Percentage - 304.3%

Average for - 116

Average against - 38

Attack rank - 2nd

Defence rank - 1st

Quarters won - 23 of 32

Goal conversion - 55.5%

1st half scoring - +246

2nd half scoring - +375

Top 5 best player votes:

Ryley Dickens - 25

Steven Gunther - 24

Billy Micevski - 19

Bailey George - 16

Seb Relouw - 14

Top 5 goalkickers:

Bailey George - 29

Braidy Dickens - 20

Billy Micevski - 11

Seb Relouw - 11

Mitch Cheesman - 11

Outstanding first half of the season by the Bulldogs, who have answered every challenge thrown at them so far to reach the halfway mark undefeated as they continue to hunt that elusive first flag since 1950.

The Bulldogs are proving difficult to score against conceding an average of just 38 points per game and have given up more than eight goals just once, while down the other end key forward Bailey George (29) and Braidy Dickens (20) have kicked 49 goals between them.

And through the midfield it's the trio of Ryley Dickens, Steven Gunther and Billy Micevski who are leading the charge.

The Bulldogs have been particularly ruthless in third terms. Over their past five games the Bulldogs have outscored their opposition a combined 205-8 in the "premiership quarter".

READ MORE: SELECTION NIGHT: weekend BFNL, HDFNL, CVFLW teams

Record - 7-1

Percentage - 277.8%

Average for - 145

Average against - 52

Attack rank - 1st

Defence rank - 2nd

Quarters won - 28 of 32

Goal conversion - 59.8%

1st half scoring - +288

2nd half scoring - +455

Top 5 best player votes:

Ryley Taylor - 24

Jimmy Gadsden - 18

Kyle Manley - 15

Brandyn Grenfell - 13

David Johnstone - 12

Top 5 goalkickers:

Brandyn Grenfell - 58

Nathan Devanny - 12

Kyle Manley - 12

Adrian Pappin - 11

Ryley Taylor - 11

Along with Pyramid Hill, the Panthers have established themselves as one of the two clear standout sides as they pursue a first flag since 1989.

Only loss so far has been a 12-point defeat to Pyramid Hill in round four, which the Panthers have since followed up with four thumping wins in a row by margins of 131, 100, 131 and 157 points.

Have been a scoring juggernaut averaging 145 points per game, with the goalkicking onslaught led by imposing full-forward Brandyn Grenfell.

Already with 58 goals at an average of 7.2 per game, Grenfell is well on track to become the league's first century goalkicker since Justin Maddern kicked 105 for Mitiamo in 2016.

Great blend of youth and experience and given just how dominant their reserves are, plenty of depth at the club has the Panthers well set up for a drought-breaking premiership push in September.

MORE FOOTBALL: Weekend football preview, selections, how they match-up - BFNL, HDFNL

Record - 5-3

Percentage - 124.2%

Average for - 88

Average against - 71

Attack rank - 3rd

Defence rank - 4th

Quarters won - 17 of 32

Goal conversion - 49.5%

1st half scoring - +42

2nd half scoring - +85

Top 5 best player votes:

Callum Prest - 18

Emile Pavlich - 18

Harry Donegan - 18

Andrew Collins - 17

Jack Symons - 10

Top 5 goalkickers:

Josh Martyn - 30

Andrew Collins - 19

Lloyd Needs - 12

Tyler Estrada - 6

Lachlan Allison - 5

Started the season with a pair of losses to Pyramid Hill (20 points) and Marong (77), but have built well since then to hit the halfway mark in third position.

Won five of their past six games, with their round five defeat to Calivil United by 16 points the biggest shock result of the season so far.

Season-ending knee injures to Luke Harrison and Zane Hoiles have been a sour note for the Mean Machine, while the class duo of Josh Martyn (30) and Andrew Collins (19) have combined for almost half the 100 goals they have kicked.

Great test over the next fortnight when the Mean Machine gets another crack at pace-setters Pyramid Hill and Marong to see just how far they have come since the opening two rounds.

READ MORE: HDFNL: How each senior team is tracking at the halfway mark of season

Record - 5-3

Percentage - 118.4%

Average for - 78

Average against - 66

Attack rank - 4th

Defence rank - 3rd

Quarters won - 18 of 32

Goal conversion - 49.4%

1st half scoring - +81

2nd half scoring - +15

Top 5 best player votes:

Lee Dale - 25

Ross Turner - 25

Luke Lougoon - 18

Carl Nicholson - 16

Daniel Mowat - 13

Top 5 goalkickers:

Jay Reynolds - 18

Ryan Wellington - 12

Carl Nicholson - 10

Lee Dale - 7

Lucas Matthews - 7

After winning the 2019 premiership and then going through the COVID-affected 2021 season undefeated, the Superoos have come right back to the pack this year.

The Superoos are 5-3 and in fourth position and yet to have beaten any of the three sides above them, but haven't been blown away either by any of Marong (lost by 15), Pyramid Hill (lost by 4) or Bridgewater (lost by 23).

Have had multiple changes to their side weekly making team cohesion a challenge, but the Superoos are going to have to start putting it together on a consistent basis from here if they are to snare the all-important double chance come finals.

Record - 4-4

Percentage - 78.9%

Average for - 70

Average against - 89

Attack rank - 6th

Defence rank - 6th

Quarters won - 15 of 32

Goal conversion - 52.3%

1st half scoring - -67

2nd half scoring - -83

Top 5 best player votes:

Josh Walsh - 33

Charlie Gadsden - 28

Justin Laird - 27

Kalem Paxton - 21

James Bailey - 16

Top 5 goalkickers:

Justin Laird - 21

Andrew Gladman - 16

Rhonen Maher - 12

Harry Gadsden - 8

Miggy Podosky - 5

The Bears have done a good job to reach the halfway point of the season in the top five and now the challenge from here is to hold on to it.

Handled their business in terms of winning all the games they would have expected to, with an obvious goal from here being to now knock off one of those four teams above them, starting next week against Mitiamo.

Josh Walsh has been super consistent down back, the hard-at-it Charlie Gadsden has put together a ripping five weeks and new coach Justin Laird is setting the tone through the middle.

Record - 3-5

Percentage - 68.5%

Average for - 74

Average against - 109

Attack rank - 5th

Defence rank - 8th

Quarters won - 11 of 32

Goal conversion - 59.3%

1st half scoring - -73

2nd half scoring - -201

Top 5 best player votes:

Bregon Cotchett - 33

Charlie Ingham - 23

Alex Lowe - 22

Nathan Angelino - 19

Luke Matheson - 16

Top 5 goalkickers:

Traiton Kendal - 12

Charlie McGaw - 12

Cody Wright - 12

Alex Lowe - 9

Bregon Cotchett - 7

Finally, it's fantastic to see Inglewood start to show some genuine inroads in terms of competitiveness.

The Blues spent eight of the first nine rounds in the top five and were the talk of the league when they started the season 3-1 with three of their recruits in Bregon Cotchett, Charlie Ingham and Alex Lowe all having had big impacts.

But the gut-wrenching five-point loss to Mitiamo in round five seems to have knocked a bit of the wind out of the Blues' sails, with it followed by three heavy losses that has cost Inglewood its spot in the top five.

Hopefully, after a chance to reset this week the Blues can get back to their early-season form and push hard for that elusive first finals appearance since 2003.

Record - 2-6

Percentage - 50.1%

Average for - 53

Average against - 106

Attack rank - 8th

Defence rank - 7th

Quarters won - 9 of 32

Goal conversion - 50.8%

1st half scoring - -169

2nd half scoring - -254

Top 5 best player votes:

Harry Whittle - 25

Logan Dixon - 20

Caleb Sanders - 20

Mitch Hocking - 15

Ryan Burt - 13

Top 5 goalkickers:

Chris Dixon - 17

Harry Whittle - 14

Ryan Burt - 8

Caleb Sanders - 4

Mac Whittle - 2

Have an almost identical record to the corresponding time last year when the Maroons were 2-6 with a percentage of 49.0 at the halfway mark of 2021.

This year they are 2-6 with a percentage of 50.1, so at this stage have neither gone forwards or backwards on 2021.

Having to battle hard to get a return on the scoreboard having kicked at least 10 goals only twice so far, so will be working hard to get more bang for buck inside 50 in the back end of the year.

Record - 1-7

Percentage - 59.2%

Average for - 51

Average against - 86

Attack rank - 9th

Defence rank - 5th

Quarters won - 12 of 32

Goal conversion - 44.1%

1st half scoring - -154

2nd half scoring - -126

Top 5 best player votes:

Phil Ryan - 28

Jacob Greenwood - 14

Evan Ritchie - 14

Jack Daley - 13

Brock Rogers - 13

Top 5 goalkickers:

Jacob Greenwood - 15

Jake Lawry - 9

Jack Burns - 8

Alex Daniels - 4

Phil Ryan - 3

The Demons were touted pre-season as shaping as the big improvers this year given their active recruiting campaign.

However, it has been another tough year for the Demons with just one win - albeit a significant one when they knocked over Bridgewater in round five.

Also have had three games where they lost by 14 points or less, so the season could be panning out so much different had some tight results gone the Demons' way.

Despite just one win on the board and in eighth position, the Demons do have the No.5 ranked defence.

Record - 1-7

Percentage - 49.4%

Average for - 57

Average against - 116

Attack rank - 7th

Defence rank - 9th

Quarters won - 8 of 32

Goal conversion - 48.5%

1st half scoring - -194

2nd half scoring - -266

Top 5 best player votes:

Hamish McCartney - 27

Mitch Dean - 16

Nathan Murley - 16

Chris Howgate - 14

Jessi Lampi - 14

Top 5 goalkickers:

Jason Butty - 20

Wayne Mitrovic - 8

Nathan Murley - 7

Joel Dwyer - 6

Chris Howgate - 4

Been a tough slog for the Eagles, who are facing the prospect of a first wooden spoon since 2008.

Sole win came against Calivil United by 14 points in round four, while they have also endured three near-misses with a trio of losses by under two goals, which includes two against top five teams BL-Serpentine (6 points) and Mitiamo (11) in games where they stormed home after slow starts.

ROUND 1:

Marong 28.13 (181) def Maiden Gully YCW 5.7 (37)

Mitiamo 15.16 (106) def BL-Serpentine 2.10 (22)

Inglewood 15.4 (94) def Calivil United 9.10 (64)

Pyramid Hill 9.14 (68) def Bridgewater 7.6 (48)

ROUND 2:

Marong 19.19 (133) def Bridgewater 7.14 (56)

Inglewood 23.11 (149) def Maiden Gully YCW 12.15 (87)

Mitiamo 11.7 (73) def Newbridge 6.8 (44)

BL-Serpentine 14.13 (97) def Calivil United 13.15 (93)

ROUND 3:

Bridgewater 19.14 (128) def Inglewood 8.7 (55)

Pyramid Hill 15.11 (101) def BL-Serpentine 8.4 (52)

Marong 13.11 (89) def Mitiamo 10.14 (74)

Newbridge 8.14 (62) def Maiden Gully YCW 8.6 (54)

ROUND 4:

Bridgewater 12.15 (87) def BL-Serpentine 8.11 (59)

Inglewood 11.13 (79) def Newbridge 8.6 (54)

Pyramid Hill 13.9 (87) def Marong 11.9 (75)

Mitiamo 8.9 (57) def Calivil United 7.6 (48)

ROUND 5:

Pyramid Hill 31.9 (195) def Maiden Gully YCW 2.4 (16)

Marong 30.13 (193) def Newbridge 5.6 (36)

Calivil United 8.11 (59) def Bridgewater 6.7 (43)

Mitiamo 15.11 (101) def Inglewood 15.6 (96)

ROUND 6:

Marong 27.16 (178) def Inglewood 7.5 (47)

BL-Serpentine 9.14 (68) def Newbridge 7.6 (48)

Maiden Gully YCW 13.12 (90) def Calivil United 11.10 (76)

Pyramid Hill 5.22 (52) def Mitiamo 7.6 (48)

ROUND 7:

Marong 26.17 (173) def BL-Serpentine 12.1 (73)

Pyramid Hill 12.11 (83) def Calivil United 1.2 (8)

Bridgewater 17.15 (117) def Newbridge 10.5 (65)

Mitiamo 13.9 (87) def Maiden Gully YCW 11.10 (76)

ROUND 8:

Pyramid Hill 33.15 (213) def Newbridge 5.2 (32)

Marong 20.19 (139) def Calivil United 1.2 (8)

BL-Serpentine 20.11 (131) def Inglewood 7.8 (50)

Bridgewater 17.19 (121) def Maiden Gully YCW 7.5 (47)

ROUND 9:

Pyramid Hill 18.18 (126) def Inglewood 3.7 (25)

Newbridge 12.12 (84) def Calivil United 6.15 (51)

Bridgewater 15.12 (102) def Mitiamo 10.19 (79)

BL-Serpentine 8.10 (58) def Maiden Gully YCW 7.10 (52)

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