At long last, footy is back and fans showed just how much they had missed it.

The AFL smashed the record for a single-round attendance by almost 30,000 after 400,401 spectators had flocked to the opening nine matches of the season.

Much has been made of Carlton and Richmond's stranglehold on the season-opener, and after another rather uncompetitive match we could be on the verge of seeing the torch passed on. The Blues were no match for the Tigers who ran out convincing 43 point winners, giving Brendon Bolton plenty to contemplate so early in the season.

Friday night saw an impressive Collingwood outfit challenge the reigning premiers, but a third quarter burst from the Western Bulldogs ensured they would take the points in the opener. For the first time in the club's history they have won five consecutive matches at the MCG.

Saturday turned out to be the unofficial day of the underdog as the Saints, Swans, Hawks and Suns were all rolled, vindicating the idea that 2017 is one of the most even competitions of all time.

The round wrapped up on Sunday with the Crows dishing out a 56 point win over flag favourites GWS, while the Cats prevailed over the Dockers in the west.

HEROES

Dominant Dusty: He's been the subject of enormous speculation about his future post 2017, but Dustin Martin turned it on in the season-opener at the MCG on Thursday night. The polarising midfielder racked up 33 disposals, gained a massive 801 metres and had 13 score involvements, which included four goals of his own in a comfortable win for the Tigers. His trademark 'don't argue' was on full display in the fourth quarter when he fended off Sam Docherty to set-up Daniel Rioli for a goal. With this sort of form, a Brownlow Medal is not out of the question.

(Photo by Michael Dodge/Getty Images)

Curse-breaking Dees: Two years back a match between St Kilda and Melbourne would not have had too many footy fans excited, but with both sides widely tipped for serious improvement in 2017, it promised to be one of the standouts in round one. The Demons overcame a sloppy start to run out 30 point winners, leaving everyone running for the stat books.

It was the first time in 14-matches the Dees had managed to topple the Saints. Last win came in 2006.

The win was also just their second at Etihad Stadium from the past 26 attempts.

Melbourne has now won its past three season-openers (2015-17). Prior to this streak, last round one win came in 2005.

Fairytale return: It has been a long and storied few years for the Essendon Football Club but all of that was swept aside on Saturday night as the Bombers welcomed back six players from their year long suspension. Going up against the mighty Hawks was never going to be an easy feat, and when they found themselves down early in the third, things didn't look great. The club responded in emphatic fashion and it was new captain Dyson Heppell who led the charge, finishing the game with 34 disposals and 3 goals on the way to a memorable 25 point victory.

VILLAINS

Ty Vickery: It was not the fresh start the former Tiger was hoping for. Vickery and the Hawks went down to the comeback Bombers by 25 points on Saturday night in what was the first time Hawthorn had contested a round one match without Sam Mitchell, Jordan Lewis and Luke Hodge since 2001. On debut for his new side, Vickery was well held by Michael Hartley but had a chance to turn his fortunes around in the third quarter when the match was still in the balance. However, two missed set shots eventually led to the Bombers kicking away. Not the best first impression, Ty.

Photo by Michael Dodge/Getty Images

Sydney's intent: You would have thought that after being rolled in last year's grand final the Swans would have wanted to enter round one and reassert themselves on the competition. The stage was set for it with a home match against a Port Adelaide side that struggled to a 10th place finish in 2016. However, Sydney were out-foxed, out-hunted and in the end out-played by the Power, going down by 28 points at the SCG. Port Adelaide, led by skipper Travis Boak along with Ollie Wines and Brad Ebert won the clearance count (47-40) as well as the contested possession (161-139). Sydney's round two grand final rematch against the Bulldogs suddenly becomes even more crucial.