2010 AFL season


The 2010 Australian Football League season commenced on 25 March 2010 and concluded on 2 October 2010. It was the 114th season of the elite Australian rules football competition and the 21st under the name 'Australian Football League', having switched from 'Victorian Football League' after 1989. The premiership was won by, who defeated by 56 points in the Grand Final Replay, which was played after the first Grand Final was drawn. Collingwood's win marked the 15th VFL/AFL premiership in the club's history.
The 2010 AFL season had a total attendance of 7,146,738 people and an average attendance of 38,423 per game, both of which were the highest in league history. The record for total attendance was broken in 2017, but the record for average attendance still stands. It was the 16th and final season to be played with sixteen teams. An expansion of the league occurred over the following two seasons, with and joining in 2011 and 2012 respectively.

Pre-season

AFL pre-season draft

AFL rookie draft

NAB Cup

Summary of results

Premiership season

The draw for the 2010 AFL Premiership Season was produced by the AFL with the intention of producing a balanced draw while also providing the fans and television networks with blockbuster games. In a competition with 16 teams and 22 rounds, it is not possible for all teams to play each other twice. These factors combine to create some of the following anomalies:

Round 2

Round 3

Round 4

Round 5

Round 6

Round 7

Round 8

Round 9

Round 10

Round 11

Round 12

Round 13

Round 14

Round 15

Round 16

Round 17

Round 18

Round 19

Round 20

Round 21

Round 22

Win/loss table

Team12345678910111213141516171819202122F1F2F3GF1GF2Ladder
Frem
56
Syd
43
Melb
16
Carl
48
WB
49
PA
23
Rich
50
NM
9
BL
12
StK
47
Frem
23
Haw
47
Melb
44
Ess
84
WCE
22
Geel
11
PA
19
Rich
20
WB
8
BL
7
Coll
3
StK
28
XXXXX11
WCE
32
Carl
19
PA
27
WB
22
Melb
50
Syd
20
Frem
13
Geel
81
Adel
12
Coll
8
NM
1
WB
65
Rich
19
Carl
55
StK
14
Haw
75
Geel
63
Melb
10
WCE
5
Adel
7
Ess
27
Syd
38
XXXXX13
Rich
56
BL
19
Ess
20
Adel
48
Geel
36
Coll
53
StK
61
PA
26
Haw
50
WCE
29
Melb
41
NM
29
Frem
9
BL
55
WB
68
Syd
39
WCE
26
Coll
48
Ess
76
Rich
89
Geel
42
Frem
6
Syd
5
XXXX8
WB
36
Melb
1
StK
28
Haw
64
Ess
65
Carl
53
NM
66
Frem
36
Geel
36
BL
8
WB
10
Melb
0
Syd
25
WCE
83
PA
26
StK
48
Rich
82
Carl
48
Geel
22
Ess
98
Adel
3
Haw
3
WB
62
XGeel
41
StK
0
StK
56
1
Geel
31
Frem
44
Carl
20
WCE
23
Coll
65
Haw
43
PA
3
StK
12
Rich
35
WB
9
Syd
9
Geel
71
Haw
16
Adel
84
Melb
19
WCE
32
NM
3
StK
33
Carl
76
Coll
98
BL
27
WB
29
XXXXX14
Adel
56
Ess
44
Geel
7
StK
15
Rich
39
WCE
38
BL
13
Coll
36
Syd
37
NM
61
Adel
23
StK
18
Carl
9
PA
57
Rich
19
Melb
11
WB
82
WCE
75
NM
54
Syd
9
Haw
116
Carl
6
Haw
30
Geel
69
XXX6
Ess
31
Haw
9
Frem
7
PA
95
Carl
36
Rich
108
Syd
67
BL
81
Coll
36
Melb
54
WCE
24
Ess
71
StK
24
NM
35
Haw
2
Adel
11
BL
63
Syd
53
Coll
22
WB
101
Carl
42
WCE
44
StK
4
Frem
69
Coll
41
XX2
Melb
56
Geel
9
WB
16
Coll
64
NM
12
Ess
43
WCE
8
Rich
3
Carl
50
Syd
2
PA
11
Adel
47
Ess
16
WB
3
Geel
2
BL
75
StK
0
PA
8
Syd
44
Melb
21
Frem
116
Coll
3
Frem
30
XXXX7
Haw
56
Coll
1
Adel
16
Rich
55
BL
50
NM
26
WB
4
WCE
29
PA
1
Geel
54
Carl
41
Coll
0
Adel
44
StK
35
Ess
19
Frem
11
Syd
73
BL
10
Rich
29
Haw
21
PA
29
NM
10
XXXXX12
PA
14
StK
104
WCE
25
Syd
40
Haw
12
Melb
26
Coll
66
Adel
9
WB
70
Frem
61
BL
1
Carl
29
PA
36
Geel
35
Syd
30
Rich
50
Ess
3
WB
71
Frem
54
StK
52
WCE
16
Melb
10
XXXXX9
NM
14
WCE
3
BL
27
Geel
95
StK
10
Adel
23
Ess
3
Carl
26
Melb
1
Rich
47
Haw
11
Syd
38
NM
36
Frem
57
Coll
26
WB
36
Adel
19
Haw
8
StK
94
WCE
1
Melb
29
Rich
10
XXXXX10
Carl
56
WB
72
Syd
55
Melb
55
Frem
39
Geel
108
Adel
50
Haw
3
Ess
35
PA
47
StK
38
WCE
49
BL
19
Syd
4
Frem
19
NM
50
Coll
82
Adel
20
Melb
29
Carl
89
StK
24
PA
10
XXXXX15
Syd
8
NM
104
Coll
28
Frem
15
PA
10
WB
3
Carl
61
Ess
12
WCE
35
Adel
47
Rich
38
Frem
18
Geel
24
Melb
35
BL
14
Coll
48
Haw
0
Ess
33
PA
94
NM
52
Rich
24
Adel
28
Geel
4
XWB
24
Coll
0
Coll
56
3
StK
8
Adel
43
Rich
55
NM
40
WCE
56
BL
20
Geel
67
WB
38
Frem
37
Haw
2
Ess
9
PA
38
Coll
25
Rich
4
NM
30
Carl
39
Melb
73
Geel
53
Haw
44
Frem
9
WB
44
BL
38
Carl
5
WB
5
XXX5
BL
32
PA
3
NM
25
Ess
23
Syd
56
Frem
38
Haw
8
Melb
29
StK
35
Carl
29
Geel
24
Rich
49
WB
60
Coll
83
Adel
22
Ess
32
Carl
26
Frem
75
BL
5
PA
1
NM
16
Geel
44
XXXXX16
Coll
36
Rich
72
Haw
16
BL
22
Adel
49
StK
3
Melb
4
Syd
38
NM
70
Ess
9
Coll
10
BL
65
WCE
60
Haw
3
Carl
68
PA
36
Frem
82
NM
71
Adel
8
Geel
101
Syd
44
Ess
29
Coll
62
Syd
5
StK
24
XX4
Team12345678910111213141516171819202122F1F2F3GF1GF2Ladder

Bold – Home game

Ladder

Ladder progression

Finals series

Week one

Week two

Week three

Weeks four/five

Grand final replay

Season records

AFL Rising Star

The AFL Rising Star is awarded to the best player who, as of the beginning of the season, is under the age of 21 and has played fewer than 10 games. Each week one player is nominated and at the end of the season a selection panel votes to select the overall winner.
Sydney's Dan Hannebery won the award for 2010, with the maximum 45 votes awarded to him.
;Nominations
† players ineligible due to tribunal sanction
;Voting
The Australian Football League celebrates the best goal of the season through the annual Goal of the Year competition. From 2010 onwards, the commercial name for the award is the Panasonic Goal of the Year.
Lance 'Buddy' Franklin won the award for his running goal against Essendon in round 13. By winning the award Franklin became the fifth indigenous player to win the award since 2004.
;Nominations
The Australian Football League celebrates the best mark of the season through the annual Mark of the Year competition. From 2009 onwards, the commercial name for the award is the Hungry Jack's Mark of the Year.
Liam Jurrah, of the Melbourne Football Club, won the award for his mark over the top of Port Adelaide's Nick Salter, in round 21. However, he hadn't been nominated as Mark of the Week, which was won by Brendon Goddard. This inconsistency arose because the Mark of the Week is decided by an online public vote, while the Mark of the Year is decided separately by a panel of experts.
;Weekly winners

Umpiring and rule changes

No major changes to the rules were introduced for the 2010 season. Minor adjustments to the tribunal rules were made, including adding a provision to report players for diving or staging. The 2010 NAB Cup pre-season competition trialled three new rules: allowing boundary umpires to award free kicks, letting the players, not the umpire, decide if they want to use the advantage rule and penalising players who push the ball under another player.

Coach changes