HDFNL senior football mid-season review: Wide-open premiership race

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Record - 7-1

Percentage - 207.8%

Average for - 120

Average against - 58

Attack rank - 1st

Defence rank - 1st

Quarters won - 25 of 32

Avg. player points - 37.5

Players used - 29

Played every game - 15

Club best top five:

(based on weekly best players: 6 votes for being named best, 5 for second best and so on)

Joel Helman - 21

Aarryn Craig - 20

Jack Donat - 15

Zach Alford - 14

Jake Hyland - 12

Top goalkickers:

Brady Herdman - 26

Darcy Richards - 21

Ben Knight - 17

Zach Alford - 11

Joel Helman - 10

Got to hand it to the Bulldogs - they have played in the past five grand finals and are every chance of being there again this year given they sit a game clear in top spot at the halfway mark with a percentage of more than 200.

Performing strongly in all aspects - a dominating midfield coupled with both the competition's No.1 ranked attack (even with Brady Herdman only playing five games so far) and defence.

Only loss has been a 15-point defeat to Mount Pleasant in round four.

Have had three wins by more than 100 points, but also had to dig deep and grind out victories against likely finals opponents in fellow top three sides LBU (24 points) and Colbinabbin (13).

Record - 6-2

Percentage - 165.1%

Average for - 104

Average against - 63

Attack rank - 2nd

Defence rank - 2nd

Quarters won - 23 of 32

Avg. player points - 28.3

Players used - 30

Played every game - 12

Club best top five:

Rhys Woodland - 28

Jeremy Mundie - 24

Marcus Angove - 15

Patrick Gardiner - 13

Jacob Gardiner - 13

Top goalkickers:

Patrick Gardiner - 24

Lachlan Collins - 19

Thomas Leech - 18

Jacob Gardiner - 15

Jarod Bacon - 12

The Cats have springboarded from their finals return last year and are right in the premiership hunt.

Official ladder shows the Cats at 6-2, but given their season-opener shellacking of White Hills is yet to be officially recorded, they also have an extra 94-point victory up their sleeve.

Have got an envious array of goalkicking options given the quintet of Patrick Gardiner, Lachlan Collins, Thomas Leech, Stanley Brentnall and Rhys Woodland have all slotted bags of at least six.

Record - 6-2

Percentage - 137.1%

Average for - 90

Average against - 65

Attack rank - 5th

Defence rank - 3rd

Quarters won - 21 of 32

Avg. player points - 40.0

Players used - 34

Played every game - 9

Club best top five:

Ben Southam - 24

Hadleigh Sirett - 23

Nick Knight - 16

Damien Carmody - 15

Matt Riordan - 15

Top goalkickers:

Sam Bowers - 14

Michael Battista - 9

Matt Riordan - 9

Ryan Hon - 8

Alex Van Ruiswyk - 7

Were one of the most-hyped teams of the off-season, but the Grasshoppers haven't got anywhere near their best team on the park yet.

Still, the Grasshoppers have navigated the first half of the season with a 6-2 record to be sitting in the top three.

Have already used 34 players - the most of any team.

Will be desperately hoping for better luck on the injury front in the second half of the season in pursuit of their first flag since 2008.

Record - 6-2

Percentage - 128.8%

Average for - 101

Average against - 79

Attack rank - 3rd

Defence rank - 5th

Quarters won - 20 of 32

Avg. player points - 44.9

Players used - 31

Played every game - 8

Club best top five:

Ben Weightman - 27

Mitch Bennett - 21

Jesse Tuohey - 20

Joseph Whiting - 16

Bryce Hinneberg - 14

Top goalkickers:

Ben Weightman - 47

Daniel Davie - 13

Luke Marchesi - 11

Mitch Bennett - 10

Cody Green - 7

The Blues look set to make a finals return for the first time since 2014 and have already shown their wares by beating the two top teams in North Bendigo and LBU.

The 15-point win over North Bendigo epitomises just how far the Blues have come this year given they hadn't beaten the Bulldogs since 2008 and their previous five losing margins had all been by at least 100 points.

The last Mount Pleasant player to win the league goalkicking was Matt Gilmore in 2013, but Ben Weightman with 47 at the halfway mark is well on track to be the next Blues' forward to do so.

Record - 4-4

Percentage - 108.1%

Average for - 78

Average against - 73

Attack rank - 6th

Defence rank - 4th

Quarters won - 13 of 32

Avg. player points - 35.8

Players used - 31

Played every game - 12

Club best top five:

Brady Hore - 33

Logan Prout - 18

Daniel Coates - 18

Jack Dye - 17

Matthew Pollock - 16

Top goalkickers:

Jack Dye - 23

Tyler Jones - 16

Jake Vandongen - 15

Daniel Coates - 14

Logan Prout - 9

The reigning premiers have certainly come back to the pack, but that was always going to be the case considering the Bombers have lost more than half of last year's winning grand final team.

At 1-3 after four games the Bombers looked like they could be headed for the first reigning premier since LBU in 2015 to miss the finals.

However, the Bombers have steadied their season, going 3-1 over their past four games to now be 4-4 at the halfway mark and back in the top five.

The Bombers' solid past month has coincided with young forward Jack Dye kicking 23 goals across the past four games in what has been a welcome return to the forward line after missing all of last year with a broken collarbone.

Record - 3-5

Percentage - 117.7%

Average for - 95

Average against - 81

Attack rank - 4th

Defence rank - 6th

Quarters won - 13 of 32

Avg. player points - 41.6

Players used - 33

Played every game - 13

Club best top five:

Jake Allport - 22

Sam Kerridge - 20

David Wright - 17

Mitch Dole - 17

Doolan Nihill - 15

Top goalkickers:

Mitch Dole - 37

Jed Lamb - 17

William Kain - 13

Rhys Irwin - 8

Kris Bedford - 8

The ladder shows the Demons at 3-5, but in reality with their belting at the hands of LBU in the season-opener to be still recorded, they are 3-6 and effectively two games behind the fifth-placed Bombers.

Off the back of a massively-hyped pre-season given their recruiting headlined by coach Sam Kerridge and Jed Lamb straight off Carlton's list, the Demons after being poor early have improved as the season has gone on, but are chasing their tails.

Could be a much different story though had they not lost by less than a kick to both LBU and Colbinabbin, plus 10 points against Leitchville-Gunbower last week.

Record - 3-5

Percentage - 65.8%

Average for - 75

Average against - 114

Attack rank - 7th

Defence rank - 7th

Quarters won - 10 of 32

Avg. player points - 44.3

Players used - 33

Played every game - 14

Club best top five:

Bailey Boyack - 23

Zac Laffy - 19

Rhys Healey - 18

Ian Fuller - 17

Danny Brewster - 15

Top goalkickers:

Romain Grenville - 26

James Harney - 10

Danny Brewster - 9

Darcy Laffy - 6

Dylan Oaff - 6

Season can already be ticked off as an improvement for the Bloods, who after winning just one game last year already have three.

Still need to bridge the gap between their best and worst given their three wins sit alongside an average losing margin of 83 points in their seven defeats.

Record - 1-7

Percentage - 45.1%

Average for - 59

Average against - 130

Attack rank - 9th

Defence rank - 9th

Quarters won - 8 of 32

Avg. player points - 38.3

Players used - 32

Played every game - 11

Club best top five:

Harry Whittle - 22

Phil Ryan - 20

Travis Mercadante - 18

Stacy Fiske - 14

Steve Kairn - 12

Top goalkickers:

Phil Ryan - 14

Jack Burns - 7

Harry Whittle - 6

Jacob Greenwood - 6

Jack Daley - 5

After an exodus of travelling star power the Hawks are in a re-build off the back of four years in a row of finals.

The fall for the Hawks has been steep with their sole win so far against Heathcote by eight points, while they are ranked last for both average scores for and against.

Already undergone a coaching change with Stacy Fiske taking over from Denis Grinton after round eight, with Fiske's goals built around sustaining the two quarters of competitive football they showed against White Hills a fortnight ago for longer each week.

Record - 0-8

Percentage - 49.8%

Average for - 60

Average against - 119

Attack rank - 8th

Defence rank - 8th

Quarters won - 7 of 32

Avg. player points - 38.3

Players used - 30

Played every game - 8

Club best top five:

Codie Price - 31

Luke Bell - 16

Thomas Pain - 15

Darcy McLean - 15

Louis Piccolo - 14

Top goalkickers:

Dylan Robinson - 9

Codie Price - 7

Jack Brooks - 6

Kai Cavallaro - 6

Bradley Morgan - 6

Yet to break through for a win, but the Saints haven't been without their chances.

Lost by eight points to Huntly, six points to Leitchville-Gunbower and were let down by inaccuracy in a 17-point defeat to Mount Pleasant.

Being named the Saints' best player in five of his seven games is testament to the impact of recruit Codie Price.

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