25 years, over 1,000 former players drafted to the AFL and these superstars of our game have been selected as the Top 25 in AFL Victoria’s TAC Cup competition’s history.
Celebrating the success of the TAC Cup since its inception in 1992, the remarkable talent to have emerged from the competition has been recognised with the release of the TAC Cup Top 25 players, featuring a who’s who of the best players in the AFL over the last two decades.
Fourteen current AFL players are part of the list, including Luke Hodge, Gary Ablett Jnr, Scott Pendlebury, Jimmy Bartel, Sam Mitchell, Dan Hannebery, Robert Murphy, Joel Selwood, Jarryd Roughead, Dane Swan, Brent Harvey, Patrick Dangerfield, Nick Dal Santo and Stevie Johnson, with 11 former AFL players completing the Top 25 with Matthew Scarlett, Chris Johnson, Justin Leppitsch, Jonathan Brown, Cameron Ling, Dustin Fletcher, Barry Hall, Matthew Lloyd, Adam Goodes, Brad Johnson and Chris Judd.
Selected by a panel consisting of Kevin Sheehan, Leon Harris and Anton Grbac, the accolades of this group are lengthy, with former TAC Cup players judged on their achievements and impact in the AFL.
Players needed to have participated in at least one TAC Cup game to qualify for selection in the TAC Cup Top 25, as well as playing 150 AFL games.
There is not much this group of former TAC Cup players has not achieved, with the Top 25 featuring:
5 Brownlow Medal winners (8 medals overall)
21 premiership players (49 premiership medallions in total)
14 club captains
15 club best & fairest winners (44 wins in total)
25 All Australian players (including 88 All Australian selections)
3 Coleman Medallists
All TAC Cup regions are represented, with Geelong Falcons boasting the most selections with seven, followed by Gippsland Power, Western Jets (3), Bendigo Pioneers, Murray Bushrangers, Northern Knights (2) and Calder Cannons, Dandenong Stingrays, Eastern Ranges, North Ballarat Rebels, Oakleigh Chargers, Sandringham Dragons (1).
With 2016 marking the 25th year of AFL Victoria’s long-standing partnership with the Transport Accident Commission (TAC), Chief Executive Officer Steven Reaper said highlighting the competition’s best former players showcases the depth of high quality talent that has passed through the U18 competition.
“The Top 25 provides an opportunity to look back at the history of the TAC Cup and its players, highlighting the important role the competition plays in developing players both on and off the field, which should never be underestimated,” Reaper said.
“It was an unenviable task of narrowing down the long list of incredible former TAC Cup talent to a list of 25 players, but the calibre of players that missed out on selection underlines the depth of talented players helped in their development by our regions and their staff.
“While the TAC Cup helps players develop their skills and talent, our talent programs also assist in creating safe road users through key messaging instilled in our players since 1992 from our valued partner TAC, which continues in 2016 with the Towards Zero campaign.”
The TAC Cup Top 25 ranked in order from 1 to 25 will be revealed at the Morrish Medal night on Sunday September 4. The event will be live video streamed via taccup.com.au
Provide your thoughts on the Top 25 on social media with the hashtag #TACCupTop25
| Joel Selwood |
Bendigo Pioneers |
Geelong |
| Nick DalSanto |
Bendigo Pioneers |
St Kilda/North Melbourne |
| Dane Swan |
Calder Cannons |
Collingwood |
| Justin Leppitsch |
Dandenong Stingrays |
Brisbane Lions |
| Sam Mitchell |
Eastern Ranges |
Hawthorn |
| Gary Ablett Jnr |
Geelong Falcons |
Geelong/Gold Coast |
| Luke Hodge |
Geelong Falcons |
Hawthorn |
| Jonathan Brown |
Geelong Falcons |
Brisbane Lions |
| Matthew Scarlett |
Geelong Falcons |
Geelong |
| Jimmy Bartel |
Geelong Falcons |
Geelong |
| Cameron Ling |
Geelong Falcons |
Geelong |
| Patrick Dangerfield |
Geelong Falcons |
Adelaide/Geelong |
| Scott Pendlebury |
Gippsland Power |
Collingwood |
| Jarryd Roughead |
Gippsland Power |
Hawthorn |
| Robert Murphy |
Gippsland Power |
Western Bulldogs |
| Barry Hall |
Murray Bushrangers |
St Kilda/Sydney/Western Bulldogs |
| Steve Johnson |
Murray Bushrangers |
Geelong/GWS |
| Adam Goodes |
North Ballarat Rebels |
Sydney Swans |
| Brent Harvey |
Northern Knights |
North Melbourne |
| Chris Johnson |
Northern Knights |
Fitzroy/Brisbane Lions |
| Dan Hannebery |
Oakleigh Chargers |
Sydney |
| Chris Judd |
Sandringham Dragons |
West Coast/Carlton |
| Brad Johnson |
Western Jets |
Western Bulldogs |
| Matthew Lloyd |
Western Jets |
Essendon |
| Dustin Fletcher |
Western Jets |
Essendon |
Last Modified on 24/08/2016 16:40
