Two contenders have re-emerged in this week's Rookie Rankings as the race for the top spot heats up.
A young Docker has held his spot for another week, while a Lions midfielder has eclipsed his Bulldogs draft class counterpart to knock on the door of the top position.
Port Adelaide's Christian Moraes and Melbourne's Xavier Lindsay have both exited the top five standings after outstanding performances from two rookies see them rise back into contention.
Richmond's Luke Trainor and Harry Armstrong are honourable mentions this week, as are West Coast's Tom Gross and Archer Reid.
Selection Criteria: Zero Hanger's Rookie Rankings ONLY consider players who have made their debut this season. Other players who may still be eligible for a Rising Star nomination but have already made their debut before the 2025 season will not be considered. I.e. Rising Star eligible players such as Nate Caddy, Dan Curtin and Connor O'Sullivan are ineligible, having already played an AFL match before Opening Round, 2025. Suspension does not make a player ineligible for our Rookie Rankings.
Round 4 Honourable Mentions:
Luke Trainor: 19 disposals, four marks, four intercept possessions
Harry Armstrong: Two goals, 11 disposals, seven score involvements
Tom Gross: One goal, 17 disposals, seven score involvements
Archer Reid: One goal, 10 disposals, six contested possessions
Mature-aged Swan makes his second appearance inside the top five this season after falling from his Round 2 position in fifth after Round 3.
However, Bice's arguably best-on-ground display against North Melbourne has seen him catapult back inside the top five of our Rookie Rankings.
Recording 26 disposals, 15 marks, and seven score involvements, the 24-year-old was as influential as it gets in Sydney's 65-point drubbing of North Melbourne.
The Werribee product's license to make attacking plays through chiselling inboard kicks and run and carry was evident, recording a disposal efficiency of 84.6% and four rebound 50s.
After a strong display against the reigning premier, we welcome back the number one draft pick into our top five.
Lalor was prolific again at the MCG, recording 24 disposals and snagging two goals in a competitive effort from the Tigers.
It seemed every time Lalor had possession close to Richmond's forward arc that a scoring opportunity would present itself, as the young star tallied a game-high 10 score involvements and three inside 50s.
Another similar performance in Round 5 could see Lalor bolt back up to a higher position in the rankings as Richmond take on Fremantle in Gather Round this weekend.
While it wasn't a poor performance by any means, a slightly less impactful performance in Round 4 has seen Davidson fall one place in our Rookie Rankings.
Davidson had just 18 disposals but still managed to be involved in seven scoring chains, the second-most on the Bulldogs behind Sam Darcy.
In a critical game against Brisbane next week, Davidson's performance against the reigning premier could see his side pull off an upset, and influence a rise back up into the top two of our Rookie Rankings.
Mr. Consistent in our Rookie Rankings, the youngest Ashcroft continues to deliver good performances every week.
Yet to fall outside the top five, Ashcroft has battled his way back into second after the win against Richmond.
Ashcroft recorded 22 disposals and kicked 1.2 in the Lions' win, as well as six score involvements.
It was Ashcroft's best display since Round 1 after recording just 17 and 12 disposals in Rounds 2 and 3.
With another performance matching this output, Ashcroft could be pushing for the number one seed this tine next week.
Reid remains at the top of the mountain after another influential display in just his fourth game.
Reid has 16 disposals and 10 contested possessions, but his best moment was not one with the ball.
With the Bulldogs surging late, and the Dockers holding a slim 10-point lead, Reid's corralling pressure forced an error from Harvey Gallagher in a two-on-one chase for a loose ball inside the Dockers' forward 50. The forced stoppage prevented a Dogs rebound counterattack, and after shifty roving from Patrick Voss, Reid wound up on the end of the throw-in play to dribble home the sealing goal.
Coming up against the young Tigers in Gather Round, next week could be Reid's opportunity to have a breakout display and reaffirm his status on top of our leaderboard.
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