LONG live the new kings of the close finish.
The Western Bulldogs have taken the crown from Collingwood as the best clutch team in the AFL, with their nailbiting win over Hawthorn on Friday night their sixth win by six points or less so far this season.
And their opponent this Thursday night, Adelaide, has also emerged – along with Collingwood – as the club that provides its fans with more heart-stopping finishes than most.
ROUND 14 Get your seats to Bulldogs v Crows
Since Matthew Nicks took over as Crows coach at the start of 2020, almost a quarter of Adelaide's games – 35 out of 142 – have been decided by a goal or less, including Thursday night's thrilling win over Geelong.
That is second only to the Pies in that time, who have had 43 games decided by six points or less since the start of 2020. Collingwood, however, holds a winning record in those matches (25 wins, four draws, 14 losses) while the Crows have a losing record of 13-1-21 in those games.
While the Magpies hold a favourable record over that stretch of time, their ability to win close games has well and truly deserted them in the past 18 months.
Having won 19 of 25 games (76 per cent) decided by six points or less between 2022 and 2024, the Pies have a 4-1-7 record in close games since the start of 2025, a win percentage of 37.50 per cent that puts them 12th in the competition.
Port Adelaide has followed the Collingwood trend; the Power have the best win percentage of any club in close games since the start of 2020 (63.33 per cent), but that number plummets to 25 per cent (two wins from eight close games) since the start of 2025.
Along with the Bulldogs, Sydney – another side to register a tight win in round 13 – has mastered close finishes in the past 18 months. The Swans have won a little more than half of their close games since the start of 2020, but have lost just one of six close games since the start of last season, a win rate of 83.33 per cent.
Your club's record in close games
(matches decided by six points or less)
In 2026 so far
|
Team |
Gms |
W |
D |
L |
|
Adelaide |
5 |
3 |
0 |
2 |
|
Brisbane |
2 |
0 |
0 |
2 |
|
Carlton |
4 |
3 |
0 |
1 |
|
Collingwood |
5 |
1 |
1 |
3 |
|
Essendon |
1 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
|
Fremantle |
2 |
2 |
0 |
0 |
|
Greater Western Sydney |
1 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
|
Geelong |
3 |
0 |
0 |
3 |
|
Gold Coast |
1 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
|
Hawthorn |
4 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
|
Melbourne |
2 |
1 |
0 |
1 |
|
North Melbourne |
1 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
|
Port Adelaide |
5 |
1 |
0 |
4 |
|
Richmond |
1 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
|
St Kilda |
3 |
1 |
0 |
2 |
|
Sydney |
2 |
2 |
0 |
0 |
|
West Coast |
2 |
1 |
0 |
1 |
|
Western Bulldogs |
6 |
6 |
0 |
0 |
Since the start of 2025
|
Team |
Gms |
W |
D |
L |
|
Adelaide |
10 |
6 |
0 |
4 |
|
Brisbane |
6 |
1 |
1 |
4 |
|
Carlton |
4 |
3 |
0 |
1 |
|
Collingwood |
12 |
4 |
1 |
7 |
|
Essendon |
4 |
2 |
0 |
2 |
|
Fremantle |
7 |
5 |
0 |
2 |
|
Greater Western Sydney |
4 |
3 |
0 |
1 |
|
Geelong |
5 |
1 |
0 |
4 |
|
Gold Coast |
5 |
3 |
0 |
2 |
|
Hawthorn |
5 |
3 |
1 |
1 |
|
Melbourne |
7 |
1 |
0 |
6 |
|
North Melbourne |
5 |
2 |
1 |
2 |
|
Port Adelaide |
8 |
2 |
0 |
6 |
|
Richmond |
5 |
1 |
0 |
4 |
|
St Kilda |
7 |
4 |
0 |
3 |
|
Sydney |
6 |
5 |
0 |
1 |
|
West Coast |
4 |
1 |
0 |
3 |
|
Western Bulldogs |
8 |
7 |
0 |
1 |
Since the start of 2020
|
Team |
Gms |
W |
D |
L |
|
Adelaide |
35 |
13 |
1 |
21 |
|
Brisbane |
24 |
11 |
2 |
11 |
|
Carlton |
27 |
16 |
1 |
10 |
|
Collingwood |
43 |
25 |
4 |
14 |
|
Essendon |
28 |
13 |
2 |
13 |
|
Fremantle |
21 |
11 |
2 |
8 |
|
Greater Western Sydney |
27 |
16 |
1 |
10 |
|
Geelong |
21 |
10 |
1 |
10 |
|
Gold Coast |
19 |
8 |
1 |
10 |
|
Hawthorn |
24 |
10 |
3 |
11 |
|
Melbourne |
29 |
11 |
1 |
17 |
|
North Melbourne |
19 |
7 |
2 |
10 |
|
Port Adelaide |
30 |
19 |
0 |
11 |
|
Richmond |
25 |
6 |
4 |
15 |
|
St Kilda |
23 |
9 |
0 |
14 |
|
Sydney |
31 |
16 |
1 |
14 |
|
West Coast |
13 |
4 |
0 |
9 |
|
Western Bulldogs |
21 |
12 |
0 |
9 |
