The Goal of the Year is a competition for the best goal kicked in the Australian Football League (AFL) during that season. It is run in conjunction with the Mark of the Year competition and is currently sponsored by Rebel Sport. The winner is awarded the Phil Manassa Medal.[1] The concept of awards for the goal and mark of the year is thought to have been initiated in 1970, as an unofficial award given by the media to Alex Jesaulenko following his famous mark in that season's grand final. The official awards were first given in 2001. Eddie Betts has been awarded Goal of the Year on an unparalleled four occasions (2006, 2015, 2016 and 2019), the most of any player, and is the only player to win the award in consecutive seasons.
Each week, three of the best goals of the round (including the finals) are selected as nominees. A panel of AFL selectors choose the winning goal of the round.
For the first time in 2006, the general public were able to vote for nominated goals via the AFL's website. The results of the public voting are combined with the panel's votes.Any one of the goals judged to be the best of the round are able to win the official Goal of the Year.
The overall winner is selected from the 27 weekly winners (24 rounds and the first three weeks of the finals) by the AFL All-Australian selection committee; the public is not given a say in the final outcome. The winner receives the Phil Manassa Medal, a replica of the perpetual Toyota AFL Goal of the Year Trophy, use of a Toyota Aurion for twelve months, and $10,000 for their grassroots football club. The winner will be announced on Grand Final day.
Goal of the Year is generally awarded to a player who creates and scores a difficult goal in play; it has never been, and is unlikely to ever be, awarded to a goal kicked from a set shot. Historically, it has been the quality of the creation of the goal which determines the winner, rather than the difficulty of the shot itself. As such, simply kicking a goal from the boundary line will not guarantee a player Goal of the Year, but if they have roved the ball cleanly off a pack (like Jason Akermanis in 2002) or won the ball by stealing or smothering it from an opponent (like Peter Bosustow in 1981), then they will generally come into Goal of the Year calculations. Players are also often rewarded for orchestrating a long run down the field which ends with a big goal on the run: Daniel Kerr in 2003 and Michael McGuane in 1994 are memorable examples.
Many of the best goals in the VFL/AFL were featured in a VHS/DVD named Golden Goals.
| Year | Winner | Team | Description | Video | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | Round 7 goal against Fremantle at the Gabba. From the pocket and under pressure, Ashcroft collected the ball in mid-air and brought it down onto his boot in one smooth motion all before landing back on the ground, kicking an incredible goal from the outside of the boot on a tight angle. | ||||
| 2022 | Round 18 goal against Gold Coast at Marvel Stadium. Ruckman Draper gathered the ball directly from the centre bounce, sprinted towards the 50m arc, executed a one–two handpass with Matt Guelfi, side-stepped Suns defender Charlie Ballard before successfully slotting a banana kick from 25 metres out on a slight angle. | [2] | |||
| 2021 | Round 22 goal against West Coast Eagles at Optus Stadium. Ball was kept in by Adam Cerra, who gave to Mitch Crowden, who broke a tackle before handpassing to Serong, who was knocked to the ground by Dom Sheed before getting up again and kicking the checkside goal from deep in the right forward pocket. Anthony Hudson's call of "Serong, so right" immortalised the goal. | [3] | |||
| 2020 | Round 10 goal against Sydney at the Gabba. Daicos was on the boundary line under pressure, handballs it in front of himself and the Sydney defender, then picking it up again and kicking a right foot banana 30 metres out on the boundary. A kick reminiscent of one his father Peter would frequently kick. | [4] | |||
| 2019 | Round 5 goal against Gold Coast at Adelaide Oval. In his 300th game, Betts kicked a classic left-footed banana from about 30 metres out on the boundary line of the same left hand pocket as his 2015 and 2016 Goal of the Year winners. | [5] | |||
| 2018 | Round 19 goal against Collingwood at the MCG; under pressure and standing behind the goal line but keeping the ball in play, Higgins dropped the ball around the goal post and kicked it backwards over his head | [6] | |||
| 2017 | Round 3 goal against West Coast at the MCG, Rioli successfully kept the ball in bounds up against the boundary line and kicked a right foot banana on the run 35m out from goal. | [7] | |||
| 2016 | Round 10 goal against Greater Western Sydney at Adelaide Oval. Betts successfully trapped and gathered the ball on the boundary line 50m out from goal after a spoiled marking contest. Betts then evades two GWS players before kicking a goal with a right foot snap from 35m out. | [8] | |||
| 2015 | Round 9 goal against Fremantle at Adelaide Oval. Kicked inside-out with his left foot from the left-hand boundary from nearly 50 metres out on the boundary line. The ball was expertly swung in the air to bounce through an unguarded goal square. | [9] | |||
| 2014 | Round 17 goal against Richmond at Etihad Stadium. White gathered the ball at half-back, ran full tilt up the wing with three bounces, burning off a chasing Steven Morris in the process, before unloading from 50m to goal. | [10] | |||
| 2013 | Round 3 goal against Collingwood at the MCG. Received a handball from Ben Stratton in the centre square, jumped over a tackled Stratton and went on to kick the goal from 75 metres out. | [11] | |||
| 2012 | Round 1 goal against Richmond at the MCG. Received a handball from Chris Judd between left wing and half-forward flank. Ran along the boundary past Richmond opponents Dustin Martin, Ivan Maric and Steven Morris, Yarran broke tackles from Maric and Morris before slotting the game-changing goal from 40 metres out. | [12] | |||
| 2011 | Round 2 goal against Geelong at Subiaco Oval. Ballantyne ran through the centre of the ground before kicking the ball inside 50. He received a follow-up handball from Matthew Pavlich and slotted the goal from 40 metres out in a team-lifting effort. | [13] | |||
| 2010 | Round 13 goal against Essendon at the MCG, where Franklin outsprinted Cale Hooker from the wing to boot truly from around 50 metres out from near the left boundary line (Franklin is left-footed, making the angle even more acute)[14] | [15] | |||
| 2009 | In the Round 7 match against Essendon, Rioli managed to evade numerous defenders to weave his way into a position to handball to teammate Chance Bateman before receiving the ball back and kicking a goal from 40 metres out. | [16] | |||
| 2008 | In the final home-and-away Friday night match, Leon Davis tackled Fremantle player Des Headland in Fremantle's defensive 50 and knocked the ball out of the scruffle; as he picked the ball up, he broke a tackle and then ran 10 metres before kicking an amazing drop punt from 50 m out on the boundary. Dennis Cometti adding the words "of the season" after Bruce McAvaney called out "goal". | [17] | |||
| 2007 | Matthew Lloyd back-heeled the goal through a pack of players from 5 metres out in an innovative unorthodox drop kick in a moment of quick thinking. | [18] | |||
| 2006 | Smothered Tarkyn Lockyer's handball, gathered the ball and, with two opposition players surrounding him, kicked a freakish banana from the boundary and kicked truly.[19] | [20] | |||
| 2005 | Burst from a boundary throw in on the half forward flank, spun out of a tackle and kicked truly from about 40 metres out at Subiaco oval.[21] | [22] | |||
| 2004 | Described as "Jackie Chan in mid-air", Wells leapt into the air, grabbed the ball out of the ruck and kicked in one motion in the goal square at Subiaco, giving North Melbourne a narrow victory over Fremantle.[23] | [24] | |||
| 2003 | Received the football at half-back, before taking 5 bounces and finishing from 48 m out, late in a famous Derby against Fremantle. | [25] | |||
| 2002 | A snap shot from 45 metres out on his non-preferred left boot, along the boundary line while turning around to the left of the goals against Carlton at the Gabba in Round 14. | [26] | |||
| 2001 | Paddled the ball from outside 50 along the boundary line towards goal and snapped it through from the pocket against St. Kilda at the Telstra Dome. | [27] |
| Year | Winner | Team | Description | Video |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | Running from the defensive 50, he kept going and laid a handball off to Scott Wynd, received it back at centre wing, lined up from forward 50 and slotted it home (was awarded on Rex Hunt's Footy Panel). | |||
| 1999 | Jarrod Molloy | Brisbane Lions | Molloy picks up the ball just outside 50m near the boundary, and on the run handballs out in front, then taps the ball onto a teammate before running on to receive the handball, and kicking a right foot checkside from the pocket. | [28] |
| 1998 | Farmer collected the ball in the defensive 50 and, running the length of the ground, passed the ball off and received it back twice, evaded multiple opposition players, and kicked a torpedo goal from 55 metres out close to the boundary line. | |||
| 1997 | Ran hard from defensive 50 and took several bounces along the wing, handballed to Andrew Thompson at forward 50, received the ball back and snapped a spectacular goal in the 1997 AFL Grand Final. | |||
| 1996 | Jeff Farmer | Melbourne | Farmer gathers the ball 20 metres from goal, evades two tackles in quick succession and kicks a right foot banana goal. | [29] |
| 1995 | Kicked the ball off the ground 35 m from goal; his scrubbed kick rolled to the forward pocket, finishing at the feet of Richmond full back Stuart Wigney. Modra followed up his kick, making up 30 metres of ground to soccer the ball away from Wigney, gather the loose ball, and then snap a beautiful goal from 20 metres out hard on the boundary. | |||
| 1994 | In one of the most famous of all time, oft compared to Phil Manassa's famous 1977 Grand Final run, McGuane had a total of seven bounces from the centre square, baulking two tackle attempts before kicking truly from 30 m at the MCG against Carlton. | [30] | ||
| 1993 | Ran and bounced several times for a controversial goal in the 1993 Grand Final. It was allegedly touched on the line by Carlton full-back Stephen Silvagni, who to this day claims he touched it before sailing through for a goal. | [31] | ||
| 1992 | Followed up a short kick that did not travel to the leading forward by kicking a ripper at Carrara from 30 m | |||
| 1991 | Baulk and snap from the pocket vs. Richmond at Victoria Park. | |||
| 1990 | Gathered the ball in his own defensive area and set off on a blistering 70-metre run through the centre of the Sydney Cricket Ground, escaping a number of would-be tacklers and taking seven bounces before kicking truly from 35 metres out. | |||
| 1989 | Dropped a contested mark in the middle of the ground and then ran onto the loose ball at full speed, bursting into the forward line and snapping truly from 50 m vs Collingwood (MCG). | |||
| 1988 | Spun around three West Coast players, snapping miraculously from the pocket. | |||
| 1987 | After the Swans scored a behind, Murphy took a spectacular mark over an opponent's back from a long kick-in; he then quickly played on and kicked truly from more than 50 m away at an acute angle (from the left side). | |||
| 1986 | Grabbed ball on the boundary line and ran around Frank Dunell before kicking a sensational goal from the boundary with his left foot. | |||
| 1985 | A long run at Kardinia Park in which Bews baulked two would-be tacklers and bounced three times; 40 m out from goal, Bews attempted to touch the ball on the ground, fumbled and overran the ball before changing direction, recovering the ball and eventually slotting the goal from 30 m. | |||
| 1984 | ||||
| 1983 | ||||
| 1982 | Malcolm Blight | Blight drops a contested mark on the right wing, recovers the resulting loose ball, baulks two opponents at once, and then kicks a goal from the right forward flank boundary line about 40 metres out with his non-preferred left foot. | ||
| 1981 | Smothered his Geelong opponent's attempted clearing kick 20 metres around in the right forward pocket at VFL Park before standing, gathering and snapping a high goal over his right shoulder. | |||
| 1980 | Three bounces and one baulk from the wing and a shot from 50 metres. | |||
| 1979 | Took several detours to avoid North Melbourne opposition to score from the pocket in the first VFL game in Sydney since 1952. | |||
| 1978 | ||||
| 1977 | Manassa kicked a goal on the run from the half back flank in the 1977 Grand Final replay against North Melbourne, | [32] | ||
| 1976 | ||||
| Year | Winner | Team | Description | Video |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 (A) | Round 1 goal against at Fremantle Oval. Antonio gathers 50 metres out on the boundary, evades an opponent, and kicks a goal from 30m out on the boundary off the outside of her boot. | [33] | ||
| 2021 | Round 9 goal against at Casey Fields. Hodder was at the edge of the 50-metre arc, where she kicks it up to herself, and kicks a right foot drop punt from tight on the boundary. | [34] | ||
| 2020 | Round 6 goal against Carlton at Traeger Park. Hore collects the ball in the middle of the ground, takes three bounces to reach inside 50, passes it off to a teammate, receives it back and then snaps on a sharp angle from 10 metres out. | [35] | ||
| 2019 | Round 2 goal against Brisbane at Fremantle Oval. Sharp collects the ball in the centre of the ground, takes 2 bounces and completes the shot from 40 metres out from goal. | [36] | ||
| 2018 | Round 2 goal against Adelaide at Casey Fields. Newman collects the ball on the wing, takes 3 bounces into the forward pocket and kicks a 20-metre banana. | [37] | ||
| 2017 | Round 3 goal against Carlton at Thebarton Oval. Phillips takes a mark and bombs a long goal from outside the 50-metre arc. | [38] | ||