5 best AFL goalkickers of all time

Modified May 14, 2024 13:46 IST

In all of AFL history, there haven’t been 10 people who have scored over a thousand goals. In honouring the league's best goalkickers of all time, we have put together this list.

5 best AFL goalkickers of all time

1. Tony Lockett (1,360 Goals)

Of course the first place goes to this goal kicking legend. His record would take a lot of effort and more to beat, that’s for sure. Across an 18-year career spanning from St Kilda (1983-1994) to Sydney (1995-2002), the “Plugger” amassed an impeccable 1,360 goals.

As a five-time All-Australian and a four-time leading AFL goalkicker, Lockett is a Saints and Swans Team of the Century member with his name in the Australian Football Hall of Fame.

Lockett kicked 10 goals in 22 different games, and his 16-goal haul against Fitzroy in 1995 remains one of the most memorable footy moments. His 1,000th goal was against Fremantle a few weeks later. He further broke Gordon Coventry's record to become the first player to 1,300 majors with one shot against Collingwood later in 1999.

2. Gordon Coventry (1,299 Goals)

Gordon Coventry was the most legendary goalkicker throughout his time at Collingwood in the 1920s and '30s and for years afterwards.

Coventry was Collingwood's leading goalkicker for 16 out of the 18 seasons he was at the club, topping the list for the Magpies in each of his premiership campaigns (1927, 1928, 1929, 1930 and 1935).

Coventry peaked in 1930 with 17 goals against Fitzroy, which would eventually contribute to the many reasons why he has Australian Football Hall of Fame Legend status and is a full-forward in Collingwood's Team of the Century.

His nine-goal performance in the 1929 Grand Final against Richmond is widely considered his most dazzling feat. He was succeeded years later by 1,300-goal icon Lockett.

3. Jason Dunstall (1,254 Goals)

Jason Dunstall's name is a symbol of Hawthorn's 1980s to 1990s golden era, in which they won four premierships in six years (1986, 1987, 1988. 1989, 1990, 1991).

Dunstall had six 100-goal campaigns to tie the AFL/VFL record with Lockett. With three Coleman Medals to his name, seven All-Australian appearances, four Hawthorn’s Best and Fairests, and a 17-goal game against Richmond, Dunstall's reputation as one of the game's deadliest forwards remains set in stone.

Brisbane-born Dunstall hit the 1,000-goal milestone at the Gabba as Hawthorn overcame the Brisbane Bears in 1994.

Dunstall's ability to maintain efficiency even on the AFL's biggest stages makes him one of the league’s very best. He kicked six goals against Carlton (1986), seven against Melbourne (1988), four against Geelong (1989) and six against West Coast (1991). Each helped take the Hawks to premiership victory.

4. Doug Wade (1,057 Goals)

Scoring nine goals in his first two games with Geelong (1961), Wade ushered himself into a career that would see him become one of the few to reach the 1,000-goal landmark. In his ninth campaign, he booked 100 single-season goals for the first time.

It marked his best season, as he slotted 127 majors to win one of four Coleman Medals and cop a Carji Greeves Medal as Geelong's best and fairest. The two-time premiership player surpassed 1,000 goals in 1974. He earned his name a place in the club’s team of the century.

5. Gary Ablett Sr. (1,031 Goals)

Gary Ablett Sr. played one season and six games for Hawthorn before going on to change history at Geelong. Ablett was the most recent AFL/VFL footballer to hit the 1,000-goal mark, doing it in 1996 in his final season against Fremantle at Kardinia Park.

From 1993 to 1995, Ablett was unstoppable. He kicked 375 goals in three seasons, kicking at least 120 goals in each. He won three Coleman Medals consecutively, shooting Geelong to the 1995 Grand Finals and himself to the 1,000-goal mark, which eventually led to him being crowned Geelong's Greatest Ever Player.