We've reached the midway point of the 2023 AFL season, which means it's time to dish out awards for the best-performing players to date.
The opening half of the year has offered plenty of thrills and spills, with each club forging an identity as we begin to work through the final stretch of this season's premiership race.
Individuals have stuck their necks out in contention for particular awards, and here we detail who may be leading the honours as we turn to the second half of the season.
Without further ado, we name our Brownlow Medal winner, Rising Star winner, Most Improved Player, Recruit of the Year, Offensive Player of the Year, Defensive Player of the Year, and Coach of the Year from the first half of the 2023 season.
Marcus Bontempelli (Western Bulldogs)
The opening portion of the 2023 season has unsheathed three central candidates to take out our mid-year Brownlow: inspirational Bulldogs skipper Marcus Bontempelli, Magpies father-son prodigy Nick Daicos, and raging Demons midfielder Christian Petracca.
It's difficult to argue anyone other than Bontempelli has been the most purely impactful player in the AFL across most facets this season, so far. The left-footed on-ball beast has continued his individual ascension, helping lift his Bulldogs as they continue to battle for top-eight seeding throughout the second half of their campaign.
Operating within an engine room that also boasts contested-ball merchant Tom Liberatore and running accumulators Bailey Smith and Adam Treloar, ‘Bont' has managed staggering per-game averages of 26.0 disposals, 13.9 contested possessions, 7.7 clearances, 5.2 inside-50s, and 7.7 tackles in 2023 to position himself as the league's best-and-fairest favourite.
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However, despite Bontempelli's prolific and undeniable game influence, it may actually be Daicos who is leading the current count for ‘Chas'. Due to Collingwood's all-conquering team success through the first half of the season, Daicos, also a deserving recipient of the Most Improved Player award even after his head-turning rookie season last year, could find himself a smidgen in front of the Bulldogs' game-changer at the halfway mark.
Then there's Melbourne's Petracca, who is putting together a memorable campaign of his own, leading the AFL in inside 50s (6.9 per game) and score involvements (8.8), ranking second in metres gained (523.8 – trailing only Richmond's Jayden Short), and tacking on a per-game mean of 28.7 disposals.
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Dissimilar to the vast majority of AFL players, Petracca is capable of making virtually every single one of his disposals impactful; whether it's a booming centre clearance resulting in a score involvement, a penetrating inside 50 entry following a blistering exit from stoppage, or simply a team-lifting goal to increase his team's lead. Put simply: he makes good things happen with a tendency unlike just about any other player in the competition – apart from Bontempelli, which is part of the reason ‘Bont' gets the gong here (just).
Harry Sheezel (North Melbourne)
Gold Coast Suns midfielder Bailey Humphrey's unforeseen rise could make this discussion a contentious one come the end of the season, but as it pertains to our mid-season Rising Star recipient, it's near impossible to go past North Melbourne's Harry Sheezel.
The prodigious Roo has played a multitude of positional roles under Alastair Clarkson and Brett Ratten, and he has played each one of them with aplomb. Whether he's been tasked with breaking lines across half-back, snagging sausages up forward, or simply winning clearances at centre bounces, Sheezel has handled each of his rookie outings with a rare aura of class, providing Kangaroos supporters with a glimpse into his fruitful future at Arden Street.
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Meanwhile, Will Ashcroft, who has fit in seamlessly at Brisbane alongside household midfield occupants Lachie Neale, Hugh McCluggage and Josh Dunkley, can consider himself an unlucky runner-up, as he, too, has exceeded first-year expectations by employing his wide array of skills.
Essendon's Nic Martin burst onto the AFL scene at the commencement of last season after he was snapped up by the Bombers as a pre-season supplemental signing, however, the secondary leap he has made in his sophomore season this year has been a sight to behold.
Martin has flourished in Brad Scott's system, adapting with ease to a rewarding wing role in an Essendon side evidently pushing for a 2023 finals berth. Martin's match influence has been extensive enough that Champion Data has taken fond notice, rating the second-year gem as the ninth-best player in the AFL this year based on their unique algorithm, with the company's guru, Daniel Hoyne, recently claiming: “[Martin's] having one of the best seasons we've seen by a wingman for years.”
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While Martin's brilliance has been indubitable, Geelong's Gryan Miers, Port Adelaide's Zak Butters, and Hawthorn's Conor Nash should all at least be included in this conversation as honourable mentions.
Miers has been nothing short of an inside 50 specialist for the Cats in 2023, exploiting his diminutive stature and unorthodox ball drop to fool opposition defenders and find a Geelong forward's chest with most of his kicks.
Butters, meanwhile, has experienced a similar career arc in 2023 to that of teammate Connor Rozee last year, in that the goal-sneak-turned-midfielder has undergone a significant positional change and made the very most of it, morphing into one of Ken Hinkley's most impactful contributors.
At Hawthorn, Irishman Conor Nash has provided a unique element to Sam Mitchell's midfield mix. Nash's fearsome combination of height and size complements the profiles of engine room teammates Jai Newcombe, James Worpel and Cameron Mackenzie, while his tagging capabilities have added to his overall versatility.
Since entering the Kennel at the start of this year, Liam Jones' presence in the Western Bulldogs' backline has been nothing short of a revelation. After spending a stint away from football prior to 2023, the ex-Blue has transformed into Luke Beveridge's most dependable key-defensive option.
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Essendon run-with expert Will Setterfield, Richmond contested-ball machine Tim Taranto, and Brisbane hard nut Josh Dunkley represent a number of the additional upper-echelon recruits deserving to be in the conversation, however, it'd be near impossible to forego Jones as the winner at the halfway point.
As we've come to expect as his career has progressed, Jeremy Cameron has again been utterly dominant this season for the Cats. Astounding averages of 3.2 goals per game and 8.4 score involvements speak for themselves and have kept Geelong's score ticking. As Tom Hawkins' career begins to wind down, a bigger reliance is likely to be placed on ‘Jezza's shoulders, however, judging by what we've seen in 2023, that won't present as much of an obstacle for the left-footed power forward.
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While Cameron has been superb, Carlton's Charlie Curnow is neck-and-neck with the star Cat's 3.2 goals per game average. Curnow has been more than a dependable forward-50 target for the Blues, managing 7.8 score involvements per game and helping offset the sometimes-wayward form of Harry McKay. Curnow has been as consistent in front of goal as Carlton fans could possibly hope for, while his contested marking (2.8 per game, trailing only Charlie Dixon's 2.9) and athleticism continue to be a delight to witness.
Another Cameron, this time Brisbane's Charlie, has also put forth a tremendous half-season of play and is unfortunate to be overlooked for this award. ‘King Charles' has been unequivocally damaging in front of the sticks this season, particularly for a smaller forward. His 2.9 goals per game, an outstanding feat, is only narrowly shy of the aforementioned Jeremy Cameron and Curnow. Cameron's score involvements is an area of improvement (ranking 46th in the AFL), but it's unfair to ask too much of him, as he doesn't possess the same domineering physical presence as that of the key-position giants of the competition.
Darcy Moore, put simply, has been an absolute nightmare for opposing forward lines. Whether it's intercepting forward-50 entries or coordinating his defensive brigade, Moore has performed at a near-perfect level throughout the first half of the season.
Moore boasts a defensive one-on-one loss percentage of just 12.9, a phenomenal feat that ranks behind only Jacob Weitering's 11.4% among key defenders who have played all possible games this season. The Magpies skipper averages 3.8 intercept marks per game, ranking equal-second among key-position backmen behind only Gold Coast's Charlie Ballard (4.5), while his spoils per game (7.8) rate as the fifth-best, with Weitering's 6.3 per game narrowly trailing.
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Carlton's Weitering, meanwhile, has done an admirable job at preserving the Blues' solid defence, however, the ‘team success' factor works against him in this conversation. The same goes for Hawthorn captain James Sicily, whose disposal use is arguably the most revered in the competition among key position players.
While Craig McRae's Collingwood is currently the best side in the competition, it'd be ludicrous to try and ignore Ken Hinkley as the halfway point's Coach of the Year.
After Hinkley's post as Port's coach was described by Power icon Warren Tredrea as “untenable” early in the season because of a less-than-ideal start, the veteran mentor has since directed his disciples to the point where the Power are a genuine top-four candidate and Hinkley is almost a certainty to be offered an extension at Alberton.
Depending on how the Suns fare during the second half of the 2023 season, Stuart Dew could stage a late push for this award by the end of the year.