Round 15

Friday Night: Carlton Blues vs. Collingwood Magpies.

Malthouse vs. Buckley round 2. Buckley won the first encounter convincingly, but Malthouse has a few ideas this time I think on how to beat to Collingwood, still Carlton’s form is an issue, close losses to Essendon, Hawthorn and a wet 22 point defeat last week to Sydney does not bode well for them. Despite being the “away” team the home ground advantage will favour Collingwood.

My tip: Magpies by 15 points.

Saturday Afternoon: GWS Giants vs. Western Bulldogs.

The Giants are yet to win a game and the Bulldogs come in off a loss to the Demons. So the Giants could have a chance if they can get far enough ahead so a win for the Giants isn’t impossible in a game that will be close.

My tip: Bulldogs by 20 points.

Saturday Afternoon: North Melbourne vs. Richmond Tigers.

An 86 point win over the Giants, while good, isn’t exactly impressive for North Melbourne who could’ve been a lot further ahead. The Tigers on the other hand are on a roll. Etihad Stadium being a sort of home away from home for both teams so the ground won’t play to either team’s advantage so the game will come down to form.

My Tip: Tigers by 10 points.

Saturday Afternoon: Brisbane Lions vs. Gold Coast Suns.

The Queensland Derby. This will be another close game which I think I will have to decide based purely on Ladder position. The Suns are a competitive side we know that and the Lions are capable of winning at the Gabba, but both teams are almost evenly matched.

My tip: Suns by 6 points.

Saturday Night: Adelaide Crows vs. West Coast Eagles.

AAMI Stadium has been a bit of a fortress for the South Australian teams in recent years, more so in recent weeks for Port Adelaide. West Coast on the other hand have played better away from Subi than they have at Subi winning 4 from 6 away games (the other two wins were at home against the Western Bulldogs and North Melbourne. The Crows have also failed to beat the Eagles since 2011 and I see no reason, given our recent form, why we can’t win against the Crows.

My tip: Eagles by 20 points.

Saturday Night: Geelong Cats vs. Hawthorn Hawks.

Top of the Table clash easily deserves to be a Friday Night game. This is the reason why I think the AFL should have the ability to alter fixtures a month in advance (minimum) if there is a game more deserving of Friday Nights. They should be a privilege to play Friday’s, not a right. But anyway, the Cats remain the only team to have beaten the Hawks this season and can certainly do it again given how they restricted Fremantle to only 44 points. The Hawks will want to continue their good performance after their 57 point belting of Brisbane so there are no certainties on who can win this game.

My tip: Cats by 12 points.

Sunday Afternoon: Melbourne Demons vs. Sydney Swans

I don’t think I really need to go through this one, I think it’s obvious whose going to win.

My tip: Swans by 70 points.

Sunday Afternoon: Fremantle Dockers vs. Saint Kilda Saints.

I don’t think I need to go through this one either, again, it’s pretty obvious.

My tip: Dorkers by 40 points.

Sunday Afternoon: Essendon Bombers vs. Port Adelaide Power

An interesting game. The Power have beaten the Swans and the Magpies successively but both wins came at home. Essendon had a bye and then escaped with a win against West Coast at Subi and, as much as I don’t like the Bombers, I think they will beat the Power comfortably.

My tip: Bombers 35 points.