Hawthorn finished top of the 1971 VFL ladder with 76 points and 153.7%, 12 points clear of St Kilda. Hawthorn won the premiership from 1st, beating St Kilda by 7 points in the Grand Final.
Final VFL ladder · Updated Mon 21 Nov 2022, 4:28pm (Melbourne time)
| Pos | Club | P | Pts | % | W | L | D | PF | PA | Last 5 | Finals |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | HawthornHAW🏆 | 22 | 76 | 153.7 | 19 | 3 | 0 | 2460 | 1601 | LWLWW | Premiers |
| 2 | St KildaSTK | 22 | 64 | 140.0 | 16 | 6 | 0 | 2176 | 1554 | WWWWW | Runner-up |
| 3 | RichmondRIC | 22 | 64 | 122.6 | 16 | 6 | 0 | 2318 | 1890 | WWWWW | Lost PF |
| 4 | CollingwoodCOLTOP 4 | 22 | 58 | 126.7 | 14 | 7 | 1 | 2331 | 1840 | LLWLL | Lost FW1 |
| 5 | CarltonCAR | 22 | 56 | 104.4 | 14 | 8 | 0 | 2103 | 2014 | WLWLW | – |
| 6 | FitzroyFIT | 22 | 48 | 106.9 | 12 | 10 | 0 | 2047 | 1915 | LWWWW | – |
| 7 | MelbourneMEL | 22 | 46 | 109.5 | 11 | 10 | 1 | 1962 | 1791 | DWLLL | – |
| 8 | Western BulldogsWBD | 22 | 44 | 88.7 | 11 | 11 | 0 | 1966 | 2217 | LWLLL | – |
| 9 | North MelbourneNTH | 22 | 22 | 66.8 | 5 | 16 | 1 | 1705 | 2551 | DLLWL | – |
| 10 | GeelongGEE | 22 | 20 | 82.1 | 5 | 17 | 0 | 2072 | 2523 | WLWWL | – |
| 11 | EssendonESS | 22 | 18 | 75.7 | 4 | 17 | 1 | 1705 | 2252 | WLLLL | – |
| 12 | SydneySYD | 22 | 12 | 69.9 | 3 | 19 | 0 | 1618 | 2315 | LLLLW | – |