Stevo's Sting - Who is being propped up by a favourable fixture?

The AFL ladder tells "porky pies". It’s been crooked and dishonest since the league went down the path of a heavily compromised fixture.

You just have to live with it and ignore all the inequities. Dig too deep, and it rocks your faith.

The league says the best team invariably wins, and fair enough, but the road to that end point isn’t fair. There is no denying the fixture can "cost" a team a place in the top four, and a double chance. Hardly ideal. Perhaps the best doesn’t always win.

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So let’s cut to the chase. Which teams are being propped up by a favourable fixture? Who is the real deal against the best opposition?

Champion Data, the league’s official statistician, went to work on a simple way to check, producing a ladder based on teams’ performances against the current top eight.

There is nowhere to hide. Some teams are exposed … but it is very good news for Hawthorn fans still doubting whether the team can conjure a three-peat. The Hawks have played eight games against other teams in the current eight for a 6-2 record. Their percentage of 168.2 in those eight outings suggests it has toyed with even the best. The fact they have averaged 106 points in those games is also scary.

Fremantle is 6-2, getting the job done in its own more subtle way. That too, rubber stamps the Dockers' credentials.

What is fascinating is the fact North Melbourne joins Hawthorn and Fremantle as the only other clubs with a positive record against the top eight teams. The Kangas are making a charge on the back of a soft run at the moment, but there is some substance there.

It shows up West Coast as the beneficiary of a favourable fixture. The Eagles have been fortunate enough to play only seven top eight sides. They've won three of them.

The ladder also reveals the Dogs have played only six games against the top eighth, equal with St Kilda in the easy run stakes. At least the Dogs have a 50-50 record in those six matches, with two to come against West Coast and North Melbourne in the final four rounds.

Sydney is shown up. The once mighty Swans have won only three of nine against top eight sides. Fortunately, they have a run of four teams outside the eight to finish the year. They will probably finish in top four. You could seriously argue their position has been inflated by a favourable fixture.

How many teams earning a double chance have gone into finals winning only three games for the season against top eight opposition? It has to be a rarity. The numbers don't lie. The Swans will need a major turnaround to compete with Hawthorn and Fremantle.

The Cats, too, have been scratchy against the best, averaging only 73 points a match when confronting the top eight.

If you are a Port Adelaide fan, at least there's small consolation. The Power has had the equal toughest fixture so far, playing 10 of 18 games against top four sides. In an era of AFL fixturing akin to the Stawell Gift, the Power has been heavily handicapped for its brilliant season in 2014. At least they have won three of those games. The same tally as Sydney.

Collingwood has played just seven games against top eight sides and won one. They don't deserve to play finals, using that as a guide.

And finally, some more pain for Essendon. The AFL has delivered a whopping 10 games against top eight sides, just like Port. They've won one of those 10. As bad as they've been, there's been no favours from the fixture boffins at City Hall.

Exposed...Your team's form against the current top eight: