A draft steal and late bloomer could snap an AFL Coleman Medal stranglehold.

North Melbourne's Ben Brown and West Coast's Jack Darling are laying claims to pry Lance Franklin and Josh Kennedy's grip from the medal.

Sydney's Franklin and West Coast's Kennedy have shared the past four medals for the AFL's leading goalkicker.

But after nine rounds of the new season, North Melbourne's Brown, overlooked for three drafts, and Darling are positioned to engrave a new name on the medal.

Brown has booted 31.10 this season - 70.5 percent accuracy - to enhance his status as a sharpshooter.

Of players with more than 18 goals this season only Hawthorn's Luke Breust (23 goals, 71.9 percent) has a better conversion rate.

Over his 86 game career, Brown has scored 185.84. And his goal average has almost doubled in the past three seasons: from 1.86 in 2016, to 3.44 this year.

The Tasmanian has entered footy folklore as one of the great draft steals, taken by the Roos with pick 47 in 2013.

Brown had been overlooked at three drafts -- he hurt a knee, requiring a reconstruction, in his TAC Cup year; then played in his native Tasmania for Glenorchy before a wise career move.

Brown moved to Melbourne to play for the then North Melbourne-affiliated Werribee and he was selected in the next national draft, aged 20.

Brown leads the race for this year's Coleman, admittedly in Franklin's injury-enforced absence.

Sydney megastar Franklin has kicked 21.11 but missed three games because of a foot complaint.

Brown is three goals clear of West Coast's Darling, who is enjoying a breakout season at age 25.

Darling made his AFL debut in 2011 and has played 160 games but has rarely struck such a scoring purple patch.

The Eagle has booted 28.11, with a career-best 6.2 in Sunday's win against reigning premiers Richmond.

Jack Darling Paul Kane/Getty Images

Darling is averaging 3.11 goals a game - also a career-high, with his previous best 2.21 six seasons ago when he was his club's leading goalkicker.

Darling then suffered some torrid finals campaigns - he's scored just 20 goals in 11 finals, six of them losses.

Darling's teammate and dual Coleman medallist Kennedy has booted 18.9 this season while Richmond's Jack Riewoldt, a two-time Coleman winner is in third spot on the goalkicking table with 24.13.

Four of the past six Coleman medallists have scored fewer than 70 goals.

COLEMAN FACTS

THE PAST 10 COLEMAN MEDALLISTS: Franklin 4 (2008, 2011, 2014, 2017); Kennedy 2 (2015, 2016), Riewoldt 2 (2010, 2013), Jarryd Roughead 1 (2013), Brendan Fevola 1 (2009)

MOST GOALS IN A SEASON IN PAST DECADE: 102 - Franklin, 2008

FEWEST GOALS TO WIN COLEMAN IN PAST DECADE: 65 - Riewoldt, 2012

BEN BROWN: Has 31.10, goal average career-high 3.44; previous best 63 goals last year

JACK DARLING: Has 28.10, goal average career-high 3.11; previous best 53 goals in 2012