The bye rounds have come and gone and all teams are caught up on 14 matches each after 15 rounds of footy in 2021.
Having last assessed the free kick ladder in Round 11, we’re back to analyse what has been happening over the last few weeks.
We saw the Western Bulldogs on top of the standings with a differential of +31 which has now increased to +46 to keep them on top.
The Dogs are only eighth on the frees for ladder but have given away the fewest.
The Adelaide Crows are the big movers, shifting from sixth to second with their positive differential doubling to +28.
They have traded places with Carlton who have dropped directly from second to sixth but have only fallen four frees on the positive differential.
North Melbourne has slid up two positions from fifth to third, GWS has fallen one spot to fourth, and Melbourne is up to fifth after holding seventh last time around.
Essendon fans have every right to feel aggrieved. The Bombers were fourth with +20 after Round 11, but are now ninth on +1 after being on the losing side of the free kick ledger in their last three matches.
Down the bottom, Richmond remains on -62 with the least frees for and second most against.
The nearest to the Tigers are St Kilda who have a differential of -24 while the biggest offenders in 2021 so far are the Brisbane Lions who have given away the most free kicks at a -12 differential.
Check out the free kick ladder after Round 15:
| Position | Club | Frees For | Frees Against | Differential |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | W.Bulldogs | 278 | 232 | 46 |
| 2 | Adelaide | 307 | 279 | 28 |
| 3 | North Melbourne | 298 | 272 | 26 |
| 4 | GWS | 279 | 255 | 24 |
| 5 | Melbourne | 285 | 267 | 18 |
| 6 | Carlton | 297 | 280 | 17 |
| 7 | West Coast | 244 | 236 | 8 |
| 8 | Geelong | 274 | 273 | 1 |
| 9 | Essendon | 256 | 255 | 1 |
| 10 | Hawthorn | 264 | 270 | -6 |
| 11 | Fremantle | 253 | 262 | -9 |
| 12 | Port Adelaide | 282 | 292 | -10 |
| 13 | Brisbane | 289 | 301 | -12 |
| 14 | Sydney | 277 | 289 | -12 |
| 15 | Collingwood | 255 | 267 | -12 |
| 16 | Gold Coast | 243 | 265 | -22 |
| 17 | St Kilda | 251 | 275 | -24 |
| 18 | Richmond | 231 | 293 | -62 |
We have also revisited the individual free kicks ladder.
Geelong captain Joel Selwood sits on top with 38 frees for. He has a clear league-best differential of +22 having only given 16 away.
Carlton co-captain Patrick Cripps is five behind in second, North Melbourne ruckman Todd Goldstein has been attracting a few frees over the season so far, while midfielders Zach Merrett, Clayton Oliver and Jack Macrae are all winning plenty.
Port Adelaide’s Charlie Dixon has the most frees as a forward and sits ahead of North on-baller Ben Cunnington, Adelaide’s Rory Laird and Brisbane big man Oscar McInerney.
| Player | Club | Frees For |
|---|---|---|
| Joel Selwood | GEE | 38 |
| Patrick Cripps | CAR | 33 |
| Todd Goldstein | NM | 29 |
| Zach Merrett | ESS | 28 |
| Clayton Oliver | MEL | 27 |
| Jack Macrae | WB | 27 |
| Charlie Dixon | PA | 27 |
| Ben Cunnington | NM | 26 |
| Rory Laird | ADE | 25 |
| Oscar McInerney | BRI | 25 |
The free kicks against ladder has Cripps as the competition’s biggest offender after giving away 31 to go with his 33 for.
Lions skipper Dayne Zorko has given away 28 ahead of Fremantle ruckman Sean Darcy, Collingwood’s Brodie Grundy and Richmond’s Marlion Pickett.
The latter has the worst differential of those in the top 10 at -17 after attracting just 10 frees for.
Hawthorn defender Sam Frost has given away 23 frees but only been awarded five at a -18 differential.
| Player | Club | Frees Against |
|---|---|---|
| Patrick Cripps | CAR | 31 |
| Dayne Zorko | BRI | 28 |
| Sean Darcy | FRE | 27 |
| Marlion Pickett | RIC | 27 |
| Brodie Grundy | COL | 27 |
| Ben Cunnington | NM | 26 |
| Sam Walsh | CAR | 26 |
| Zac Bailey | BRI | 26 |
| Rory Laird | ADE | 25 |
| Nat Fyfe | FRE | 25 |
We'll be back after Round 19 to check in on the infamous free kick ladder.