Kane Cornes runs through his team of the week for afl.com.au.
Ruck spots were at a premium and one big man in particular was stiff to miss out on my round three Team of the Week, brought to you by AccorHotels.
I felt pretty good about my 22 but Melbourne's Max Gawn was unlucky to not be selected after dominating against North Melbourne.
With Stefan Martin sharing the honours for the finest performance this week, alongside Nat Fyfe, the Lion was a lock to be in. Similarly, Brodie Grundy was really good for Collingwood.
The ruckmen were back this week and it's those who have an impact around the ground that really matter.
It wasn't a great week for key defenders but Richmond duo David Astbury and Alex Rance were the backbone of a backline that kept Hawthorn's dangerous forwards relatively quiet. Tom Lynch had been in red-hot form but Alex Pearce nullified him for Fremantle. Sydney hard nut Callum Mills helped keep Lachie Whitfield quiet. Why do opposition teams give Rory Laird so much space? In a scrappy game against St Kilda, he won plenty of the football and used it well. Dom Sheed gathered 30 disposals and has become a very good player.
Steele Sidebottom is a gun and hit the scoreboard against Carlton. Fyfe is back to his absolute best for Fremantle. West Coast winger Andrew Gaff won heaps of football and used it well. Martin was simply dominant and almost helped Brisbane pull off a huge upset. Trent Cotchin was Richmond's best and for the opposition, Tom Mitchell showed again he is a real Brownlow chance.
Often overlooked at Geelong is Sam Menegola but he was easily the Cats' best. Jesse Hogan booted just one goal but was dominant and covered plenty of territory. Luke Shuey is underrated and helped set up the win for West Coast. Inaccuracy blunted Sam Gray's impact last season but he's fixed that issue and has made the small forward position his own at Port Adelaide. Right at the moment, Lance Franklin is the best player in the game and was clutch in the final term. Toby McLean was very impressive, especially early, for the Western Bulldogs.
For Adelaide, Bryce Gibbs did it on the inside and Paul Seedsman did it on the outside, and I doubt the former Magpie has played better than he did against St Kilda. Grundy is in career-best form while Lachie Hunter was huge for the Dogs, and along with McLean, helped set up that important win.
