This list features 10 of the most iconic performances of the year; players shining in the most pressured environments, producing jaw-dropping displays of individual dominance, and team-carrying efforts under severe duress.
A lot goes into judging the top on-field performances in our code, systems and algorithms don't seem to capture the memorability of the moment, the conditions of the arena, the magnitude of the contest or even the match-winning efforts that transpire.
Fantasy points and SuperCoach scores highlight the best accumulative players on any given day, but also don't do justice to what will appear in the history books decades down the line. Bobby Hill's fantasy scores in his Norm Smith Medal performance might not jump off the page, but the emotion and buzz it created as it unfolded will leave it fresher in the memory banks to tell future generations.
Without further ado, number 10 on this list is...
7. Sam Walsh - SF vs Melbourne
Stats: 34 disposals, 2 goals, 8 tackles, 6 marks, 6 inside 50s
This was a midfield masterclass on the biggest of stages.
In front of more than 96,000, Sam Walsh ran himself into the ground with 34 crucial disposals in every spot on the MCG, kicking two lead-changing goals, including the first of the last, to lift Carlton to their greatest win since 1999.
Surrounded by fellow greats Patrick Cripps, Christian Petracca and Clayton Oliver, it was Sam Walsh who rose to the highest peak of any with a best-on-ground performance in one of the greatest semi-finals ever played.
In a game decided by just two points, the Blues needed every single one of Walsh's 34 possessions, eight tackles and whopping 43 pressure acts to earn a shot at a grand final berth, and the performance will go down as the best performance of his Gary Ayres Award-winning finals campaign.
