Round 10 AFL Preview
Friday
Sydney vs Collingwood @ The SCG - 19:50
It was funny seeing this match being promoted as a 'Blockbuster'. Does the AFL really think the game is going to be a contest worthy of such a lofty title? Even if Franklin has overcome a hamstring injury, things are looking tough for the Swannies in this one!
Both of the teams in this match are coming off a win last round, where the Swans kept off a fast-finishing Kangaroos to get a 5 point win while the Pies ran rampant over the Saints in the last quarter. Of course, both teams will be looking to keep the momentum going for their Round 10 clash.
While Collingwood had De Goey miss last week's match, along with quality backman Darcy Moore, both are expected to be right to take on the Swans, who were without possibly their most important player in Josh Kennedy.
Collingwood by 36
Saturday
Hawthorn vs Port Adelaide @ UTAS Stadium - 13:45
This match sees Hawthorn and Port Power head down to Launceston for their Saturday afternoon fixture.
Port Adelaide is coming off the back of a great last quarter against the Suns last round, while Hawthorn couldn't keep up with an impressive Richmond outfit.
IMO when trying to select a winner for this game, a lot will depend on how Ben McEvoy recovers from the injury sustained during the Hawks clash with Richmond the previous round. The Hawks were looking really good with Ceglar being the marking option while McEvoy rucked but with Ben's injury that won't be happening this round. In his absence, the Hawks really need Isaac Smith and Chad Wingard to come up for this match else they could be in a spot of bother!
Looking back over the past results between these two teams, and I can see that over the past half a decade the games have been pretty evenly split between the two. The last time these two teams met at UTAS, the result was a three-point victory to Hawthorn.
Hawthorn by 13
Western Bulldogs vs North Melbourne @ Marvel Stadium - 14:10
While the Western Bulldogs ran the Cats a very tight race last weekend, well, for three-quarters of the match, before Geelong took their car to the 'shop' to get a turbo-charger, and monstrous sub-woofers installed for the final stanza and a 6 goals to 3 term. Across the last four times these teams have met, Ben Brown has kicked 15 goals BUT the Bulldogs have ended up winning three of them. Based on current form the Kangaroos will have to contain the Bulldogs quality mids, which has been added to by the No 6 draft pick from last year, Bailey Smith. Bailey's form has been great and culminated last round with a Rising Star nomination. Well done to him.
Western Bulldogs by 20
Adelaide vs West Coast @ Adelaide Oval - 16:35
With the Crows forward players seeming a bit slow, to go with their gun mids, the Eagles speed looks like it could give the home team some trouble. In a surprising statistic, the Eagles have a '7 wins from 9 games' winning record at Adelaide Oval but this is a new year and each team has new players standing up for their team.
For Adelaide, the Rorys and Crouches continue to be fantastic and will certainly get their hands on a lot of ball, where the Eagles must look at getting the Sherrin out to their runners and then forward quickly to their talls in Darling and Kennedy.
With a great record at this ground and extra speed on each line, it is hard to go against the men in blue and yellow so I won't.
West Coast by 9
Gold Coast vs Geelong @ Metricon Stadium - 19:25
There can be no doubt that Gold Coast is improving as the season goes on, and that is a credit to the players and coaching staff. While they haven't won many games, they have probably had more 'very narrow losses' than any other team. Unfortunately for the Suns, they come up against the form team of the AFL, being the Geelong Cats.
The Geelong juggernaut keeps rolling through the 2019 season, and shouldn't have too many issues with getting over the top of the Gold Coast Suns. As a plus, the Geelong players get to experience the warmth of a late Gold Coast autumnal day.
Geelong by 34
Richmond vs Essendon @ The MCG - 19:25
It's that time of year that the wonderful Dreamtime at the G comes around, with these two teams very fortunate to be a part of such a great event for the AFL and our first Australians. If you are in Melbourne on Saturday, joining in the walk from Federation Square is a worthwhile event.
Unfortunately, there is no nice way to say it... the Bombers have been very ordinary across the majority of the 2019 season, putting a lot of 'experts' thinking they would be a lock for the finals, to shame. Meanwhile, the Tigers have been getting on with the business of winning and, surprisingly, have got themselves into 5th position on the ladder for this game. All aspects, except for injury, point at the Tigers getting to chalk up win number 7, and I hate to go against the (please say the following in an impressively dramatic voice) Mighty Four Pillars of Tipping! One of these pillars is that the Bombers have lost 10 of the past 12 meetings between the two clubs. A plus for the Bombers is that it looks like they will get quality talls Joe Daniher and Shaun McKernan back for the clash, and the Tigers are playing a bit short atm. On the downside, Essendon has lost Devon Smith for the rest of the season.
Richmond by 32
Sunday
Melbourne vs GWS Giants @ The MCG - 13:10
Fortunately for Melbourne, it seems that GWS gets the yips when playing at the MCG, you know, the place where Grand Finals are played... If this match was up in Sydney the result could be one that Melbourne supporters would be out to actively avoid, and for those who did watch the match, get some serious post-match help from a mental health professional. The main positives that the Demons have going into this match is the horrible GWS stat of only two wins at the MCG from 17 attempts and that the last time these two teams played they won the match 102 to 57, a pretty solid thumping! Hopefully the Demons get some players back from injury to help them match-up with the Giants for this clash, but we will need to wait and see on that one.
In current form surely the Giants have enough to break their MCG hoodoo! Maybe...?
GWS Giants by 11
St. Kilda vs Carlton @ Marvel Stadium - 15:20
Earlier in the season, St Kilda managed to reach the highs of the AFL ladder, but unfortunately, for Carlton supporters, their team has failed to really even fire a shot so far this season. With their best game a 19 point loss to Collingwood, the Blues players need to come out and make a strong statement against the Saints in this match. For St Kilda, they have pretty much provided a good contest in every game they have been in this season and, even if the wins have dried up for them, they are turning into one of those teams you can never count out of a contest.
With Murphy being an out for this match, things just got tougher for the Blues in getting that much-needed win.
St Kilda by 28
Fremantle vs Brisbane @ Optus Stadium - 17:20
This strangely timed game, for the locals anyway, at Optus Stadium, sees the Fremantle Dockers take on the Sunshine State's Brisbane Lions.
Last week Fremantle had a narrow loss to the Bombers in Melbourne and the Lions had an even narrower result against the Adelaide Crows up in Brisbane, but theirs was at least a win! What will happen this week?
This match sees the 'slug-it-out' Fremantle Dockers meet the 'free-wheeling' Brisbane Lions on the wide-open expanses of Optus Stadium.
Last round the Docker's Fyfe had a quieter game, but the Lions can't rely on that happening again! For the Lions, Eric Hipwood and Charlie Cameron will need to keep working on their goal-kicking (between them last match they kicked 5 goals 8 points) to help their team get across the line for the win.
While getting over to Perth is a journey I am sure no team likes to make, I am sure the Lion's players have paid for the upgrade to seats with extra legroom!
Lions by 17
Sydney vs Collingwood @ The SCG - 19:50
It was funny seeing this match being promoted as a 'Blockbuster'. Does the AFL really think the game is going to be a contest worthy of such a lofty title? Even if Franklin has overcome a hamstring injury, things are looking tough for the Swannies in this one!
Both of the teams in this match are coming off a win last round, where the Swans kept off a fast-finishing Kangaroos to get a 5 point win while the Pies ran rampant over the Saints in the last quarter. Of course, both teams will be looking to keep the momentum going for their Round 10 clash.
While Collingwood had De Goey miss last week's match, along with quality backman Darcy Moore, both are expected to be right to take on the Swans, who were without possibly their most important player in Josh Kennedy.
Collingwood by 36
Saturday
Hawthorn vs Port Adelaide @ UTAS Stadium - 13:45
This match sees Hawthorn and Port Power head down to Launceston for their Saturday afternoon fixture.
Port Adelaide is coming off the back of a great last quarter against the Suns last round, while Hawthorn couldn't keep up with an impressive Richmond outfit.
IMO when trying to select a winner for this game, a lot will depend on how Ben McEvoy recovers from the injury sustained during the Hawks clash with Richmond the previous round. The Hawks were looking really good with Ceglar being the marking option while McEvoy rucked but with Ben's injury that won't be happening this round. In his absence, the Hawks really need Isaac Smith and Chad Wingard to come up for this match else they could be in a spot of bother!
Looking back over the past results between these two teams, and I can see that over the past half a decade the games have been pretty evenly split between the two. The last time these two teams met at UTAS, the result was a three-point victory to Hawthorn.
Hawthorn by 13
Western Bulldogs vs North Melbourne @ Marvel Stadium - 14:10
While the Western Bulldogs ran the Cats a very tight race last weekend, well, for three-quarters of the match, before Geelong took their car to the 'shop' to get a turbo-charger, and monstrous sub-woofers installed for the final stanza and a 6 goals to 3 term. Across the last four times these teams have met, Ben Brown has kicked 15 goals BUT the Bulldogs have ended up winning three of them. Based on current form the Kangaroos will have to contain the Bulldogs quality mids, which has been added to by the No 6 draft pick from last year, Bailey Smith. Bailey's form has been great and culminated last round with a Rising Star nomination. Well done to him.
Western Bulldogs by 20
Adelaide vs West Coast @ Adelaide Oval - 16:35
With the Crows forward players seeming a bit slow, to go with their gun mids, the Eagles speed looks like it could give the home team some trouble. In a surprising statistic, the Eagles have a '7 wins from 9 games' winning record at Adelaide Oval but this is a new year and each team has new players standing up for their team.
For Adelaide, the Rorys and Crouches continue to be fantastic and will certainly get their hands on a lot of ball, where the Eagles must look at getting the Sherrin out to their runners and then forward quickly to their talls in Darling and Kennedy.
With a great record at this ground and extra speed on each line, it is hard to go against the men in blue and yellow so I won't.
West Coast by 9
Gold Coast vs Geelong @ Metricon Stadium - 19:25
There can be no doubt that Gold Coast is improving as the season goes on, and that is a credit to the players and coaching staff. While they haven't won many games, they have probably had more 'very narrow losses' than any other team. Unfortunately for the Suns, they come up against the form team of the AFL, being the Geelong Cats.
The Geelong juggernaut keeps rolling through the 2019 season, and shouldn't have too many issues with getting over the top of the Gold Coast Suns. As a plus, the Geelong players get to experience the warmth of a late Gold Coast autumnal day.
Geelong by 34
Richmond vs Essendon @ The MCG - 19:25
It's that time of year that the wonderful Dreamtime at the G comes around, with these two teams very fortunate to be a part of such a great event for the AFL and our first Australians. If you are in Melbourne on Saturday, joining in the walk from Federation Square is a worthwhile event.
Unfortunately, there is no nice way to say it... the Bombers have been very ordinary across the majority of the 2019 season, putting a lot of 'experts' thinking they would be a lock for the finals, to shame. Meanwhile, the Tigers have been getting on with the business of winning and, surprisingly, have got themselves into 5th position on the ladder for this game. All aspects, except for injury, point at the Tigers getting to chalk up win number 7, and I hate to go against the (please say the following in an impressively dramatic voice) Mighty Four Pillars of Tipping! One of these pillars is that the Bombers have lost 10 of the past 12 meetings between the two clubs. A plus for the Bombers is that it looks like they will get quality talls Joe Daniher and Shaun McKernan back for the clash, and the Tigers are playing a bit short atm. On the downside, Essendon has lost Devon Smith for the rest of the season.
Richmond by 32
Sunday
Melbourne vs GWS Giants @ The MCG - 13:10
Fortunately for Melbourne, it seems that GWS gets the yips when playing at the MCG, you know, the place where Grand Finals are played... If this match was up in Sydney the result could be one that Melbourne supporters would be out to actively avoid, and for those who did watch the match, get some serious post-match help from a mental health professional. The main positives that the Demons have going into this match is the horrible GWS stat of only two wins at the MCG from 17 attempts and that the last time these two teams played they won the match 102 to 57, a pretty solid thumping! Hopefully the Demons get some players back from injury to help them match-up with the Giants for this clash, but we will need to wait and see on that one.
In current form surely the Giants have enough to break their MCG hoodoo! Maybe...?
GWS Giants by 11
St. Kilda vs Carlton @ Marvel Stadium - 15:20
Earlier in the season, St Kilda managed to reach the highs of the AFL ladder, but unfortunately, for Carlton supporters, their team has failed to really even fire a shot so far this season. With their best game a 19 point loss to Collingwood, the Blues players need to come out and make a strong statement against the Saints in this match. For St Kilda, they have pretty much provided a good contest in every game they have been in this season and, even if the wins have dried up for them, they are turning into one of those teams you can never count out of a contest.
With Murphy being an out for this match, things just got tougher for the Blues in getting that much-needed win.
St Kilda by 28
Fremantle vs Brisbane @ Optus Stadium - 17:20
This strangely timed game, for the locals anyway, at Optus Stadium, sees the Fremantle Dockers take on the Sunshine State's Brisbane Lions.
Last week Fremantle had a narrow loss to the Bombers in Melbourne and the Lions had an even narrower result against the Adelaide Crows up in Brisbane, but theirs was at least a win! What will happen this week?
This match sees the 'slug-it-out' Fremantle Dockers meet the 'free-wheeling' Brisbane Lions on the wide-open expanses of Optus Stadium.
Last round the Docker's Fyfe had a quieter game, but the Lions can't rely on that happening again! For the Lions, Eric Hipwood and Charlie Cameron will need to keep working on their goal-kicking (between them last match they kicked 5 goals 8 points) to help their team get across the line for the win.
While getting over to Perth is a journey I am sure no team likes to make, I am sure the Lion's players have paid for the upgrade to seats with extra legroom!
Lions by 17
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