The midfield is the engine room of a football club, where star players will their team to victory and where most accolades are won.
Midfielders Nick Daicos, Patrick Cripps, Marcus Bontempelli, and Lachie Neale are the poster men for the competition, with their video game stats each week taking the AFL world by storm.
Ordering each club 18-1 is a difficult task given each club's midfield is littered with talent, with numerous players vying for an All-Australian selection each year despite only three traditional midfield spots up for grabs for the entire competition.
Yet, here at Zero Hanger, we've attempted the challenge of ranking the best midfields in the league, with this first instalment revealing the bottom six clubs, 18th through 13th.
1. (18th) Richmond
While Richmond was starkly the poorest team in the midfield last season, an influx of high-end talent through the draft coupled with returning injured players has the Tigers poised to be somewhat competitive in the midfield in 2025.
They may only improve slightly, but the youthful energy of Sam Lalor and Josh Smillie should only compel the older midfielders to dig in during crunch time.
Toby Nankervis will be a key leadership figure in the middle, while Samson Ryan could also make his case for a backup ruckman.
Tim Taranto and Dion Prestia were still impactful as the club's leading clearance getters in 2024, while Jacob Hopper rivalled Taranto for disposals per game.
However, Richmond's inaccurate kicking efficiency and poor inside 50 entries cost the side any fluent attack.
If the Tigers are to compete for a couple of wins in 2025, an improved midfield may be the key to securing four premiership points.
