Has anyone noticed how well Hayden Ballantyne has been going lately?

The Fremantle fans definitely have, as has the Herald Sun’s Mark Robinson, who gave the small forward his ‘Wednesday love’ on Fox Footy’s AFL 360 last week following a brilliant six-goal effort against Richmond.

If ‘Robbo’ loved that game from ‘Ballas’, he would have been enamored by his five-goal haul from Saturday’s game against Brisbane that was played in driving rain.

It’s now fair to say Ballantyne has thrust himself right into the All Australian small forward conversation.

If he continues in his current vein of form, it will be impossible for selectors to ignore him given what he’s already accomplished in 2014.

It started at Etihad Stadium in round 1, when ‘Ballas’ kicked three goals against Collingwood, including a Goal of the Year contender for a stunning snap over his head.

He also finished one of the best team goals you’ll ever see in that same game – a coast-to-coast ripper that took just 13 seconds to go from goal square to goal.

He was back on the highlight reel in Matthew Pavlich’s 300^th in round 9 with arguably one of the favourites for 2014’s best goal.

That major was one of three on the night against Geelong which played a significant part in Freo’s victory.

He backed it up with another three against the Western Bulldogs a week later and has now kicked 11 in the past two weeks.

But it’s not just goal highlights that Ballantyne has brought to his team in 2014. His pressure and tackling in the forward line is elite and a critical component of the Freo game plan.

‘Ballas’ might be one of the smallest players in the AFL, but he’s playing big and could be on his way to a deserved honour.

Freo’s top 5 goals of 2014 so far