It’s ladder prediction time, as the AFL pre-season ramps up, but every year us so-called experts make the same mistake by playing it safe.
Every year, there are at least two changes to the top eight, and the average is almost three; but the more difficult call is figuring out who’ll crack the top four.
In 2024, it was Geelong returning to the pointy end of the ladder, rising all the way from 12th to a home preliminary final. (Something we floated in this very column last year).
They continued the annual trend – every year since the AFL expanded from 16 clubs, an average of one team has made the leap from non-finalist to top four.
THE LADDER LEAPERS (Bottom 10 the year before to top four)
2024: Geelong (12th the year before to 3rd)
2023: Port Adelaide (11th to 3rd)
2022: Collingwood (17th to 4th)
2021: Melbourne (9th to 1st)
2020: Port Adelaide (10th to 1st)
2019: Brisbane (15th to 2nd)
2018: Collingwood (13th to 3rd) and Hawthorn (12th to 4th)
2017: Richmond (13th to 3rd)
2016: Geelong (10th to 2nd) and GWS (11th to 4th)
2015: West Coast (9th to 2nd)
2014: Nil (Best – North Melbourne 10th to 6th)
2013: Nil (Best – Richmond 12th to 5th)
2012: Adelaide (14th to 2nd)
2011: West Coast (16th to 4th)