Hawthorn, Sydney and Fremantle have played off in the last two AFL grand finals between them, and all three are in the mix again.

The first two are not so much a surprise; the Dockers moreso after an inglorious straight-sets exit from the finals in 2014.

But Ross Lyon is a genius for getting teams up, and the ferocity of Fremantle’s first 45 minutes in the derby against West Coast in Perth, putting the Dockers at 3-0 to start the season, suggests they are bona fide challengers.

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Fremantle kicked the first 11 goals, stunning the crowd at Subiaco against an Eagles team that was utterly smashed. The derbies have a history of being torrid and tight, but this time, all the action came from one side when it counted. The knock on Fremantle prior to the season was its heavy reliance on 30-something players, but Lyon has them all playing well.

Along with the emergence of the likes of Lachie Neale and Matt Taberner, who provides a valuable alternative to Matthew Pavlich up forward, the purple army has a lot to look forward to, rather than it being the end of an era.

Hawthorn’s flogging of Western Bulldogs in Launceston had the feel of the upstart being swiftly put back in his place. The Hawks won by 70 points behind stellar work by the superstars – Luke Hodge had a career-high 44 disposals and two goals, Jordan Lewis had 41 touches and Jarryd Roughead’s seven goals were augmented by 28 disposals, a crazy amount for a key forward.

If Phil Walsh keeps his undefeated team firing, he might see them join the Premiership debate. Photo: Getty

The Hawks continue to score heavily – they have been the highest-scoring team for several years – but they can also defend brilliantly, as we all witnessed in the grand final of 2014. The Bulldogs just could not find a way through Hawthorn’s set-ups and they missed the brilliant, young talent of Marcus Bontempelli, a late withdrawal through injury.

There are three unbeaten teams through three rounds – Adelaide, Sydney and Fremantle. The Crows might well be in the conversation as a premiership contender although the question is whether they can sustain the momentum created under new coach Phil Walsh, a quirky individual who has his team flying.

Geelong looked a shell of its former self for much of the game against Gold Coast at home but sneaked home for its first win of the season behind Mark Blicavs’ long goal in the final 30 seconds. Until then, it could have gone either way with the Suns (0-3) finally finding some spirit.

Ultimately the Cats would never have won without the blood-and-guts football of captain Joel Selwood, whose 38 disposals, a goal and a cut eye were yet another example of his heroism and his leadership.

But Geelong, weakened by Tom Hawkins’ pre-match withdrawal, a knee injury to Jimmy Bartel, an ankle issue that kept Mathew Stokes off for half the game and Tom Lonergan’s concussion, would be pleased with the fact that the others who contributed most included part of the wave of newer players. Notably, Josh Walker came into the team to replace Hawkins and booted four goals, while hard-running Cory Gregson was one of the best players afield in just his third game.

Adelaide’s third win, over Melbourne on Saturday, was hard-fought but coach Walsh said he was happy for the Crows to scrap out a victory. Melbourne was speculative early and impressive, but the Demons lost their sense of adventure after quarter-time, which is the challenge ahead for coach Paul Roos.

Walsh’s team laid 108 tackles, a huge number for a regular-season game, and their defensive pressure is formidable to say the least.

Sydney also remained unbeaten by dismissing crosstown rival Greater Western Sydney behind Lance Franklin’s five goals and another impressive performance by Isaac Heeney, a first-year player with the poise of a veteran. Heeney came from Newcastle through the NSW academy and hence went to the Swans with pick 18, despite being rated by some experts as the best player in the draft. He is a star, and you can vaguely hear the gnashing of teeth from the Victorian clubs about the academy system with every week that Heeney performs his deeds.

Jimmy Bartel leaves the field injured in a round full of fallen stars. Photo: Getty

Franklin had a wonderful duel with Joel Patfull but ultimately triumphed, with the distance of his goals being a point of difference. He kicked 5.5, adding to the growing list of games he has influenced since joining Sydney.

Richmond obliterated an injury-plagued Brisbane Lions team, with captain Trent Cotchin answering some strident critics with a best-on-ground performance, and Collingwood was similarly cruel in belting St Kilda by 74 points at the MCG.

Dane Swan found his best form, always a sight for Magpies’ fans to behold, while St Kilda debuted No.1 draft pick Patrick McCartin and quickly found that he was not ready for the task. Finding out just an hour before the game that he was playing because skipper Nick Riewoldt was injured, McCartin struggled dreadfully for three quarters before showing a couple of positive signs late.

But all St Kilda discovered was that he needs more time to develop.

Captaincy is a theme of the times and along with Hodge (Hawthorn) and Selwood (Geelong), Essendon has one of the best in Jobe Watson, who was outstanding in the Bombers’ defeat of Carlton at the MCG. Carlton had a crack, but its efficiency was off the mark, and the ill-discipline of Chris Yarran in delivering a left hook to the head of Paul Chapman was witheringly poor. Yarran’s punch was good, but it belonged in a boxing ring, and he will pay with at least two matches’ suspension.

More to the point, he has let himself and his team down again. A good player who could be great, he disappoints too often and that is a familiar story for Carlton, the club.

The game of the round was at Etihad Stadium where Port Adelaide won a high-octane clash with North Melbourne with two late goals, after the Kangaroos seemed to have control of it.

These teams ran on top of the ground from start to finish; the scoreline with both teams reaching 100 points was only matched five times in the 2014 season, showing how rare it is.

Ken Hinkley was rapt with the way his Port Adelaide team got over the line against North Melbourne. Photo: Getty

Robbie Gray’s deft touches near the end were important, but North lost little in terms of reputation given that Daniel Wells withdrew late and Jack Ziebell was in hospital with internal injuries before the game had ended.

Overall, it is shaping as though it will be Hawthorn, the defending premier, against a challenger from outside the Victorian heartland over the next few months.

As it happens, the Hawks meet Port next week, and Fremantle hosts the Swans, enormous clashes with significance for the season.

Somewhere in there lurks the premiership team, most likely.