Dwayne Russell's top 10 prediction for the 2026 AFL season

Dwayne Russell has dropped his predicted top 10 ahead of the 2026 AFL season.

Introducing the Wildcard Round for the first time, the AFL's post-season has stretched from eight to 10 clubs, handing ninth and tenth a chance to extend their season into September.

Now just over a month away from the home and away season, Dwayne has listed off the 10 teams that he believes will round out the new format as of late January.

With pre-season contests still to play, Russell has refused to lock in his rankings, however, has provided a rough 10 with time still to play.

“Here’s my pencilled in rankings,” Dwayne told SEN's Dwayne's World.

1 - Brisbane

“I don’t think you can go past Brisbane Lions’ list, given what they’ve added.

“They might go the season with 20 wins and three losses. They are looking really good again, the Brisbane Lions.

“They needed a ruckman, so they went and got Sam Draper, and Oscar Allen is going to be a huge addition to their forward line if he is fit, and by all reports, he is fit.

“Some pretty good draft picks that they’ve got as well, the Ashcroft boys are fit and firing and they might end up being the next big things of the competition.

“We might be talking about them in terms of greats of all time in a couple of years.”

2 - Sydney

“Added Charlie Curnow, I like the look of Sydney.

“According to afficionados who look at draws, they’ve got the 13th toughest draw, so the sixth easiest (fixtures).”

3 - Gold Coast

“They’ve got a tough draw, but gee they’ve added well.”

4 - Fremantle

“They’ve got the second toughest draw, so that’s not going to do them any favours.

“I’m a massive fan of Luke Jackson. I think Luke Jackson could still be the next big thing in this competition. All-Australian, and, really, the guy that everyone has to plan to beat when it comes to Fremantle.”

5 - Geelong

“Third toughest draw.”

6 - Hawthorn

“They’ve got some great depth. When you look at their list, I had guys on the bench like Jack Gunston, Cam Mackenzie, Jack Scrimshaw, Connor Macdonald, Harry Morrison!

“They’ll get Will Day back halfway through the year.”

7 - Western Bulldogs

“Mainly because of the Sam Darcy factor, but I still don’t like their backline as much as some do.”

8 - Collingwood

“I think the Magpies, I’m not sure they will fall off the cliff like some people think they will.

“I think they will drop a little, but I don’t think they are going to fall off a cliff.”

9 - Adelaide

“They’ve got a couple of injuries – Sid Draper and Dan Curtin. If Dan Curtin was fit, he would be a big difference maker.

“A bit of a watch on Adelaide at the moment.”

10 - GWS Giants

“Big drop for the Giants. They’ve got the second easiest draw, so that’s going to help them.

“But they’ve got a lot of injuries at the moment.”

Dwayne also listed his rankings for the remaining eight clubs, specifying that these are subject to change over the coming weeks.

11 - St Kilda

“This is as of the 29th of Jan. If they show some good signs in pre-season, they might rise for me before the season starts.”

12 - Port Adelaide

13 - Carlton

14 - Melbourne

15 - Essendon

16 - North Melbourne

17 - Richmond

18 - West Coast

“My bottom five stays pretty much the same as last year.”