however, they'll look to trouble teams, but they are still very inexperienced and face a tough opponent in Port Adelaide at the Adelaide Oval on Saturday night.
15. West Coast
The Eagles sit this low on the Power Rankings purely based on the health of their list.
Their squad has been smashed with injuries and COVID concerns to key players which led to the side fielding multiple players signed recently through the Supplementary Selection Period.
It was a tough performance as they came close to a win against the Gold Coast, but it is one of the weakest sides the Eagles have fielded in a long time.
Key players in Luke Shuey, Alex Witherden, Tim Kelly and Jack Darlin are all close to a return, and have a good opportunity to bounce back when they face North Melbourne at Marvel Stadium on Sunday afternoon.
16. St Kilda
The Saints were really disappointing on Friday night.
They're expected to be around the finals mark, whilst Collingwood are expected to finish in the bottom four or five sides, and Collingwood thoroughly outplayed St Kilda for majority of the game.
There were too many bystanders on the team and too much inconsistent play that would frustrate not only Brett Ratten but their entire supporter base.
Things don't get easier for the Saints, as they travel to Perth to face Fremantle on Sunday evening.
A nine-day break may be just what they need to bounce back.
17. North Melbourne
The Kangaroos had the perfect opportunity to get their season off to a winning start, but were unable to capitalise.
Playing a Hawks outfit without their skipper in Ben McEvoy and experienced small forward in Luke Bruest, North were competitive but were unable to hit the scoreboard enough to trouble the Hawks.
Both teams are projected to be around the bottom four come season's end, so it was a gettable game, but the decision to play three talls backfired and left the side with a lack of defensive pressure which cost them in the end.
However, they have another opportunity in front of their home crowd at Marvel Stadium on Sunday to get a win when they face the injury-depleted West Coast Eagles, who are as vulnerable as ever.
18. Essendon
The Bombers were the most disappointing team on the weekend to put it simply.
They were dominated from the opening bounce, conceding 47 points in the first quarter and were unable to recover from there.
The Bombers were particularly smashed out of the middle, and it looked like boys playing against men for the most part.
The most concerning aspect was how easily Geelong were able to move the ball up the ground and score. Conceding 138 points was a worry for head coach Ben Rutten, who prides himself and his team on defence.
They'll need to adjust quickly when they host the Brisbane Lions at Marvel Stadium on Saturday afternoon, as it can't get much worse for the Bombers as what was served up last Saturday.
