AFL Backline Coach Kade Simpson has assessed each player's 2026 season. 

See the full video below: 

JARMAN IMPEY 

"Jars had an amazing year, which was obviously capped off with his first All-Australian blazer. It was awesome for him to achieve, very much deserved. Jars was awesome, one in terms of what he does with the ball, I think everyone sees the flashy stuff and the run and carry and the amazing goals that he kicks on the run. But he pairs that really well with a defensive attitude and an ability to read the ball and impact with intercept marks and possessions. So we rated really highly in both of those areas. But yeah, so important to the way we move the ball and the energy he provides in offence, but he pairs that really well with a desire to defend his man and help his teammates."

JAMES SICILY 

"I thought Sis was probably a little bit underrated externally. He was top three in the comp for intercept possessions and top 10 for intercept marks as well. So he had an amazing year, and especially with the opposition putting in so much time into him to try and quell his influence. So, most weeks he would have had a defensive forward on him, but I thought he handled that really well. When he's up and about, he really adds a different dimension to the group. One, because he can take out an opposition key forward, but he also starts a lot of our offence through his intercepting. So, another great year for Sis, probably underrated externally, but I thought he was really good."

KARL AMON 

"Karl, I think it was probably frustrating for him. He sort of battled a bit of a knee issue for the majority of the year. I thought he did really well to play the number of games he did under quite a bit of duress. So, it probably took away a little bit of his strengths in his run and carry and his ball use. But I thought he found other ways to impact. One, his leadership was outstanding this year, the way he sets guys up with structure and stuff. And then his ability to sort of fill dangerous space, whether it's offensively for us, or even defensively, clogging up where the opposition wants to try and move the ball, he's elite at that. I think he probably makes everyone 10% better, which is something you probably don't see. As a fan, you sort of see all the kicks, marks and handballs, but I thought his ability just to connect with the group and help organise others was still at a really high level."

JACK SCRIMSHAW 

"It was really unfortunate that he sort of never really got going. He started the year, but he had an interrupted pre-season. Got himself up for the first few games of the year, but then just sort of battled a knee issue for the majority of the season. So frustrating in that terms, but as you said, really pleasing that he was able to get back out there and cap off the year with a VFL flag. Not only that, he really performed. I don't know if they would have been able to win it without his performances through the finals. So really pleasing for him that he got that reward. And hopefully now he can sort of springboard himself into the off-season, and hopefully the knee issue is behind him, and he can have a really good off-season that sort of sets himself up for a good pre-season."

BLAKE HARDWICK 

"Dimma was again just that ultra-reliable, consistent guy that just put his magnet up and you almost set and forget. He just gets the job done every week, whether it's on a dangerous small forward or if we just need him to help with our offence and our positioning behind the ball, he does that most weeks. Again, we saw him drift forward at times and win a couple of games off his own boot. So he's a special player, again, just ultra-reliable, ultra-consistent and really pleasing, and I reckon towards the back end of the year he started to get some external acknowledgement for his performances. So, yeah, obviously really highly valued behind the four walls, but it's great to see him get a bit of recognition externally."

NOAH MRAZ 

"With Noah, I think the way he stepped up into AFL, his maturity in the way he performed, I probably hadn't seen that even just at training and through VFL. He was a bit inconsistent in the early parts of the year, but once he sort of stepped onto that AFL field, he was just ultra-reliable, ultra-consistent, and really mature in his decisions- when to spoil, when to go for his marks, when he got the ball, what he did with it- was really mature. So, really excited for what the future holds with Noah. He got a taste of AFL this year. It was really good for us, but I'm really excited about what the future holds and what he could potentially do at AFL level."

JOSH WEDDLE 

"Wedds started the year on the wing due to, I think it was TB went down against Freo, we saw him come back to help out our key position and stocks. It probably took him a little while to find his feet behind the ball, but I really thought he started to get going in the Gold Coast game, like one, defending a key forward, but then providing quite a bit of offence for us with his run and carry, and then again interrupted with a suspension. So, probably took him a little while to get going again, but I thought his two finals games were at a really high level. Doing a bit of second ruck, playing key position. I think a strength of Josh is his versatility, so second ruck, play as a key defender, can put him on a small forward, you see his run and carry and how much damage he can do with the ball. Now, he's just trying to build on that consistency and see where he can go, because all the potential is there, so just needs to put it all together."

JOSH BATTLE 

"Probably similar to Blake Hardwick in you sort of just give him a match-up or put his magnet up on the board and you set and forget. So I think early days we explored him playing on smaller forwards, dangerous mediums. He does have that capability. He's an unbelievable athlete in terms of his size and how much he can run. So he would play 100% game time most weeks, and we set him up on an opposition key forward, or he could pinch-hit on those dangerous mediums, a really good asset for me to have. One thing that I thought he added to his game was that he's tried to challenge his opponents and make them have to defend him at times. So when he takes his man out and sets up down the line as a one-on-one target, his boys have a lot of confidence to kick him the footy because he so often doesn't lose a contest. Really well-rounded year from JB again."

TOM BARRASS 

"I would have thought he would have been the All-Australian full-back, probably seven or eight rounds into the year. Unfortunately, he went down with a hammy that he missed five or six weeks and then probably took a little bit of time to get back. His last three games, so the West Coast game and then the two finals, were at a really, really high level. Taking out an opposition key forward, but then his ability to impact in the air and intercept the play, and a really good balance between his intercept and then also spoiling. TB's best is arguably the best in the comp from a key defender's point of view, so just looking for him to build on that again and have another consistent year going forward."

BAILEY MACDONALD 

"He had to wait a while to get his taste of AFL footy, but he became really important to us. As a small defender, and something that he really built his game on was being able to play on the dangerous smalls. I think when he probably came in at the start of the year, he was very offensive, and we just wanted to see him run and take the game on. I think with all those physical attributes he has, he sort of added a bit more of a defensive role to his game. We saw in the final he played on Murphy Reid and Shai Bolton, and then against Brisbane he was on Charlie Cameron and Kai Lohmann. So I think the back end of the year he really added those defensive attributes to his game. To play 11 or 12 of the last 13 games was a credit to him and all the work he's put in with Jason Johannisen, just on his craft and his game. So I think he's really set himself up to launch and become one, a damaging half-back flanker, but also can defend and lock down, similar to what Jarman probably does. I reckon he's probably where I see Baz going."