Contested possessions are spoken about ad nauseum in modern day football.

But what is a contested possession? And how much of a positive impact does one have?

Champion Data describes it as: “A possession which has been won when the ball is in dispute.

“Includes looseball-gets, hardball-gets, contested marks, gathers from a hitout and frees for.”

In Round 8, North Melbourne midfielder Ben Cunnington broke the VFL/AFL record by claiming 32 contested possessions in what was a clinic of hard-bodied footy.

But the Kangaroos were beaten by Richmond.

Similarly, Patrick Cripps had 25 in Round 1 only for Carlton to lose to the reigning premiers and Nat Fyfe (26) and Lachie Neale (18) dominated the Tigers around the footy but were on the end of a 77-point hammering in Round 7.

On the flipside, Tom Mitchell had the ball 27 times in a contested situation as Hawthorn knocked off Collingwood in Round 1.

In Round 4, Magpies trio Steele Sidebottom, Brodie Grundy and Adam Treloar accumulated 68 CPs between them as Nathan Buckley’s side ravaged Adelaide on their home ground.

There are plenty of examples of contested possessions influencing results, both positive and negative, but it all comes down to the value of the contested possession to a particular team or situation.

A team who are brilliant at contested footy may be lacking in the outside element of the game while some sides can move the ball quickly but struggle to get their hands on it in tight surrounds.

Just as with everything in sport and life, it’s about balance.

Here are some contested possessions stats just to help paint a picture:

Contested Possessions ladder (after Round 8):

Melbourne (6th on ladder): 1305

North Melbourne (10th): 1231

Gold Coast Suns (14th): 1225

Adelaide (4th): 1224

Collingwood (11th): 1219

Geelong (3rd): 1199

Sydney (7th): 1195

Richmond (1st): 1195

GWS Giants (9th): 1163

Hawthorn (5th): 1159

Port Adelaide (8th): 1153

West Coast (2nd): 1145

Essendon (15th): 1132

Carlton (17th): 1130

Fremantle (12th): 1112

Western Bulldogs (13th): 1097

St Kilda (16th): 1087

Brisbane (18th): 1086

When you look at the differential, still there is no clear guide:

CP Differential ladder (after Round 8):

Melbourne (6th): +15.9

North Melbourne (10th): +7.3

GWS Giants (9th): +5.9

West Coast (2nd): +5.5

Collingwood (11th): +5.1

Geelong (3rd): +4.5

Adelaide (4th): +4.4

Sydney (7th): +3.9

Fremantle (12th): +2.1

Essendon (15th): -1.2

Western Bulldogs (13th): -3.5

Gold Coast (14th): -5.4

Carlton (17th): -6.1

Port Adelaide (8th): -6.1

Hawthorn (5th): -6.9

Richmond (1st): -7.2

St Kilda (16th): -8.7

Brisbane (18th): -9.2



And simply for interest's sake, the individual ladder after Round 8:

Nat Fyfe (Fremantle): 153

Patrick Cripps (Carlton): 151

Tom Mitchell (Hawthorn): 133

Ben Cunnington (North Melbourne): 132

Clayton Oliver (Melbourne): 132

Lachie Neale (Fremantle): 111

Jackson Macrae (Western Bulldogs): 110

Luke Parker (Sydney): 107

Josh Kennedy (Sydney): 106

Ollie Wines (Port Adelaide): 104

Jarryd Lyons (Gold Coast): 103

Hugh Greenwood (Adelaide): 102

Brodie Grundy (Collingwood): 102

Joel Selwood (Geelong): 102

Adam Treloar (Collingwood): 102

David Swallow (Gold Coast): 99

Elliot Yeo (West Coast): 99

Trent Cotchin (Richmond): 98

Patrick Dangerfield (Geelong): 96

Touk Miller (Gold Coast): 92