THE midfield is the engine room of any AFLW team. It is the first chance to win the footy, so having a strong midfield group is often a sign of a strong team.

Increasingly, complementary midfield partnerships have been leaders for their respective sides, developing chemistry that is particularly difficult to defend.

So, who are the four best midfield one-two punches this AFLW season?

Jasmine Garner and Ash Riddell (North Melbourne)

Arguably the most dominant pair of midfielders in the AFLW, Garner and Riddell make one another better. Bringing each other into the game, and playing marginally different roles from week to week, their ability to play seriously attacking football is impressive.

Often one will be largely responsible for winning the clearance and delivering it to the other who is positioned outside the contest, and from there it is about getting the ball inside 50.

Both Garner and Riddell are smart, spreading from the contest and losing their direct opponent in the affray.

Between the two of them, Garner and Riddell are responsible for 23 per cent of North Melbourne's disposals, 32.2 per cent of its inside 50s and 40.8 per cent of its clearances.

Ebony Marinoff and Anne Hatchard (Adelaide)

The pair that really set the standard for midfield duos a few seasons ago, Marinoff and Hatchard complement one another in their varying assets. While both find space with ease away from the initial congestion, they are reliable in doing the hard stuff and applying pressure.

Marinoff typically remains closer to the contest, ready and willing to win the contested footy if necessary, while Hatchard will often move quickly into attack once the ball is won to be a marking target up the ground.

With three and five goals respectively this year, they are also finding the scoreboard more this season.

Together Marinoff and Hatchard are responsible for 20 per cent of Adelaide's disposals, 23.5 per cent of its tackles and 34.9 per cent of its clearances.

Claudia Whitfort and Charlie Rowbottom (Gold Coast)

Breaking through this year in their third season together, Claudia Whitfort and Charlie Rowbottom have set Gold Coast up well from the middle.

Another duo whose assets are very much complementary of one another's, Rowbottom is essentially the muscle and Whitfort is the run. This is not to suggest that they can't offer what the other excels at, but at their best they fit together like a neat puzzle.

Both are willing to run both defensively and in attack and have, over time, developed a strong chemistry to improve each other's game.

Whitfort and Rowbottom are responsible for 20.2 per cent of Gold Coast's disposals, 45.8 per cent of its clearances and 24.9 per cent of its tackles.

Georgie Prespakis and Amy McDonald (Geelong)

Geelong pair Georgie Prespakis and Amy McDonald aren't quite as attacking as other midfield duos, but they have been an important driver of their side's improvement in recent seasons.

While Prespakis is an agile linebreaker wanting to gain ground with every disposal, McDonald is more of a deft evader, feeding the ball to the Cats' outside runners.

Given their similar strengths at the contest, they make it tough for opposition midfield units to decide which to work out of the game, because few sides will be able to shut down both.

Prespakis and McDonald have this year combined for 18.8 per cent of Geelong's disposals, 22.4 per cent of its tackles, and 43.8 per cent of its clearances.