Fortunes can change quickly in football. They certainly have this year for the likes of West Coast and the Western Bulldogs, both emerging from the wilderness to play big roles in the 2015 AFL season, the Eagles' story far from finished yet.

They can on an individual level, also. So perhaps it's not so surprising that the Eagles and Bulldogs have done so well this year given the number of their players who have turned in stellar seasons.

And we might see the tangible evidence of that on Tuesday night when the 2015 All-Australian team is announced.

Last year, West Coast and the Bulldogs couldn't manage a single All-Australian representative between them. In 2015, they could conceivably end up with seven. That's how many have made it into my best 22 of the football year.

I've found spots for three Bulldogs – veterans Bob Murphy and Matthew Boyd, plus the vastly-improved Easton Wood in my team of the year backline, and another one up forward, an emerging superstar in Jake Stringer.

West Coast, meanwhile, provide two of the three centreline slots, Andrew Gaff on a wing and Matt Priddis in the centre, with Coleman medallist Josh Kennedy at full-forward.

It's certainly a different-looking line-up to that named by the All-Australian selectors 12 months ago. I could only find spots for three players from that side - Richmond's Alex Rance, Fremantle's Nat Fyfe and the other Josh Kennedy, the Sydney version – in my 2015 team.

You would have had long odds indeed on Wood and Stringer even featuring in speculation about a team of the year back then, and perhaps their two veteran teammates as well, Murphy having responded in magnificent fashion to the club captaincy, and Boyd reborn as an attacking half-back flanker.

That said, I don't believe there's any member of this 22 who would come as a shock based on their recent form. It's also a reflection of the balance of power at team level, finals teams providing 19 of the 22, the only exceptions one player each from Port Adelaide, Greater Western Sydney and Essendon.

Those three are Giants' veteran Heath Shaw, who has had a career-best year as a running defender; Port's Chad Wingard, back to the levels that earned him All-Australian selection in 2013; and Bomber key backman Michael Hurley, who stood tall under often fierce assault all season.

There are some unlucky omissions. Adelaide youngster Rory Laird has been superb all year in defence, and may well get a gong in Tuesday night's official version. And up forward, another Eagle in Mark LeCras and Hawthorn special Cyril Rioli had plenty of claims, too.

I'm pretty happy with the balance of height and mobility in my forward set-up, though: Eddie Betts the ground-level terrier, teammate Taylor Walker and Kennedy the keys, two more forwards who can also play as genuine midfielders in Wingard and Dustin Martin, and a couple of perfect medium-sized foils in Stringer and Jack Gunston.

In the ruck, North Melbourne's Todd Goldstein simply had to get the nod. Apart from attending more ruck duels than any rival, he averaged more hit-outs per game and tackled more than any of them.

With the selectors instructed to pick a team as if to play a match, the lack of a ruck cohort might ordinarily present a problem. But Goldstein's endurance has been amazing, good enough to go it alone for virtually a whole game.

In the Roos' semi-final against Sydney, Goldstein took his hit-out tally for the year past the 1000 mark. The next highest for North is Ben Brown with 60. Enough said.

Sustained form over the course of a long season is always a key to getting the nod in the team of the year. Sydney pair Dan Hannebery and Kennedy exemplified that, as did Fremantle's lower-profile but highly consistent David Mundy, and the perennial Hawk Sam Mitchell, for some curious reason still not given the kudos he deserves, but taking the roving position in my line-up.

But it's hard to sustain excellence over a season-long marathon, a reason only half the mid-year team I selected made it to the September finish line. Some big names who didn't included Collingwood skipper Scott Pendlebury and Geelong veteran Corey Enright.

Some, such as Swan Luke Parker and young Giant Dylan Shiel, fell victim to injury, others, such as St Kilda's David Armitage, were simply overwhelmed by the consistent performances of stars the calibre of soon-to-be-departed Crow Patrick Dangerfield.

There'll be other chances for most of those who missed out. But, as West Coast and the Western Bulldogs showed this year from both a team and individual perspective, there'll be other surprises, too.