If there’s one thing for sure, you can bet this Friday night’s clash between Hawthorn and Sydney will be a highly-contested affair.

Likely a low-scoring war of attrition, the midfield battle will likely be a telling indication of which side will claim the four premiership points.

Such games are tailor-made for a player like Josh Kennedy.

The Swans captain has indisputably been the premier contested ball-winner of the past eight seasons. 

League-wide, the 29-year old ranked third for his contested possession average in 2017, averaging 15.1 per game.

While in the six seasons prior to this, Kennedy did not fall out of the top two in the statistic, with a career-best of 17 contested possessions per game in 2016.

This year Kennedy has “dropped” to the eighth-best contested possession average across the league.

No other player is even nearly comparable to this reign of dominance.      

But Tom Mitchell is an up-and-comer in the realm of the game’s elite hard-ball winners.

Over his six seasons in the AFL, Mitchell has consistently his contested possession averages with his 2018 rate of 17.1 a game a clear career-high. 

The 24-year old honed his craft under the tutelage of the game’s best in Kennedy throughout his four years at Sydney.

In his two years since in the brown and gold, Mitchell has excelled to become the competition’s best disposal winner, averaging 35.8 last year and 36.1 disposals.

This Friday night these two outstanding on-ballers are set to lock horns in a fiery MCG clash.

Whoever can lead his fellow midfield brigade most ably will most likely also walk away with a win for his team.