The 2017 AFL season was the 121st season of the Australian Football League (AFL), the highest level senior men's Australian rules football competition in Australia, which was known as the Victorian Football League until 1989. The season featured eighteen clubs, ran from 23 March until 30 September, and comprised a 22-game home-and-away season followed by a finals series featuring the top eight clubs.
The premiership was won by the Richmond Football Club for the eleventh time, after it defeated by 48 points in the 2017 AFL Grand Final.
Rule changes The following amendments were made to the Laws of the Game for the 2017 season: Rules relating to around-the-ground ruck contests were amended such that only the nominated ruckman for each team is permitted in the contest, eliminating the option for another player to enter the contest and take the tap, otherwise known as the "third man up" strategy. This was done to make ruck contests easier to adjudicate, to reduce the risk of injuries to ruckmen, and to increase the value of the skill of ruckwork. A more stringent interpretation of deliberate rushed behinds was introduced, by allowing the umpire to consider prior opportunity, distance from the goal line and degree of applied pressure when judging whether or not to pay a free kick. Adjustments were made to the interpretation of high tackles, giving the umpire more discretion to call play-on when he deems that the tackled player is responsible for the high contact. This was introduced to discourage the practice of ducking into a tackle, dropping the knees when tackled or trying to shrug off a tackle to earn a free kick. A more stringent interpretation of punches to the body was introduced to the match review panel and tribunal to allow for suspensions to be imposed; and to allow fines to be imposed for low impact jumper punches. The deliberate out of bounds free kick was amended, lowering the threshold for a free kick from 'intentionally' putting the ball out of bounds to 'not demonstrating sufficient intent' to keep the ball in bounds.
Pre-season The pre-season series of matches in 2017 was known as the JLT Community Series; its new sponsor was Jardine Lloyd Thompson (JLT), who replaced National Australia Bank (NAB) after NAB elected to sponsor the inaugural AFL Women's season instead. The series featured 27 practice matches played over 25 days, beginning on 16 February and ending on 12 March. The matches were stand-alone, with no overall winner of the series. Each team played three games, many at suburban or regional venues. All matches were televised live on Fox Footy as well as on the AFL Live app. The nine-point super goal was used in these matches.
Premiership season Notable features of the draw include: The naming rights of York Park were bought by the University of Tasmania from Aurora Energy in the week prior to the full fixture being released, with the venue becoming known as the University of Tasmania Stadium. sold the naming rights for Manuka Oval during the AFL season to the University of New South Wales, and the stadium became known as the UNSW Canberra Oval. and the played in the AFL's first ever Good Friday match, which was played at Etihad Stadium. and competed in the first AFL premiership match outside Australia and New Zealand when they played in round 8 at Jiangwan Stadium in Shanghai, China, with the match televised live on the Seven Network. Both teams had a bye the following round, while the remaining sixteen teams had their byes from rounds 11 to 13. Owing to redevelopment, Simonds Stadium was unavailable until round 9. The Western Bulldogs competed in the first AFL premiership match to be played at Mars Stadium in Ballarat when they faced in round 22. The match was also the first AFL premiership match in a Victorian regional venue (other than Geelong) since a one-off round of promotional matches held in 1952. All starting times are local.
Round 1
Round 2
Round 3
Round 4
Round 5
Round 6
Round 7
Round 8
Round 9
Round 10
Round 11
Round 12
Round 13
Round 14
Round 15
Round 16
Round 17
Round 18
Round 19
Round 20
Round 21
Round 22
Round 23
Season notes recorded the longest unbeaten start to a season in club history, winning its first six games. was the first reigning grand finalist in VFL/AFL history to lose its first six matches of the following season, before becoming the first club to reach the finals after starting the season with zero wins and six losses. became the first team since in 2009 and the first team in the 18-team competition to fail to make the finals after winning the premiership the previous year. became the first team since in 2011 to qualify for the finals after finishing wooden spooners the previous season. reached the finals at the expense of on percentage by 0.48 percentage points, a difference equivalent to only nine on-field points. It is the narrowest margin in VFL/AFL history to decide a finals spot. This was the last season in which games were played at Domain Stadium, with the Western Australian teams playing home games at Perth Stadium from 2018 and onwards. 's record of 15 wins, 1 draw and 6 losses is the least successful of any minor premier since 1997. ' record of 5 wins and 17 losses is the most successful of any wooden spooner since the Lions themselves in 1998. had the highest average home-and-away and home game attendance of any club in 2017, with figures of 46,580 and 55,958, respectively.
Win/loss table Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 F1 F2 F3 GF Ladder XX1 XXXXX18 XXXXX16 XXXXX13 XXXX7 XXXXX14 XX2 XXXXX17 XX4 XXXXX12 XXXXX9 XXXXX15 XXXX5 XX3 XXXXX11 XXX6 XXX8 XXXXX10 Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 F1 F2 F3 GF Ladder
Bold – Home game X – Bye Opponent for round listed above margin
Ladder
Ladder progression Numbers highlighted in green indicates the team finished the round inside the top eight. Numbers highlighted in blue indicates the team finished in first place on the ladder in that round. Numbers highlighted in red indicates the team finished in last place on the ladder in that round. Underlined numbers indicates the team had a bye during that round. Subscript numbers indicate ladder position at rounds end.
Team1234567891011121314151617181920212223 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18
Positions of teams round by round
Finals series
Week one
Week two
Week three
Week four
Attendances
By club + 2017 AFL attendances Club Total Games Avg. per game Home total Home games Home avg. 1,034,578 25 41,240 513,151 11 46,650 481,838 22 21,902 181,007 11 16,455 873,618 22 39,710 421,916 11 38,356 1,003,991 22 45,636 514,963 11 46,815 1,066,080 23 46,351 558,935 11 50,812 690,906 22 31,405 356,122 11 32,375 995,602 25 39,824 386,218 11 35,111 368,482 22 16,749 150,292 11 13,663 593,903 25 23,756 145,152 11 13,196 866,536 22 39,388 365,822 11 33,257 833,190 22 37,872 392,638 11 35,694 554,306 22 25,196 249,460 11 22,678 740,549 23 32,198 419,494 11 38,136 1,314,058 25 52,562 615,542 11 55,958 760,222 22 34,556 344,510 11 31,319 896,761 24 37,365 367,376 11 33,398 769,709 24 30,618 404,258 11 36,751 729,431 22 33,156 346,206 11 31,473
By ground + 2017 ground attendances Ground Total Games Avg. per game Adelaide Oval 1,080,439 25 43,218 Blundstone Arena 32,761 3 10,920 Cazaly's Stadium 9,364 1 9,364 Domain Stadium 760,380 22 34,563 Etihad Stadium 1,513,914 46 32,911 Gabba 181,007 11 16,455 Jiangwan Stadium 10,118 1 10,118 Mars Stadium 10,087 1 10,087 MCG 2,696,189 50 53,924 Metricon Stadium 140,174 10 14,017 SCG 413,699 12 34,475 Simonds Stadium 208,766 7 29,824 Spotless Stadium 122,510 9 13,612 TIO Stadium 12,104 1 12,104 TIO Traeger Park 5,072 1 5,072 University of Tasmania Stadium 52,789 4 13,197 UNSW Canberra Oval 37,507 3 12,502
Awards The Brownlow Medal was awarded to Dustin Martin of , who polled a record 36 votes. The Coleman Medal was awarded to Lance Franklin of , who kicked 69 goals during the home and away season. It was the fourth time Franklin has won the award. Franklin kicked ten goals in the final round to move above Josh Kennedy. The Ron Evans Medal was awarded to Andrew McGrath of , who received 51 votes.
The AFL Goal of the Year was awarded to Daniel Rioli of for his goal against in round 3. The AFL Mark of the Year was awarded to Joe Daniher of for his mark against in round 17. The McClelland Trophy was awarded to for the first time since 2005. The wooden spoon was "awarded" to the for the first time since 1998 after obtaining five wins during the season. The AFL Players Association Awards The Leigh Matthews Trophy was awarded to Dustin Martin of , polling 1,333 votes ahead of Patrick Dangerfield, who polled 776. The Robert Rose Award was awarded to Rory Sloane of . The best captain was awarded to Taylor Walker of for the second year in a row. The best first-year player was awarded to Andrew McGrath of . The 22under22 team captaincy was awarded to Marcus Bontempelli of the for the second year in a row. The AFL Coaches Association Awards The AFL Coaches Association Player of the Year Award was awarded to Dustin Martin of who received 122 votes ahead of Patrick Dangerfield who received 118. The Gary Ayres Award for the best player in the finals series was awarded to Dustin Martin of who polled 25 votes ahead of teammate Trent Cotchin on 15. The Allan Jeans Senior Coach of the Year Award was awarded to coach Damien Hardwick. The Assistant Coach of the Year Award was awarded to assistant Rhyce Shaw.
The Lifetime Achievement Award was awarded to John Dimmer, whose coaching career (spanning 284 games) included two flags apiece with West Australian clubs West Perth and South Fremantle. The Best Young Player Award was awarded to Clayton Oliver of , who received 72 votes. The Media Award was awarded to Gerard Whateley for the fourth consecutive year. The Jim Stynes Community Leadership Award was awarded to Jack Hombsch of .
Milestones
Name Club Milestone RoundRef. Umpire Finals week 1 Finals week 2 Finals week 3
Coleman Medal Numbers highlighted in blue indicates the player led the Coleman Medal at the end of that round. Numbers underlined indicates the player did not play in that round. Player1234567891011121314151617181920212223Total1Lance Franklin44 48 08 210 313 114 822 123 427 532 032 335 136 036 440 343 447 350 151 152 456 359 1069692Josh Kennedy77 411 213 215 116 622 224 327 431 334 034 034 034 034 034 034 337 643 649 554 660 464 165653Ben Brown 22 35 16 410 111 617 219 221 526 127 128 028 129 231 334 438 341 647 451 051 354 256 763634Joe Daniher 33 36 17 29 312 113 316 521 526 329 130 434 034 135 338 341 445 247 653 356 359 160 262625Jack Riewoldt 11 23 14 48 614 216 420 323 225 227 229 029 231 334 135 136 440 242 042 042 143 447 350506Taylor Walker 00 22 46 511 213 518 119 221 324 125 328 331 031 233 134 337 441 142 143 346 248 149 049 49Eddie Betts 44 37 310 616 319 120 323 225 328 331 132 234 034 135 237 239 241 041 041 445 045 247 249498Tom Hawkins 33 47 512 416 218 119 322 426 127 128 230 030 030 131 132 436 036 137 643 346 046 046 248489Robbie Gray 00 66 28 19 514 418 018 220 020 323 124 327 229 534 135 338 240 040 141 142 244 246 14747 10Charlie Dixon2246171821041431721901912042402412512612753213313413523713844244646
Best and fairest Club Award name PlayerRef. Malcolm Blight Medal Merrett–Murray Medal John Nicholls Medal Copeland Trophy W. S. Crichton Medal Doig Medal Carji Greeves Medal Club Champion Kevin Sheedy Medal Peter Crimmins Medal Keith 'Bluey' Truscott Trophy Syd Barker Medal John Cahill Medal Jack Dyer Medal Trevor Barker Award Bob Skilton Medal John Worsfold Medal Charles Sutton Medal
Club leadership