Despite missing the majority of the 2016 AFL season, Western Bulldogs captain Robert Murphy has been named one of the game’s top ten general defenders by the AFL’s official number cruncher, Champion Data.
And he’s got some company, with 282 game veteran Matthew Boyd also cracking the list.
The current and former skippers were named sixth and seventh respectively in Champion Data’s annual list of the game’s highest ranked players.
Based on the Official AFL Player Ratings, the calculations are made based on the quality of a players performance, with an emphasis on the quality of games played rather than quantity.
Coming off of a season in which he was named All-Australian captain, Murphy was averaging 28 disposals per game at 82% efficiency when he went down with a knee injury against Hawthorn in round three last season.
Matthew Boyd capped off a stellar 2016 campaign in which he averaged 27 disposals per game, second highest at the Club, with a premiership medal and All-Australian honours.
Hawthorn veterans Shaun Burgyone and Luke Hodge hold two of the top three places while Giants youngster Zac Williams was named in second position on a list dominated by league veterans.
CHAMPION DATA’S TOP 10 GENERAL DEFENDERS
- Shaun Burgoyne (Hawthorn)
- Zac Williams (GWS Giants)
- Luke Hodge (Hawthorn)
- Heath Shaw (GWS Giants)
- Kade Simpson (Carlton)
- Robert Murphy (Western Bulldogs)
- Matthew Boyd (Western Bulldogs)
- Jarrad McVeigh (Sydney)
- Shannon Hurn (West Coast)
- Leigh Montagna (St Kilda)
