Each week of the 2026 AFL season, ESPN.com.au's Jake Michaels looks at six big talking points.
This week's Six Points features the big change I'd make to the fixture, why we should remember 'Good Voss', a discussion on elite players, and some mind-boggling stats on both John Noble and Malcolm Rosas.
1. Does the Grand Final rematch need to be the following year's season opener?
If we're to believe the recent scuttlebutt emanating from AFL House, Opening Round is officially -- at long, long last -- dead. Kaput. Hopefully never to be seen, or thought of, again.
So, what whacky idea will the league's wheel of fortune land on for next season's first round? Do we have 12, 14, or 18 teams competing? How about we play all of the games in China? Or perhaps only those who are right-foot dominant can take to the field.
I'll tell you what, here's an idea; let's have all 18 teams playing (shocker, I know!) at various grounds across the country, and we kick off the season with a rematch of the previous year's Grand Final match-up, to be hosted by the premier. For example, the 2026 season would have been launched with Brisbane and Geelong at the Gabba, the game that's fixtured for Thursday evening.
Not only is it a classy touch from the league to honour the two best teams of the prior campaign, it's also a fitting opportunity for the most recent premiership winner to unveil the flag, cup, or whatever it wants, in front of its home fans, many of which probably weren't in attendance at the MCG six months earlier to bask in the celebrations.
The only argument against I can entertain is that by making such a change to the fixture you rob the middle rounds of a marquee clash. But can anyone honestly say that this Lions-Cats clash will have more punch now than it would have as the first game of the year? In my mind, there's no better way to say 'footy's back' than a Grand Final rematch six months later to launch the season.
2. We should remember Michael Voss for his 2023 exploits
In news that will likely surprise absolutely nobody, Michael Voss' tenure at Carlton is over after four-and-a-half seasons at the club. The writing had been on the wall for the better part of 24 months as the Jekyll and Hyde Blues crashed from legitimate premiership contenders to the most laughable club in the competition.
Rule changes to help reduce the amount of stoppages and congestion didn't help his case as a predominantly contested and clearance-minded coach. But Voss has also been unable to adapt and build a new identity despite working with a list many still believe is good enough to be, at the very least, in contention for finals football.
For many Blues fans, the wish for a fresh start has now been granted, with assistant Josh Fraser to step into a caretaker role in the interim as the club scans the footy landscape for the most viable option to lead the team in 2027.
But back to Voss. His legacy at the Blues will inevitably be as the figure responsible for the club becoming the first in footy history to cough up as many leads. Seriously, I wrote about this unwanted record just last week. However, one can argue this: no Blues coach has achieved more than him since the turn of the millennium.
Not two-and-a-half years ago Voss steered Carlton to a preliminary final after back-to-back gripping September wins over Sydney and Melbourne. At quarter-time of that preliminary final against Brisbane -- in Brisbane -- the Blues were the bookmakers' favourite to advance to the Grand Final. And while the Lions ultimately overran them, those two finals wins still account for half of the club's September success since 2002.
READ: Whoever coaches Carlton next year has a finals-ready list
3. How many 'elite' players does each club have?
Just like the 'superstar' tag, there's no shortage of players in the competition referred to as 'elite'. I think we can pump the brakes on many of these declarations, while there are others who probably deserve such recognition but almost never receive it.
So, who is elite? And how many elite players are there on each team in 2026? Unlike for the fully subjective superstar list I penned last month, the elite list is far more scientific and taken from Champion Data. According to them, to be categorised as elite, a player must rank in the top 10% for their position. Here's who makes the cut in 2026:
Is this my list? No. Do I agree with every name on, or not on it? I don't. Quite frankly, not having Nick Daicos listed is enough for me to dismiss it in its entirety. Still, at the very least, it's a fascinating set of names that are spat out when the numbers are run on who the top 10% of players are in each position.
4. Please, let's have much more of this
Making any sort of joke in this day and age is fraught with extreme danger, but boy is footy just that little bit spicier when clubs have a bit of fun with their banners.
This one from the Giants was an absolute cracker:
Sometimes content just lands in your lap. pic.twitter.com/TMd8VlY9MT
— GWS GIANTS (@GWSGIANTS) May 9, 2026
Obviously, it was a not-so-subtle jibe at what's now become known in footy circles as 'whiteboardgate', the famous leaked photograph of a Lions whiteboard featuring strength and weakness traits of Essendon players. A scouting report, if you will.
Of course, there was some backlash to the banner, but it's all in good spirits. Have a laugh. What I will say is that the Giants can count themselves extremely fortunate to have found a way over the Bombers on Saturday afternoon...
5. Something quirky I noticed
Malcolm Rosas was just about the player of Round 8. The Swans forward booted a career-high seven goals straight as Sydney bested Melbourne in a shootout at the SCG.
Could you call it an out-of-the-box performance? Well, probably! This past weekend, against the Kangaroos, Rosas failed to hit the scoreboard. He was also held goalless in the game prior to his seven-goal haul against the Demons. So, how many players have had a 0, 7, 0 run in footy history? Turns out it's happened only a few times.
6. My favourite stat of the week
On Saturday evening in Darwin, John Noble tallied an equal game-high 31 disposals in Gold Coast's win over St Kilda. He finished the night with 30 uncontested possessions and zero contested possessions. Just quietly, if that was Harry Sheezel or Archie Roberts, social media would have been sent into a frenzy!
Did you know that's the most disposals Champion Data has ever recorded for a player that's finished the same game with zero contested possessions? Noble also became just the second player to lead his team in disposals while having zero contested possessions, joining Sydney's Jarryd McVeigh (28 and zero) in Round 22, 2008.