Throughout the final years of the 1990s,ย AFL clubs across the land looked backward rather than forward, with selectors, historians and superstars converging to name their Teams of the 20th Century.

So, as we near the quarter-time mark of the 21st century, what better time to run the rule on which players are likely to feature when the selectors of tomorrow get together in several decades' time?

While every club has an array of deadset legends that can be called on, we here at Zero Hanger have employed the following rules of selection:

  • Only statistics recorded and achievements accrued since the start of the 2000ย AFLย season will be acknowledged.
  • Any player selected must have played at least 100 senior games for their respective club since the start of the 2000ย AFLย season.

Next up, we're crossing over to Olympic Park to catalogue the cream of Collingwood's crop of champions.

PREVIOUS TOP TENS: CROWS, LIONS, BLUES

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1. Scott Pendlebury (2006-present)

1 x Norm Smith Medal (2010)
5 x best and fairest (2011, 2013, 2014, 2015 and 2016)
6 x All-Australian (2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2019)
2 x premiership player (2010 and 2023)
383 games, 25.8 disposals per game, 221 Brownlow votes, 0.6 votes per game

I mean, really? Who else was it going to be?

A Norm, five Copelands, six blazers and a pair of flags, it was always going to be Pendlebury. The only debate still ragging is whether the Gippsland native is, in fact, the greatest Magpie of all-time, edging the likes of Coventry, Rose and his old teammate and mentor, Nathan Buckley.

MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA - SEPTEMBER 30: Scott Pendlebury of the Magpies celebrates after winning the 2023 AFL Grand Final match between Collingwood Magpies and Brisbane Lions at Melbourne Cricket Ground, on September 30, 2023, in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Daniel Pockett/AFL Photos/via Getty Images)
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