AFL list analysis: Mick McGuane rates every AFL team’s defence from 1-18

Defence wins premierships. So how good is your club’s back six for 2021? Mick McGuane has rated every backline from 1-18.

Richmond’s premiership defenders Nathan Broad, Liam Baker and David Astbury.

Richmond lost one of its best defenders in the opening minutes of the Grand Final, and it nearly derailed the Tigers’ premiership campaign.

It took almost two quarters, but Damien Hardwick reorganised his line-up and the backline — minus Nick Vlastuin — was again a key to a flag.

Collingwood premiership player and respected analyst Mick McGuane says the Tigers backline just “continually get the job done”, ranking it the best hack half in the competition.

McGuane also states minor premiers Port Adelaide’s defence had “an outstanding year” and Fremantle’s defence under Justin Longmuir was unheralded.

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The two-time Copeland Trophy winner has looked at every club’s defensive mix from the 2020 season ahead of the 2021 campaign.

He looked for a defensive group that could be trusted one-on-one, rating intercept markers and intercept possession-winners, their ability to spoil, willingness to win the ground ball, how they use the footy coming out of the backline and even if defenders can win crucial stoppages as oppositions forwards may look to drag their defender in and among the stoppages.

Do you agree with his rankings? Cast your votes below.

1. Richmond

The top liners: Jayden Short (21 games in 2020, 98 KFC SuperCoach average), Nick Vlastuin (20, 86), Dylan Grimes (20, 69), Liam Baker (20, 76), Noah Balta (17, 67), Bachar Houli (13, 85), David Astbury (9, 70), Nathan Broad (16, 64)

The top-ups: Sydney stack (9, 52), Ryan Garthwaite (0, 0), Ben Miller (0, 0), Bigoa Nyuon (0, 0)

McGuane says: The Tigers continually get it done in big games. Playing a lot of football together creates trust and understanding irrespective of what the opposition throws at them. Their back seven or eight players are aggressive and assertive in everything they do. They force opposition forwards to lead to irrelevant areas and back their judgment and instinct to position themselves where the ball is most likely to land. Two of their best defenders, Dylan Grimes and Nick Vlaustin, are great examples of this and were rightfully chosen in the All-Australian squad. Bachar Houli, Jayden Short and Liam Baker all play with great penetration when they win the ball and set up many attacks for the Tigers. Noah Balta is a superb athlete who will only continue to improve the more footy he plays.

2. Port Adelaide

The top-liners: Tom Jonas (19, 74), Hamish Hartlett (19, 78), Dan Houston (17, 92), Tom Clurey (18, 61), Trent McKenzie (17, 71), Darcy Byrne-Jones (19, 81), Aliir Aliir (14, 60) Ryan Burton (8, 56)

The top-ups: Riley Bonner (9, 59), Sam Mayes (6, 71), Jarrod Lienert (5, 61)

McGuane says: The Power’s defenders had an outstanding year. I’ve always felt that the loudest communication line in AFL needs to be the defenders and then you look at who is the general of that back seven, and in Port Adelaide’s case it’s Tom Jonas. His on-field instruction and organisation of his fellow defenders is first-class. He plays with great clarity and understands when to leave his opponent to help out a vulnerable teammate under a high ball to make a 2 v 1. Their only slight concern as a group is they are undersized to play on some of the big marking forwards in the competition such as Tom Hawkins. But in 2020, Port’s backs were generally very hard to play against and next year they will add ex-Swan Aliir Aliir. They are a trusted group, and defend and support is their mantra. There is no greater example of this than Darcy Byrne-Jones. He is a teammate you would love to play footy with. Ken Hinkley has got his defensive unit playing strong defensively but also in counter attack they play speed and precision that’s difficult to negate.

3. Collingwood

The top-liners: Brayden Maynard (19, 96), Jack Crisp (19, 98), Darcy Moore (18, 78), John Noble (17, 69), Jordan Roughead (17, 75), Isaac Quaynor (11, 72), Jeremy Howe (4, 120)

The top-ups: Jack Madgen (13, 69), Trent Bianco (0,0), Mark Keane (1, 42)

McGuane says: I felt this year the reason why the Magpies qualified for finals was because their back seven generally held firm. It must be also noted this was after losing their most important defender in Jeremy Howe to a season-ending knee injury in Round 4. Having two defenders like Brayden Maynard, who was unlucky not to have made the All-Australian team, and Darcy Moore, who did make the All-Australian team at centre half-back, helped their cause. They both had brilliant seasons. As a defensive unit they were generally hard to score against. Of course, they had that anomaly in their final against Geelong but overall Nathan Buckley would be pleased with his defensive unit but also excited about the development of Isaac Quaynor and John Noble. Collingwood was more than competent at being able to transfer the ball from D50 to their own F50. In fact, they were ranked second behind Port Adelaide in this facet of the game, which will hold them in good stead in 2021.

4. Fremantle

The top liners: Luke Ryan (17, 107), Nathan Wilson (15, 74), Reece Conca (14, 69) Ethan Hughes (17, 71) Taylin Duman (15, 66), Brennan Cox (13, 80), Hayden Young (5, 52), Stephen Hill (12, 63)

The top-ups: Tobe Watson (3, 71), Griffin Logue (5, 70)

McGuane says: The Dockers defenders didn’t get enough recognition this season. They were an unheralded group. Fremantle’s coach Longmuir must be pleased how his backline is developing. The standout feature of the Dockers’ defence is that the opposition really struggle to score when they get the ball inside forward 50. This year they were ranked No. 1 in that area. It says a lot about this group as they want to make life really difficult for any forward line they come up against. This miserly, aggressive attitude is what strong backlines must adopt if they want to be successful. Let’s face it, their primary role is to defend strongly first, which in turn helps the team win the ball back. Luke Ryan had an exceptional year culminating in his All-Australian selection. With the likes of Joel Hamling, Alex Pearce and Griffin Logue set to return in 2021, the future looks bright for the Dockers defence.

5. Geelong

The top liners: Tom Stewart (18, 101), Mark O’Connor (21, 69), Jack Henry (21, 64), Jake Kolodjashnij (17, 60), Jed Bews (20, 61), Lachie Henderson (14, 74), Jordan Clark (3, 51)

The top-ups: Zach Guthrie (3, 42)

McGuane says: The Cats had the luxury of having experienced duo Harry Taylor and Lachie Henderson play as their tall key defenders in 2020, and both played their role well for their team. Chris Scott would be really pleased with the growth and development of Mark O’Connor and Jack Henry. They can play on different types of forwards, which gives the team great flexibility. You can add Tom Stewart to this discussion. Stewart is often the defender who starts Geelong’s controlled kick-mark game out of D50. Good decision makers with good kicking skills are a priority in any defence and Stewart plays this role beautifully for the Cats. The big question for them going forward in 2021 is who replaces Taylor? Does Mark Blicavs play permanently back, where he made his name as opposed to being a relief ruckman. And with Jeremy Cameron coming into this team, what does this mean for Esavu Ratugalea? Does he aim to become the relief ruckman to help out Rhys Stanley? But then the question needs to be asked can Hawkins, Cameron, Ratugalea, Stanley and Blicavs all play in the same team? Interesting times ahead!

6. West Coast

The top liners: Brad Sheppard (18, 90), Tom Barrass (18, 81), Liam Duggan (17, 83), Shannon Hurn (17, 89), Alex Witherden (6, 94), Jeremy McGovern (12, 90), Tom Cole (15, 67), Jackson Nelson (15, 72)

The top-ups: Luke Foley (1, 34), Harry Edwards (1, 14)

McGuane says: At their absolute best, when they are all healthy and playing well together, there is a strong argument that the Eagles defenders could be higher on this list. When playing at their absolute best they have potentially four players pushing for All-Australian selection — Jeremy McGovern is the best intercept marking defender in the competition, I trust Brad Sheppard (he made the All-Australian team in 2020), Shannon Hurn has been so consistent for a long period of time and Tom Barrass, who continues to elevate himself as a key defender. The reason why this group is so good is that they read the cues of the opposition kicker better than most teams. I just love defenders who mark the ball and this is why I rate the West Coast Eagles defence because they have players that back themselves in and go for their marks when others prefer to spoil.

7. Brisbane Lions

The top liners: Harris Andrews (16, 87) Callum Ah Chee (18, 66), Grant Birchall (16, 67), Darcy Gardiner (18, 68), Daniel Rich (15, 92), Ryan Lester (15, 72), Brandon Starcevich (18, 56)

The top-ups: Noah Answerth (9, 57), Jack Payne (5, 61), Marcus Adams (1, 31), Brock Smith (0,0), Jaxon Prior (0,0), James Madden (0,0)

McGuane says: Led by Harris Andrews. He is their glue. He is hard to play against and very difficult to out-mark. A strong aspect of his game is his spoiling. He had 127 spoils this year. They are educated spoils, not haphazard. His spoils are not just hit to the front of the marking contest he is contesting. He spoils aggressively and directs the ball at angles, away from the front and centre area where an opposition player will be running to crumb. As a kid growing up I watched Greg Phillips playing at Collingwood perform similar heroics, yet it hardly got spoken about. It’s a skill in itself and should not be underestimated. For Andrews to go to another level, I’d be urging him to go for more marks. This in turn would increase his volume of possessions. He is a more than competent kick, so I’d have no hesitation with him kickstarting the Lions’ attacking forays out of defence. Brandon Starcevich was a revelation and Ryan Lester was solid. My big concern is their lack of speed with their running backs. Can Grant Birchall and Daniel Rich play high up the ground and defend the speed of Port Adelaide or Richmond’s forwards when they all charge back to goal?

8. Melbourne

The top liners: Steven May (17, 95), Jake Lever (17, 78), Christian Salem (16, 88), James Harmes (13, 64), Adam Tomlinson (13, 61), Trent Rivers (9, 65)

The top-ups: Neville Jetta (6, 35), Joel Smith (7, 39)

McGuane says: After a terribly slow start at his new club Steven May justified his recruitment to the Demons with his performances this year. He was strong and reliable. A strong fitness base does that. Jake Lever has had injury concerns since coming over from Adelaide, but looks to be getting back to somewhere near his best. I’d be urging Melbourne coach Simon Goodwin to bite the bullet and play Tom McDonald in defence in 2021 to compliment May and Lever. May and McDonald as the key defenders and Lever can play the third tall role similar to his Grand Final year with Adelaide. That’s where he made his name being that intercept possession winner and marker. Christian Salem (good ball user) and Michael Hibberd (likes to take the game on) can be complimented by allowing Jayden Hunt to return to defence to increase their speed out of D50.

9. St Kilda

The top liners: Hunter Clark (18, 81), Nick Coffield (18, 79), Jarryn Geary (16, 63), Dougal Howard (19, 69), Ben Paton (19, 61), Callum Wilkie (19, 73), Ben Long (15, 69), Jake Carlisle (13, 71)

The top-ups: Dylan Roberton (1, 25), James Frawley (14, 55)

McGuane says: St Kilda’s defence has so much upside. They have Callum Wilkie who can play on talls and smalls. Dougal Howard, standing at 199cm is going to become a really good defender. He is athletic and thrives playing on the opposition’s best forwards. Also, Hunter Clark (47 games) and Nick Coffield (36 games) are two players that play beyond their years of experience. They give the backline a sense of composure and surety when distributing the ball out of defence. Over summer, Coach Brett Ratten will be working with his defenders on finding better methods to dry up opposition scores once inside F50. They were ranked 14th this year. The Saints are a work in progress, but they have some very talented defenders.

10. Western Bulldogs

The top liners: Caleb Daniel (18, 104), Bailey Williams (18, 85), Alex Keath (18, 60), Jason Johannisen (17, 83), Hayden Crozier (15, 78), Zaine Cordy (14, 56), Easton Wood (13, 55)

The top-ups: Louis Butler (2, 51), Taylor Duryea (3, 85), Ryan Gardner (10, 47)

McGuane says: The Bulldogs defence can be dynamic and great to watch, but also frustrating as they can leak easy goals. Jason Johannisen and Caleb Daniel give the team run and carry and clever ball use when the Dogs win the ball back. Some would say with the personnel they have should be higher ranked. Alex Keath as a lockdown defender, had a great year. Zaine Cordy can play a tall role, Easton Wood is their interceptor and aggressive spoiler. Hayden Crozier plays with great courage and Bailey Williams is continually improving. But my biggest concern is, are they consistently good enough at drying up opposition scoring when the ball is in their D50? Does it mean enough to them? Also, if Caleb Daniel gets “sat on” are they a good enough ball using team to go from coast to coast and score? No doubt Luke Beveridge will be looking for the solutions.

11. GWS Giants

The top liners: Lachie Whitfield (17, 104), Nick Haynes (17, 98), Lachlan Keeffe (13, 70), Lachie Ash (12, 60), Phil Davis (10, 54), Sam Taylor (4, 67)

The top-ups: Isaac Cumming (3, 67), Connor Idun (2,48), Sam Reid (3, 30)

McGuane says: The Giants had a disappointing year. They were poor on a number of fronts. Their “team defence” system failed them, which in turn placed enormous pressure on their backline. To compound this, they had some serious issues when it came to their personnel. Sam Taylor is an integral player to their defence. He played four games this year. Phil Davis only played 10. So with this in mind and considering the inexperience of Lachie Ash (12 games in his first year) the defenders held up reasonably well. With Taylor and Davis out injured this gave an opportunity to Lachie Keefe as a key defender and he was admirable. Nick Haynes is their best defender, who invariably controlled the air by intercepting many opposition attacks. They had to push Lachie Whitfield to half back to give the team some creativity and risk-taking with his aggressive ball use. But the big concern I’ve got for Leon Cameron is if they lose Davis or Keefe or both at the same time due to injury their stocks are limited in terms of tall experienced defenders. Losing Aidan Corr to North Melbourne, Zac Williams to Carlton, and the retirement of Heath Shaw has stretched their depth in 2021.

12. Carlton

The top liners: Jacob Weitering (17, 75), Sam Petreski-Seton (16, 75), Liam Jones (17, 72), Lachie Plowman (16, 66), Sam Docherty (16, 92), Tom Williamson (15, 58), Nic Newman (2, 24), Zac Williams (11, 85), Adam Saad (17, 98)

The top-ups: Liam Stocker (0,0), Caleb Marchbank (0,0)

McGuane says: Jacob Weitering was outstanding this year and there was an argument he could have been an All-Australian. Liam Jones is an aggressive defender who is willing to leave his post to help out a mate. Does he always get that right? No, he doesn’t, but he has the right intent when he does it. Sam Docherty will be better served next year as he needed the run this year. It was important to get his confidence back from the mental and physical scarring due to the two knee reconstructions he’s had to endure. David Teague would be reasonably pleased the way the defenders held up this year. There is a breakdown between ball-use and decision making, so this aspect of their game must improve. It’s impossible to defend D50 turnovers. It will be interesting to see what they do with Sam Petreski-Seaton now that Adam Saad and Zac Williams have both arrived at the club. Saad is a fantastic recruit. He will provide them the energy, bounce, run and risk-taking they were lacking.

13. Sydney

The top-ups: Jake Lloyd (17, 122), Jordan Dawson (16, 85), Dane Rampe (11, 91), Callum Mills (15, 101), Harry Cunningham (17, 75), Tom McCartin (14, 58), Robbie Fox (14, 71)

The top-ups: Kaiden Brand (2, 57), Matthew Ling (3, 19), Colin O’Riordan (8, 50), Lewis Melican (9, 61), Will Gould (0,0)

McGuane says: The Swans have some terrific defensive players. Dane Rampe is a legitimate star. He plays with great courage and reads the play so well. Jake Lloyd has a great balance in his play – he defends strongly when required, but also knows how to win the ball and use it out of defence. He plays the percentages really well. Callum Mills is another one that plays with great courage and has terrific marking skills as a defender. Harry Cunningham can do a lockdown job on one of the opposition high half-forward with a lot of speed. Tom McCartin looked really comfortable when he played as a key back, something John Longmire should persevere with in 2021. He will give them good stability to compliment Rampe and Lloyd. I love the ball use from Jordan Dawson. The Swans did a pretty good job considering who didn’t play in other parts of the ground this year, for example Lance Franklin (0 games) and Isaac Heeney (six). Their defence was often under pressure, but they held up pretty well.

14. Gold Coast

The top liners: Jack Lukosius (17, 80), Sam Collins (17, 78), Jack Bowes (17, 84), Wil Powell (15, 67), Connor Budarick (15, 48), Charlie Ballard 16, 57), Jarrod Harbrow (13, 58) Oleg Markov (6, 66)

The top-ups: Jesse Joyce (1, 64), Caleb Graham 7, 52)

McGuane says: I just love the evolving nature of a lot of their young players. Jack Lukosius is an attacking defender who just wants the ball in his hands. He is generally a good decision-maker who kicks the ball well. Sam Collins gives them that anchor and is super competitive. We witnessed his reaction in the rooms after their loss to Richmond. He takes losing individual match-ups personally as he knows every battle lost impacts on the result. I can’t wait to see the Collins v Tom Lynch match-up next year when the Suns and Tigers play. The development of Conor Budarick as a small defender is a positive. He will only get better the more he plays. Charlie Ballard is a future star. He is another defender who wants to mark the ball as a defender. Another attribute he has is he wants to find front position against his forward. This gives him first look at the footy, which in turn gives him the confidence to go for his marks. The Suns can I’ll afford to lose him. They’ve added Oleg Markov from Richmond, who has great speed but more importantly will bring intellectual property from his time at the Tigers. This group of defenders are moving forward in the right direction at a rapid rate.

15. Essendon

The top liners: Jordan Ridley (17, 102), Michael Hurley (14, 80), Mason Redman (13, 61), Matt Guelfi (11, 60), Brandon Zerk-Thatcher (10. 47), Cale Hooker (8, 68), Aaron Francis (8, 59)

The top-ups: Martin Gleeson (13, 54),

McGuane says: The Bombers defenders played in spits and spurts in 2020. With the personnel they had down there they were disappointing with the one exception being Jordan Ridley. He was included in the All-Australian squad. His great attribute is that he reads the cues of the opposition kicker and gets to where the ball is going to land. He has tremendous upside for the Bombers. He reads the play like Jeremy McGovern and Tom Jonas. Michael Hurley is a very good footballer but he is vulnerable one-on-one so the question for Ben Rutten is what role does he want him to play. Does he want Hurley to be their key lockdown defender or should he be their interceptor? Cale Hooker has been the Bombers’ best option to play on the opposition’s big forwards but more recently he plays forward because of his lack of speed. Aaron Francis has been a bit of a tease, so what is his best position? Is he too undersized to play key position? Brandon Zerk-Thatcher is young but a likely prospect. For Essendon to play finals players like Martin Gleeson, Matt Guelfi and Mason Rodman must take their games to another level. Currently there are more questions than answers regarding the Bombers defenders.

16. Hawthorn

The top liners: James Sicily (11, 103), Ben McEvoy (16, 85), Sam Frost (16, 57), Jack Scrimshaw (13, 75), Blake Hardwick (16, 70), Kyle Hartigan (12, 58), Will Day (11, 72)

The top-ups: Michael Hartley (2, 85), Changkouth Jiath (5, 50), Damon Greaves (3, 91)

McGuane says: The Hawks have identified in the draft they are undersized in defence. They have lost James Frawley but picked up Kyle Hartigan from the Adelaide Crows to play as a key defender close to goal. Alistair Clarkson has been innovative by using Ben McEvoy at centre half-back, but the team needs him playing in the ruck as Jonathon Ceglar is not the answer as their No. 1 ruckman. Clarkson has a decision to make there. They have James Sicily to come back in but his return date next year is questionable and without him they struggled with interception and ball-use. Will Day and Jack Scrimshaw are emerging young players and have terrific upside. Day’s poise and composure allows him to make good decisions and execute well. Sam Frost gives the defence some athleticism but he still makes some costly turnovers that hurt the team. They are an evolving defensive unit. Club legends like Luke Hodge, Brian Lake, Josh Gibson, Grant Birchall and Jordan Lewis are difficult to replace overnight.

17. North Melbourne

The top-liners: Luke McDonald (17, 95), Robbie Tarrant (16, 87) Shaun Atley (17, 75), Josh Walker (17, 61), Ben McKay (11, 63), Aidan Corr (15, 71) Aiden Bonar (6, 45)

The top-ups: Lachie Young (0,0) Kyron Hayden (8, 52), Flynn Perez (3, 45)

McGuane says: For the Kangaroos, this year it was more about what was happening further up the ground, which made it extremely difficult for the defenders. Luke McDonald started the year as a midfield tagger and was doing a wonderful job but was needed to go back into defence to offer up some much-needed leadership and organisation skills. As a collective North’s defenders weren’t competitive and hard enough for long enough in most games this season. Robbie Tarrant has been a lock in defence. Majak Daw was tried a key defender but is no longer on their list. Josh Walker is serviceable. The Kangaroos need some class in their backline, a player that can run and create. The biggest issue with North is they couldn’t score on the back of winning the ball back in their D50. They failed to penetrate opposition defensive structures, something new coach David Noble will be looking to rectify. Another major room for improvement is that they couldn’t stop the opposition from scoring once the ball went inside F50. So is it a lack of talented defenders or do these defenders lack competitiveness? I’ve always felt you don’t have to be experienced or talented to play desperate!

18. Adelaide

The top liners: Luke Brown (17, 67), Brodie Smith (16, 81), Jake Kelly (15, 57), Daniel Talia (14, 66), Fischer McAsey (10, 35), Tom Doedee (9, 87), Andrew McPherson (9, 69), Wayne Milera (2, 78)

The top-ups: Will Hamill (8, 39), Jordon Butts (2, 49), David Mackay (10, 73), Josh Worrell (0,0), Lachlan Gollant (0,0)

McGuane says: The Crows are an interesting case study. They have some experienced defenders and a blend of youth. I’ve admired Daniel Talia from afar, he is just a heart and soul player who is always about the team. At times this year I thought the end of his career was close but with Kyle Hartigan leaving to go to Hawthorn he will be required to play that important key defender role next year. Tom Doedee shows great promise but he only played nine games in 2020 so I would like to see a bit more of him, but he clearly has some upside. Fischer McAsey is a young star. He is a fierce competitor who looks to thrive on the big stage. Is he a forward or a defender? Jake Kelly is a willing competitor who always gives his best. Brodie Smith at his best is an All-Australian and let’s hope he gets back to that form because the Crows need him to play to that level for them to get off the bottom of the ladder. Does Matthew Nicks continue with Rory Laird in the midfield or put him back in defence? As a defender he is a high-possession winner, good ball user, always defends strongly and offers sound leadership back there. It will be interesting to see what the Crows do there. Shoring up their defence is a priority. Is Wayne Milera better behind the ball? I’m not convinced. Will Hamill gives them some bounce and run and shows some promise. Adelaide have the nucleus of getting better quickly but what is crucial for them is what happens further up the ground.

Originally published as AFL list analysis: Mick McGuane rates every AFL team’s defence from 1-18