Surf Wiki
Save to docs
sports

From Surf Wiki (app.surf) — the open knowledge base

2008 AFL season

112th season of the Australian Football League (AFL)

112th season of the Australian Football League (AFL)

FieldValue
competitionafl
year2008
imageAFL Logo 2008 Premiership season.jpg
imagesize200px
teams16
premiers
count10
minor premiers
mpcount13
pre-season cup
pscount3
matches185
attendance7082949
highattend100,012 ([Grand Final](2008-afl-grand-final), vs. )
top goal scorerLance Franklin
(102 goals)
brownlow medalAdam Cooney
(24 votes)
prevseason[2007](2007-afl-season)
nextseason[2009](2009-afl-season)

| pre-season cup = (102 goals) (24 votes) The 2008 AFL season was the 112th season of the Australian Football League (AFL), the highest level senior Australian rules football competition in Australia, which was known as the Victorian Football League until 1989. The season featured sixteen clubs, ran from 20 March until 27 September, and comprised a 22-game home-and-away season followed by a finals series featuring the top eight clubs. A significant feature of the season was the celebration of the 150th anniversary since the sport of Australian rules football was first established in 1858.

The premiership was won by the Hawthorn Football Club for the tenth time, after they defeated by 26 points in the 2008 AFL Grand Final.

NAB Cup

Main article: 2008 NAB Cup

Premiership season

Round 1

Round 2

Round 3

Round 4

  • The match between and was originally fixtured to be played at Gold Coast Stadium, however, due to North Melbourne's refusal to relocate north to the Gold Coast, the match was moved to the Melbourne Cricket Ground.

Round 5

Round 6

Round 7

AFL Hall of Fame Tribute Match

Main article: AFL Hall of Fame Tribute Match

Round 8

Round 9

Round 10

Round 11

Round 12

Round 13

Round 14

Round 15

Round 16

|- style="background:#ccf;" |Home team||Home team score||Away team||Away team score||Ground||Crowd||Date||Report |- style="background:#fff;" |||17.12 (114) ||||14.12 (96) ||Telstra Dome||46,610 ||Friday, 18 July||AFL.com.au |- style="background:#fff;" |||19.17 (131) ||||10.10 (70) ||Skilled Stadium||24,801 ||Saturday, 19 July||AFL.com.au |- style="background:#fff;" |||16.12 (108) ||||15.14 (104) ||MCG||56,746 ||Saturday, 19 July||AFL.com.au |- style="background:#fff;" |||17.11 (113) ||||9.13 (67) ||The Gabba||27,784 ||Saturday, 19 July||AFL.com.au |- style="background:#fff;" |||18.11 (119) ||||13.11 (89) ||Telstra Dome||41,886 ||Saturday, 19 July||AFL.com.au |- style="background:#fff;" |||18.11 (119) ||||18.13 (121) ||Telstra Dome||38,401 ||Sunday, 20 July||AFL.com.au |- style="background:#fff;" ||| 13.14 (92) |||| 11.14 (80) ||AAMI Stadium||31,662 ||Sunday, 20 July||AFL.com.au |- style="background:#fff;" ||| 16.18 (114) |||| 10.8 (68) ||Subiaco||31,638 ||Sunday, 20 July||AFL.com.au

Round 17

|- style="background:#ccf;" |Home team||Home team score||Away team||Away team score||Ground||Crowd||Date||Report |- style="background:#fff;" |||11.11 (77) ||||12.16 (88) ||MCG||86,179 ||Friday, 25 July||AFL.com.au |- style="background:#fff;" |||19.14 (128) ||||11.14 (80) ||MCG||64,785||Saturday, 26 July|| AFL.com.au |- style="background:#fff;" |||15.13 (103) ||||12.14 (86) ||Subiaco||34,037||Saturday, 26 July||AFL.com.au |- style="background:#fff;" ||| 18.9 (117) |||| 16.18 (114) ||Telstra Dome||31,275 ||Saturday, 26 July||AFL.com.au |- style="background:#fff;" ||| 6.17 (53)|||| 11.11 (77) ||SCG||26,260 ||Saturday, 26 July||AFL.com.au |- style="background:#fff;" ||| 15.11 (101) || || 20.9 (129) ||AAMI Stadium|| 19,072 ||Sunday, 27 July|| AFL.com.au |- style="background:#fff;" ||| 10.10 (70) |||| 14.14 (98) ||MCG||21,330 ||Sunday, 27 July|| AFL.com.au |- style="background:#fff;" ||| 15.8 (98) |||| 18.18 (126) ||Telstra Dome|| 37,879 ||Sunday, 27 July|| AFL.com.au

Round 18

|- style="background:#ccf;" |Home team||Home team score||Away team||Away team score||Ground||Crowd||Date||Report |- style="background:#fff;" ||| 8.14 (62) |||| 17.14 (116) ||MCG|| 58,307 ||Friday, 1 August||AFL.com.au |- style="background:#fff;" | **** || 19.10 (124) |||| 17.6 (108) ||MCG|| 46,334 ||Saturday, 2 August||AFL.com.au |- style="background:#fff;" | || 13.16 (94) |||| 12.14 (86) ||AAMI Stadium|| 40,730 ||Saturday, 2 August||AFL.com.au |- style="background:#fff;" | **** ||20.14 (134)||||10.11 (71)||Telstra Dome|| 42,238 ||Saturday, 2 August||AFL.com.au |- style="background:#fff;" | **** ||13.14 (92)||||11.18 (84)||Gold Coast Stadium|| 10,037 ||Saturday, 2 August||AFL.com.au |- style="background:#fff;" | **** || 17.11 (113) |||| 14.13 (97) ||Manuka Oval|| 13,550 ||Sunday, 3 August||AFL.com.au |- style="background:#fff;" | **** || 14.17 (101) |||| 14.9 (93) ||Telstra Dome|| 22,878 ||Sunday, 3 August||AFL.com.au |- style="background:#fff;" | **** || 17.14 (116) |||| 12.11 (83) ||Subiaco|| 42,096 ||Sunday, 3 August|| AFL.com.au

Round 19

|- style="background:#ccf;" |Home team||Home team score||Away team||Away team score||Ground||Crowd||Date||Report |- style="background:#fff;" |||5.11 (41) ||||24.13 (157) ||MCG||34,610 ||Friday, 8 August||AFL.com.au |- style="background:#fff;" |||18.24 (132) ||||9.12 (66) ||Telstra Dome||29,696 ||Saturday, 9 August||AFL.com.au |- style="background:#fff;" |||16.14 (110) ||||5.11 (41) ||Aurora Stadium||19,929 ||Saturday, 9 August||AFL.com.au |- style="background:#fff;" |||14.13 (97) ||||12.11 (83) ||MCG||52,135 ||Saturday, 9 August||AFL.com.au |- style="background:#fff;" |||17.10 (112) ||||15.18 (108) ||SCG||20,846 ||Saturday, 9 August||AFL.com.au |- style="background:#fff;" |||21.10 (136) ||||18.8 (116) ||Telstra Dome||31,957 ||Sunday, 10 August||AFL.com.au |- style="background:#fff;" |||16.12 (108)||||6.9 (45) ||AAMI Stadium||37,562 ||Sunday, 10 August||AFL.com.au |- style="background:#fff;" |||17.11 (113) ||||16.7 (103) ||Subiaco||35,288 ||Sunday, 10 August||AFL.com.au

Round 20

|- style="background:#ccf;" |Home team||Home team score||Away team||Away team score||Ground||Crowd||Date||Report |- style="background:#fff;" |||10.15 (75) ||||16.10 (106) ||AAMI Stadium|| 23,694 ||Friday, 15 August||AFL.com.au |- style="background:#fff;" |||10.13 (73) ||||19.15 (129) ||Telstra Dome||32,184 ||Saturday, 16 August||AFL.com.au |- style="background:#fff;" |||11.13 (79) ||||5.15 (45) ||MCG||17,958 ||Saturday, 16 August||AFL.com.au |- style="background:#fff;" |||13.12 (90) ||||10.19 (79) ||The Gabba||27,315 ||Saturday, 16 August||AFL.com.au |- style="background:#fff;" |||14.10 (94) ||||20.13 (133) ||ANZ Stadium||44,955 ||Saturday, 16 August||AFL.com.au |- style="background:#fff;" |||16.9 (105) ||||10.16 (76) ||MCG||44,523 ||Sunday, 17 August||AFL.com.au |- style="background:#fff;" |||14.6 (90) ||||22.9 (141) ||Telstra Dome||43,406 ||Sunday, 17 August||AFL.com.au |- style="background:#fff;" ||| 9.15 (69) ||||17.10 (112) ||Subiaco||34,014 ||Sunday, 17 August||AFL.com.au

Round 21

|- style="background:#ccf;" |Home team||Home team score||Away team||Away team score||Ground||Crowd||Date||Report |- style="background:#fff;" |||23.13 (151) ||||15.15 (105) ||Telstra Dome||37,294 ||Friday, 22 August||AFL.com.au |- style="background:#fff;" |||15.15 (105) ||||15.8 (98)||MCG||24,881 ||Saturday, 23 August||AFL.com.au |- style="background:#fff;" |||18.21 (129) ||||7.9 (51) ||AAMI Stadium||18,875 ||Saturday, 23 August||AFL.com.au |- style="background:#fff;" |||16.13 (109) ||||18.7 (115) ||The Gabba||34,327 ||Saturday, 23 August||AFL.com.au |- style="background:#fff;" |||18.10 (118) ||||10.13 (73) ||Telstra Dome||45,507 ||Saturday, 23 August||AFL.com.au |- style="background:#fff;" |||17.13 (115) ||||13.4 (82) ||Skilled Stadium||24,288||Sunday, 24 August||AFL.com.au |- style="background:#fff;" |||13.17 (95)||||6.11 (47)||Telstra Dome||33,811||Sunday, 24 August||AFL.com.au |- style="background:#fff;" |||9.8 (62) ||||19.19 (133) ||Subiaco||37,040 ||Sunday, 24 August||AFL.com.au

Round 22

|- style="background:#ccf;" |Home team||Home team score||Away team||Away team score||Ground||Crowd||Date||Report |- style="background:#fff;" ||| 12.8 (80) |||| 8.8 (56) ||Subiaco|| 35,106 ||Friday, 29 August|| AFL.com.au |- style="background:#fff;" ||| 10.12 (72) |||| 23.10 (148) ||MCG||22,144 ||Saturday, 30 August|| AFL.com.au |- style="background:#fff;" ||| 24.20 (164) |||| 10.5 (65) ||Skilled Stadium|| 21,752 ||Saturday, 30 August|| AFL.com.au |- style="background:#fff;" ||| 10.16 (76) |||| 9.13 (67) ||AAMI Stadium|| 37,545 ||Saturday, 30 August|| AFL.com.au |- style="background:#fff;" ||| 12.9 (81) |||| 24.15 (159) ||Telstra Dome|| 49,057 ||Saturday, 30 August|| AFL.com.au |- style="background:#fff;" ||| 17.12 (114) |||| 6.17 (53) ||SCG|| 24,076 ||Saturday, 30 August|| AFL.com.au |- style="background:#fff;" |||6.5 (41) ||||18.13 (121) ||MCG||37,046 ||Sunday, 31 August||AFL.com.au |- style="background:#fff;" |||5.9 (39) ||||21.21 (147) ||Telstra Dome||46,161 ||Sunday, 31 August||AFL.com.au

Win/loss table

Team12345678910111213141516171819202122F1F2F3GFLadderTeam12345678910111213141516171819202122F1F2F3GFLadder
WB
−3**WCE**
**+76****PA**
**+6**Haw
−44**Frem**
**+17**Carl
+30**NM**
**+33****Melb**
**+76**WCE
−50**Ess**
**+5**Rich
+50**Haw**
**−4**BL
−13**Geel**
**−68**Coll
−32PA
−12Syd
+24**Carl**
**+8****Rich**
**+63**Ess
+56StK
−48**WB**
**+9****Coll**
**−31**XXX**5**
WCE
−16**Coll**
**+2****Syd**
**−17**PA
+20**Haw**
**−12****Melb**
**+52**Geel
−27Carl
+33**StK**
**+46****NM**
**+31****Frem**
**+22**WB
−63**Adel**
**+13**Melb
−1Ess
−37**WCE**
**+46**Rich
−3NM
−8Haw
−69**WB**
**+11****Carl**
**−6**Syd
−61XXXX10
**Rich**
**−30**StK
−40Ess
−16**Coll**
**+23****Melb**
**+33****Adel**
**−30**WCE
+37**BL**
**−33****Frem**
**+9**Geel
−56PA
+12Coll
+30**Ess**
**−35**Rich
+30**StK**
**−32****Syd**
**−2**WB
+28Adel
−8**PA**
**+66****NM**
**−51**BL
+6**Haw**
**−78**XXXX11
**Frem**
**+26**BL
−2Rich
+44Carl
−23**NM**
**−7****Ess**
**+73**Haw
+65StK
+9**Geel**
**+86****WCE**
**+100**Melb
+21**Carl**
**−30****WB**
**−10**Syd
+29**Adel**
**+32**NM
−18Ess
−48**Haw**
**−54****StK**
**+14**PA
+31**Syd**
**+45**Frem
−24Adel
+31StK
−34XX**8**
NM
+55Geel
−99**Carl**
**+16**WB
−30StK
−36Coll
−73**PA**
**−64**Syd
−91Rich
−38Adel
−5**Haw**
**−51****WCE**
**+22**Carl
+35Frem
+4**BL**
**+37**Rich
−4**Coll**
**+48****Melb**
**+16**WCE
−10**Adel**
**−56**WB
−46**StK**
**−108**XXXX12
Coll
−26**Haw**
**−15**WCE
+14**Rich**
**−64**Adel
−17**Geel**
**−1**Melb
−6**WB**
**−3**Carl
−9**PA**
**−28**BL
−24**NM**
**+53**StK
−8**Ess**
**−4**Geel
−74**Melb**
**+46**PA
+28**WCE**
**+33**Syd
−4**StK**
**−43**Rich
−7**Coll**
**+24**XXXX14
PA
+9**Ess**
**+99****Melb**
**+30**StK
+42**Syd**
**+42**Frem
+1**BL**
**+27**Rich
+30Coll
−86**Carl**
**+56**NM
+13**PA**
**+59**WCE
+135Adel
+68**Frem**
**+74****WB**
**+61**Haw
+11**Rich**
**+63**Melb
+116Syd
+39**NM**
**+33****WCE**
**+99****StK**
**+58**X**WB**
**+29****Haw**
**−26****1**
**Melb**
**+104**Frem
+15NM
+16**Adel**
**+44**BL
+12**Rich**
**+12****Coll**
**+65****PA**
**+15**Melb
+19**WB**
**−32**Ess
+51Adel
+4**NM**
**−27****WCE**
**+57****Syd**
**+31**StK
−30**Geel**
**−11**Coll
+54**BL**
**+69**Rich
−29WCE
+71Carl
+78**WB**
**+51**X**StK**
**+54**Geel
+26**2**
Haw
−104**WB**
**−95**Geel
−30NM
−48**Carl**
**−33**BL
−53**Frem**
**+6**Adel
−76**Haw**
**−19**StK
−79**Coll**
**−21**Rich
−22**Syd**
**−40****BL**
**+1**WB
−31Frem
−46**NM**
**−28**Ess
−16**Geel**
**−116****WCE**
**+34**PA
−78**Rich**
**−80**XXXX16
**Ess**
**−55**Rich
+41**Haw**
**−16****Melb**
**+48**Coll
+7**Syd**
**0**Adel
−33**WCE**
**+6**WB
+3BL
−31**Geel**
**−13**Frem
−53Haw
+27**StK**
**−15**PA
+2**Coll**
**+18**Melb
+28**BL**
**+8****WB**
**+20**Carl
+51Geel
−33**PA**
**−76**Syd
−35XXX**7**
**Geel**
**−9**Syd
−68Adel
−6**BL**
**−20**WCE
+24**StK**
**+21**Ess
+64Haw
−15**Syd**
**−11**Frem
+28**Carl**
**−12**Geel
−59**Rich**
**−4**WB
−54**NM**
**−2****Adel**
**+12****Frem**
**−28**StK
−8Carl
−66**Coll**
**−31****Melb**
**+78**NM
+76XXXX13
Carl
+30**NM**
**−41****Coll**
**−44**Frem
+64WB
0Haw
−12**StK**
**−3****Geel**
**−30**Ess
+38Syd
−82**Adel**
**−50****Melb**
**+22**PA
+4**Carl**
**−30**WCE
+77**Ess**
**+4****BL**
**+3**Geel
−63Adel
−63**Haw**
**+29****Frem**
**+7**Melb
+80XXXX9
**Syd**
**+2****Carl**
**+40**WB
−38**Geel**
**−42****Ess**
**+36**PA
−21Rich
+3**Coll**
**−9**BL
−46**Melb**
**+79****WB**
**−27**Syd
−35**Frem**
**+8**NM
+15Carl
+32**Haw**
**+30**WCE
−17**PA**
**+8**Coll
−14Frem
+43**Adel**
**+48**Ess
+108Geel
−58**Coll**
**+34**Haw
−54X**4**
StK
−2**PA**
**+68**BL
+17**WCE**
**+62**Geel
−42NM
0**WB**
**−18****Ess**
**+91**PA
+11**Rich**
**+82**WCE
+5**StK**
**+35**Melb
+40**Coll**
**−29**Haw
−31Carl
+2**Adel**
**−24**WB
−16**Frem**
**+4****Geel**
**−39**Coll
−45**BL**
**+61****NM**
**+35**WB
−37XX**6**
**BL**
**+16**Adel
−76**Frem**
**−14**Syd
−62**PA**
**−24**WB
−60**Carl**
**−37**NM
−6**Adel**
**+50**Coll
−100**Syd**
**−5**Ess
−22**Geel**
**−135**Haw
−57**Rich**
**−77**BL
−46**StK**
**+17**Frem
−33**Ess**
**+10**Melb
−34**Haw**
**−71**Geel
−99XXXX15
**Adel**
**+3**Melb
+95**StK**
**+38**Ess
+30**Rich**
**0****WCE**
**+60**Syd
+18Frem
+3**NM**
**−3**Haw
+32StK
+27**BL**
**+63**Coll
+10**PA**
**+54****Melb**
**+31**Geel
−61**Carl**
**−28****Syd
+16**NM
−20BL
−11**Ess**
**+46**Adel
−9Haw
−51**Syd**
**+37**Geel
−29X**3**

Bold – Home game

Ladder

Ladder progression

Finals series

Main article: 2008 AFL finals series

|team-width=150 |RD1-text1=Sep 7, MCG |RD1-team1=**** |RD1-score1=17.17 (119) |RD1-team2= |RD1-score2=8.13 (61) |RD1-text2=Sep 6, AAMI Stadium |RD1-team3= |RD1-score3=14.10 (94) |RD1-team4=**** |RD1-score4=19.11 (125) |RD1-text4=Sep 5, MCG |RD1-team7=**** |RD1-score7=18.19 (127) |RD1-team8= |RD1-score8=11.10 (76) |RD1-text3=Sep 6, ANZ Stadium |RD1-team5=**** |RD1-score5=17.8 (110) |RD1-team6= |RD1-score6=11.9 (75) |RD2-text1=Sep 13, MCG |RD2-team1=**** |RD2-score1=17.4 (106) |RD2-team2= |RD2-score2=9.18 (72) |RD2-text2=Sep 12, MCG |RD2-team3=**** |RD2-score3=16.10 (106) |RD2-team4= |RD2-score4=9.15 (69) |RD3-text1=Sep 19, MCG |RD3-team1=**** |RD3-score1=12.11 (83) |RD3-team2= |RD3-score2=7.12 (54) |RD3-text2=Sep 20, MCG |RD3-team3=**** |RD3-score3=18.10 (118) |RD3-team4= |RD3-score4=9.10 (64) |RD4-text1=Sep 27, MCG |RD4-team1= |RD4-score1=11.23 (89) |RD4-team2=**** |RD4-score2= 18.7 (115)

Week one

Week two

Week three

Week four

Main article: 2008 AFL Grand Final

Statistics

Leading goalkickers

:*updated after ** grand final ** * The Coleman Medal was awarded to Lance Franklin for kicking the most goals at the end of the home and away season.

PlayerClubGamesGoalsBest PerformanceSeasonFinalsTotalGoalsOpponent(s)Round(s)
**1**Lance Franklin2510211**113**911
**2**Brendan Fevola2299–**99**8,3, 11
**3**Daniel Bradshaw2075–**75**75
**4**Jarryd Roughead24669**75**6,7, 14
**5**Jonathan Brown2170–**70**6, ,8, 9, 10
**6**Matthew Pavlich1967–**67**812
**7**Nick Riewoldt24569**65**616
**8**Matthew Lloyd2162–**62**818
**9**Stephen Milne24546**60**7,7, 22
**10**Daniel Motlop2157–**57**77

Disposals

RankPlayerTeamTotal
1Joel Corey730
2Jimmy Bartel702
3Sam Mitchell667
4Daniel Cross663
5Adam Cooney637
6Matthew Boyd629
7Kane Cornes613
8Joel Selwood607
9Gary Ablett, Jr.606
10Dane Swan590

Kicks

RankPlayerTeamTotal
1Leigh Montagna388
2Jimmy Bartel382
3Dane Swan368
4Sam Fisher359
5Lindsay Gilbee352
6Brent Harvey339
7Joel Corey339
7Brendon Goddard337
9Nick Dal Santo336
10Marc Murphy335

Handballs

RankPlayerTeamTotal
1Daniel Cross422
2Joel Corey391
3Sam Mitchell354
4Kane Cornes345
5Adam Cooney326
6Joel Selwood324
7Lenny Hayes322
8Jimmy Bartel320
9Shane Tuck318
10Gary Ablett, Jr.318

Marks

RankPlayerTeamTotal
1Nick Riewoldt240
2Samuel Fisher228
3Matthew Richardson220
4Robert Murphy204
5Cameron Mooney201
6Brendon Goddard182
7Paul Medhurst179
8Brian Lake175
9Brad Johnson172
10Clinton Young172

Tackles

RankPlayerTeamTotal
1Brett Kirk151
2Lenny Hayes144
3Jude Bolton143
4Joel Corey138
5Domenic Cassisi133
6Jimmy Bartel124
7Daniel Cross117
8Martin Mattner126
9James Kelly112
10Daniel Harris109

Hitouts

RankPlayerTeamTotal
1Aaron Sandilands646
2Dean Cox571
3Darren Jolly543
4Mark Blake525
5Jamie Charman434
6Steven King408
7Dean Brogan397
8David Hille364
9Troy Simmonds359
10Robert Campbell358

Awards

  • The 2008 Brownlow Medal for the AFL's fairest and best player was awarded to Adam Cooney, of the , who polled 24 votes.
  • The Leigh Matthews Trophy as the AFL's most valuable player was awarded to Gary Ablett, Jr., of .
  • The Coleman Medal was awarded to Lance Franklin of , who kicked 102 goals during the home and away season.
  • The Norm Smith Medal as the player adjudged best afield in the AFL Grand Final was awarded to Luke Hodge, of Hawthorn.
  • The McClelland Trophy was awarded to **** for holding top position on the ladder after 22 rounds.
  • The Wooden Spoon was obtained by **** who finished the season in last place on the ladder after 22 rounds.
  • Chris Judd from was named the captain of the 2008 All-Australian Team, with seven Geelong players named and nine players made their All-Australian debuts.
  • The AFL Mark of the Year and Alex Jesaulenko Medal was awarded to Matthew Lloyd of for a spectacular high mark against in round 19.
  • The AFL Goal of the Year and Phil Manassa Medal was awarded to Leon Davis of for his chase, tackle and goal against in round 22.
  • The AFL Army Award was awarded to Brett Deledio for the footballer who displays the most courageous and/or team related act of the season, for running with the flight of the ball to attempt a mark in the final minutes of 's round 7 loss to .

Coleman Medal

  • Numbers highlighted in blue indicates the player led the count in that round.
Player12345678910111213141516171819202122Total
1Lance Franklin6456816635911543486344
2Brendan Fevola2287714513287435654627
3Daniel Bradshaw33557611660--444352262
4Jonathan Brown621402-666332553351340
5Matthew Pavlich1353055441385615-413--
6Jarryd Roughead3441156314332633241025
7Matthew Lloyd604-035141224142483341
8Daniel Motlop2220437225136014221-53
9Nick Riewoldt2223331-11213136532534
10Stephen Milne142220722311-451212327

Rising Star Nominees

Main article: 2008 AFL Rising Star

The AFL Rising Star award for 2008 was awarded to Rhys Palmer from .

Club Best and Fairests

ClubAward nameurl=http://www.realfooty.com.au/news/news/best-and-fairest-results/2008/10/04/1223013861357.htmltitle=Club best and fairest resultsdate=5 October 2008publisher=Realfootyaccess-date=5 October 2008archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20081005035601/http://www.realfooty.com.au/news/news/best-and-fairest-results/2008/10/04/1223013861357.htmlarchive-date= 5 October 2008url-status=live}}
Malcolm Blight MedalNathan Bock
Merrett–Murray MedalJonathan Brown
John Nicholls MedalChris Judd
Copeland TrophyDane Swan
Crichton MedalDavid Hille
Doig Medalurl=http://news.realfooty.com.au/sport/pavlich-named-dockers-best-20081005-4u0q.htmltitle=Pavlich named Dockers' bestlast=AAPdate=5 October 2008publisher=Realfootyaccess-date=5 October 2008archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20081006172412/http://news.realfooty.com.au/sport/pavlich-named-dockers-best-20081005-4u0q.htmlarchive-date= 6 October 2008url-status=live}}
Carji Greeves MedalJoel Corey
Peter Crimmins Medalurl=http://www.realfooty.com.au/news/news/franklin-is-top-hawk-in-year-of-personal-and-team-accolades/2008/10/04/1223013861336.htmltitle=Franklin is top Hawk in year of personal and team accoladeslast=Arupfirst=Thomasdate=5 October 2008publisher=Realfootyaccess-date=5 October 2008archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20081007062557/http://www.realfooty.com.au/news/news/franklin-is-top-hawk-in-year-of-personal-and-team-accolades/2008/10/04/1223013861336.htmlarchive-date= 7 October 2008url-status=live}}
Keith 'Bluey' Truscott MedalCameron Bruce
Syd Barker MedalBrent Harvey
John Cahill MedalKane Cornes
Jack Dyer MedalBrett Deledio
Trevor Barker AwardSam Fisher{{cite newsurl=http://news.realfooty.com.au/sport/fisher-voted-best-saint-20081004-4tzt.html
Bob Skilton MedalJarrad McVeigh
Club Champion AwardDean Cox
Charles Sutton MedalDaniel Cross

Notable events

  • This was the first season in which Carlton and Richmond faced off in what is now the traditional first clash of the season.

  • This was the first season since 1998 in which NMFC competed as "North Melbourne" instead of "Kangaroos", following the end of their decade-long experiment with home-away-from-home venues in Sydney, Canberra and the Gold Coast.

  • The came back from a 37-point deficit against at quarter time to win the game by 38 points, a 75-point turnaround, in round 3.

  • The produced its biggest ever comeback in round 4 against when they were down by 47 points late in the third quarter to win by 20 points, a 67-point turnaround.

  • forward Barry Hall was suspended for seven weeks, then the equal-longest suspension handed out since the tribunal was reconfigured to a points-based system in 2005, for striking defender Brent Staker with a clean punch to the head. Later in the season, 's Dean Solomon beat that record, being suspended for eight weeks after hitting 's Cameron Ling in the cheekbone with an elbow.

  • won its first game for the season in round 7 against by six points, after recovering from a 50-point half-time deficit, the second-largest half-time deficit ever overcome in VFL/AFL history. This was the second in a VFL/AFL-record string of five consecutive games which Fremantle lost after holding a three-quarter time lead.

  • suffered its worst ever loss at Subiaco Oval, and worst loss anywhere since 1989, in round 13, losing to by 135 points.

  • In round 13, Dustin Fletcher (in his 288th game) and his father, Ken (264 games), claimed the record of most VFL/AFL games played by a father-son combination (552 games).

  • In round 16, Richmond player Joel Bowden deliberately conceded two behinds directly from the kick-in, to waste time while protecting his team's four-point lead over Essendon. This was a major motivation for the introduction of a rule from 2009 that allows the umpire to give award free kick for a deliberate rushed behind.

  • With its final-round victory, matched 's 2000 record of 21 wins in a home-and-away season. Ironically, also set the record for the highest average losing margin in a VFL/AFL season, with its only loss coming by 86 points against .

  • In the round 22 match between and , Hawthorn forward Lance Franklin became the first player since Tony Lockett in 1998 to kick 100 goals in the home-and-away Season. Franklin became the 28th player in VFL/AFL history to reach this milestone, and the first indigenous player to do so.

  • In the same game, Brendan Fevola scored seven second-half goals to fall one goal short of the same milestone, becoming the first person in VFL/AFL history to finish on 99 goals for a season.

  • The final game of the home and away season saw the 8th-placed requiring a win of 90+ points over to claim 4th place going into the finals. recorded a then-record winning margin over Essendon of 108 points which saw the Saints replace in 4th place for the finals series.

  • On Monday 1 September, Leigh Matthews announced his resignation from his senior coaching position at the . Michael Voss took up this position despite committing to for 2009.

  • The second elimination final between and was, at the time, the lowest crowd number for a final outside Victoria with only 19,127 despite being at ANZ Stadium where Sydney had averaged 50,000 for finals.

  • The Grand Final between and drew a crowd of 100,012, the first crowd over 100,000 people since the 1986 Grand Final.

  • By losing the Grand Final after finishing with a home-and-away record of 21–1, broke the record set in 1935 and 1936 by (16–2) for best record by a non-premier, and the record for most wins by a non-premier held jointly by (1973) and (1991) (both 19 wins).

  • played in a controversial draw against at Telstra Dome in round 6; it was later revealed that Sydney had nineteen men on the field for a brief period of play before, during and after the behind that tied the scores was scored. As a direct consequence of this, the league amended the interchange laws in round 9, appointing interchange stewards to police the players and to signal to the field umpires if an infringement has occurred. Any infringement now results in a free kick being awarded.

Club leadership

ClubCoachCaptain(s)Vice Captain(s)/Leadership Group
Neil CraigSimon GoodwinNathan Bassett, Brett Burton, Tyson Edwards, Ben Rutten and Nathan van Berlo
Leigh MatthewsSimon Black, Jonathan Brown, Nigel Lappin and Luke PowerN/A
Brett Rattenurl=http://www.afl.com.au/tabid/208/Default.aspx?newsid=55401publisher=AFL.com.autitle=Judd will skipper Blues, Stevens to deputydate=19 February 2008access-date=19 February 2008archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20080330003121/http://www.afl.com.au/tabid/208/Default.aspx?newsid=55401archive-date= 30 March 2008url-status=dead}}Nick Stevens (vc), Andrew Carrazzo, Heath Scotland and Kade Simpson
Mick MalthouseScott BurnsJosh Fraser (vc), Tarkyn Lockyer, Nick Maxwell and Scott Pendlebury
Matthew KnightsMatthew LloydMark McVeigh and David Hille (vc)
Mark HarveyMatthew PavlichJosh Carr (vc)
Mark ThompsonTom HarleyCameron Ling (vc), Cameron Mooney (vc), Joel Corey, Paul Chapman and Max Rooke
Alastair ClarksonSam MitchellLuke Hodge (vc), Shane Crawford, Chance Bateman and Brad Sewell
Dean BaileyCameron Bruce and James McDonaldBrock McLean and Brad Miller
Dean LaidleyAdam SimpsonBrady Rawlings, Daniel Harris, Michael Firrito, Nathan Thompson, Drew Petrie, Corey Jones, Daniel Pratt and Brent Harvey
Mark WilliamsWarren TredreaBrendon Lade (vc), Chad Cornes (vc), Shaun Burgoyne (vc), Michael Wilson, Kane Cornes and Dom Cassisi
Terry WallaceKane JohnsonChris Newman (vc), Nathan Foley (vc), Nathan Brown, Troy Simmonds, Joel Bowden and Kayne Pettifer
Ross LyonNick RiewoldtLenny Hayes
Paul RoosLeo Barry, Craig Bolton and Brett KirkN/A
John WorsfoldDarren GlassDean Cox (vc), Tyson Stenglein (vc), Matt Priddis, Ashley Hansen and Adam Selwood
Rodney EadeBrad JohnsonScott West, Robert Murphy, Daniel Cross, Daniel Giansiracusa, Matthew Boyd and Dale Morris

Umpires

The AFL introduced an additional two boundary umpires in round 21 in order to reduce the error rate and enable the umpires to keep up with the play.

Brett Rosebury was appointed the 2008 All-Australian umpire, the first West Australian umpire to receive that honour. Controversially, however, he was not appointed to umpire the AFL Grand Final, with Scott McLaren, Michael Vozzo and Shaun Ryan selected ahead of Rosebury.

Scott McLaren umpired his 300th game, and Shane McInerney umpired his 250-game, in round 4. Experienced field umpires Martin Ellis and Matthew Head both announced their retirements during the year.

Coach changes

  • Surprising some, Leigh Matthews announced his retirement as coach of the two days after their final game of the season in what was replaced as a move to make way for potential coaching candidate, Michael Voss.Lutton, Phil; Matthews walks away from Lions; Realfooty; 1 September 2008

  • Despite being newly signed for two years as assistant coach of , as expected, former Brisbane Lions captain Michael Voss was appointed as coach of the Brisbane Lions, one day after Leigh Matthews resigned.

Footnotes

References

References

  1. (20 December 2007). "Carrara game moved". Perth Now.
  2. link. (15 September 2008)
  3. link. (24 May 2011)
  4. "Looyd, Davis make their mark".
  5. link. (9 June 2012)
  6. (2 September 2008). "Docker Rhys Palmer wins 2008 Rising Star award". [[PerthNow]].
  7. (5 October 2008). "Club best and fairest results". Realfooty.
  8. AAP. (5 October 2008). "Brown top Lion". Realfooty.
  9. AAP. (5 October 2008). "Pavlich named Dockers' best". Realfooty.
  10. Arup, Thomas. (5 October 2008). "Franklin is top Hawk in year of personal and team accolades". Realfooty.
  11. [http://afltables.com/afl/teams/allteams/gamer.html#16 AFL Tables – Game Records]
  12. (September 2021)
  13. [http://news.smh.com.au/sport/afl-interchange-rules-overhauled-20080513-2drc.html AFL interchange rules overhauled] {{webarchive. link. (9 May 2012)
  14. (12 December 2007). "Goodwin to captain the Crows". AdelaideNow.
  15. (12 February 2008). "Four co-captains may be enough for Lions". The Sydney Morning Herald.
  16. (19 February 2008). "Judd will skipper Blues, Stevens to deputy". AFL.com.au.
  17. (23 January 2008). "Each man will get his chance: Ratten". Ben Broad.
  18. (6 March 2008). "Burns to captain Pies". Sebastian Hassett.
  19. (7 October 2007). "Mitchell to captain Hawks".
  20. (17 January 2008). "Neitz decides to stay as Demon's skipper". The Sydney Morning Herald.
  21. (30 January 2008). "North leadership group adds two true Roos". Michael Tormey.
  22. (12 March 2008). "Tredrea to lead Power again". AFL.
  23. (2 November 2008). "Newman ready for the challenge". AFL.
  24. (12 March 2008). "Saints appoint Riewoldt sole skipper". AFL.
  25. (13 February 2008). "Bolton steps up". Herald Sun.
  26. Mic Cullen. (9 November 2007). "Glass to captain West Coast".
  27. (4 December 2007). "Embley loses leadership role at Eagles". The Age.
  28. (22 January 2008). "Boyd and Morris take the lead at Bulldogs". Jennifer Witham.
  29. Matthews, Bruce. (15 September 2008). "More umpires mean fewer mistakes". Herald Sun.
  30. (23 September 2008). "All-Australian umpire axed for decider". AAP.
  31. (9 April 2008). "AFL umpire to officiate in 300th match". AAP.
  32. (20 September 2008). "Milestones 2008". AFLUA.
  33. Morrison, Joel. (2 September 2008). "Ellis calls it a day". AFL.com.au.
  34. Morrison, Joel. (2 September 2008). "Head looks to the future". AFL.com.au.
  35. AAP; [https://www.foxsports.com.au/story/0,8659,24278926-23211,00.html Lions hand reins to Voss]; Foxsports; 2 September 2008
Info: Wikipedia Source

This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page.

2008-afl-season australian-football-league-seasons 2008-in-australian-men's-sport 2008-in-australian-rules-football
Want to explore this topic further?

Ask Mako anything about 2008 AFL season — get instant answers, deeper analysis, and related topics.

Research with Mako

Free with your Surf account

Content sourced from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

This content may have been generated or modified by AI. CloudSurf Software LLC is not responsible for the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of AI-generated content. Always verify important information from primary sources.

Report