AFL Tables

AFL Tables
Name	AFL Tables
Type	Sports statistics
Language	English
Current status	Active

AFL Tables is an online repository of Australian rules football match statistics, player records, and historical results focused primarily on the Australian Football League and its antecedents. It provides comprehensive match-by-match scorelines, player game logs, season summaries, and team records used by journalists, historians, statisticians, and fans. The site aggregates data across competitions and eras, enabling comparative study of players such as Gary Ablett Sr., Tony Lockett, Leigh Matthews, and teams like Carlton Football Club, Essendon Football Club, Collingwood Football Club.

History

AFL Tables emerged during the expansion of internet sports resources in the late 1990s and early 2000s, following precedents set by databases such as Baseball-Reference, ESPN, and CricketArchive. Its development coincided with major administrative changes in Australian rules football, including the transition from the Victorian Football League to the Australian Football League, and the national expansion with clubs like Brisbane Bears and West Coast Eagles. The resource documented milestone matches such as the 1970 VFL Grand Final, the 1990 AFL Grand Final, and the rise of dynasties like Hawthorn Football Club during the 1980s and Richmond Football Club in the 2010s. Over time the site incorporated historical records relating to iconic figures including Ron Barassi, John Coleman, Kevin Bartlett, and coaches such as Jock McHale and Leigh Matthews (coach).

Content and Coverage

The site catalogues match results, ladder positions, finals series outcomes, player statistics, season-by-season summaries, and award histories. It covers competitions and events such as the Victorian Football League, Australian Football League, interstate carnivals like the Australian National Football Carnival, and representative fixtures including State of Origin (Australian rules football). Player pages commonly list career games, goals, debut dates, and match logs for athletes like Dustin Martin, Chris Judd, Wayne Carey, Nathan Buckley, and Adam Goodes. Team pages include premiership lists, coaching records, and win–loss histories for clubs such as Geelong Football Club, Sydney Swans, St Kilda Football Club, and Port Adelaide Football Club. The compendium also records award winners for the Brownlow Medal, Coleman Medal, Norm Smith Medal, and club best-and-fairest honors.

Methodology and Data Sources

Data compilation relies on historical match reports, newspaper archives, official league publications, and statistical yearbooks produced by organizations such as the Australian Football League Commission and state leagues like the South Australian National Football League and West Australian Football League. Contributors cross-reference primary sources including match day programs, archival newspapers such as The Age, Herald Sun, and The Sydney Morning Herald, and seminal works by historians like H.A. de Lacy and Gary McFarlane. Methodological practice emphasizes match-level verification, reconciliation of discrepancies across sources, and transparent presentation of data gaps for fixtures affected by wartime suspensions or incomplete record keeping, referring to landmark events like the World War II era impacts on competitions.

Website Features and Tools

The interface offers chronologically organized fixtures, sortable tables, and game-by-game breakdowns with scoring progression and goal scorers. Tools include season navigators, finals trees, team form guides, and lists sorted by metrics such as goals, disposals, and appearances—useful when comparing contemporaries like Marcus Bontempelli and Josh Kennedy. The site provides printable match summaries and aggregated leaderboards for awards including the Brownlow Medal tally and club leading goal-kickers. It also supplies historical milestone trackers for debuts, 100-goal seasons, and games milestones reached by marquee players such as Michael Tuck and Simon Madden.

Usage and Impact

The database is frequently cited by media outlets covering events like the AFL Grand Final, by statisticians modeling player performance, and by authors producing biographies or club histories, including works on figures such as Ron Barassi, Ted Whitten, and Kevin Sheedy. Academics in sports history and sociology use the resource when analyzing trends across eras, for example comparing scoring rates between the 1960s and the 2000s or assessing career longevity of players like Graham "Polly" Farmer and Peter Hudson. Football clubs and broadcasters consult the repository when preparing match notes, anniversary content, and documentary production related to matches such as the 1997 AFL Grand Final.

Criticisms and Limitations

Critiques center on gaps in very early records, potential transcription errors from microfilm sources, and limitations in advanced metrics compared to modern player tracking systems such as those used by the AFL Player Statistics platform or broadcasters employing GPS-based data. The site historically focuses on traditional statistics (games, goals, disposals) and lacks granular in-play metrics like time on ground or pressure acts introduced through modern analytics teams associated with clubs like Melbourne Football Club and Western Bulldogs. Scholarly reviewers note occasional inconsistencies in attributing assists or secondary contributions for historical matches involving players like Brian Taylor and Tony Modra due to absent primary sources.

Category:Australian rules football websites Category:Sports statistics websites