Courtney Hodder (front), one of Brisbane’s stars as the Lions prepare for a big clash against Collingwood. Photo: AFL MEDIA
Will we once again hear Brisbane’s mighty roar as it again attempts to knock off an unbeaten club for the second time in three weeks? Or will Collingwood stay unbeaten by taming Brisbane the same way it did the Western Bulldogs?
That Sunday battle is this week’s obvious match-of-the-round pick. But don’t sleep on a few others. Two back-to-back Saturday blockbusters featuring the Kangaroos and Bulldogs in Hobart, followed by Melbourne taking on Adelaide at Casey Fields also shape as cracking matches.
Sunday reunites Jekyll and Hyde-like Carlton with percentage-leader Fremantle for the first time since the Blues beat the Dockers in a 2019 preliminary final.
While the developing sides tussle with each other to start and end the round, the contenders continue jockeying for the coveted top two spots in the ladder’s top six, with finals scheduled just three weeks down the track.
GOLD COAST v RICHMOND (Friday 7.40 pm, Metricon Stadium)
It may not look like it, from their 11th position on a 14-team ladder, but the Tigers are easily the best of the developing sides. They’ve given clubs above them runs for their money in some matches, and in others they’ve had some bad luck, from kicking for goal into stiff headwinds, to late outs due to injuries. Richmond midfielder Monique Conti is a blooming superstar, No. 1 draft pick Ellie McKenzie has more than looked the goods, and the club has a very solid core of quality players like Courtney Wakefield, Sabrina Frederick and captain Katie Brennan. Gold Coast, meanwhile, has been in a winless, season-long tailspin after making finals last year, and the Suns own a league-worst percentage of just 31.6. Being on the road for the last five matches obviously hasn’t helped Gold Coast, and while the Suns may put up solid resistance, Richmond will win comfortably.
GIL TIPS: Richmond
ST KILDA v GWS (Saturday 3.10 pm, RSEA Park)
Statistically, if any two sides are like identical twins, it’s these two clubs. They’ve got the same win-loss record, with the Saints one spot higher than the Giants on the ladder by a mere 2.2 percentage points. The Giants have scored 10 fewer points (148) than the Saints, but St Kilda has conceded nine more points than the Giants’ 258. When the Saints go marching into their forward 50 and get the ball in the hands of goalkicker Caitlin Greiser, they go fairly well. But too often, ball-winners Georgia Patrikios and Tilly Lucas-Rodd need more support. For the Giants, Alyce Parker and Rebecca Beeson are two of the comp’s best contested possession and clearance players, but up forward, Cora Staunton is the only Giant with more than two goals — and she kicked all four of hers in a round 5 win over West Coast. Granted, it’s not exactly going out on a limb to tip a draw, but all signs point to that result.
GIL TIPS: Draw
NORTH MELBOURNE v WESTERN BULLDOGS (Saturday 5.10 pm, North Hobart Oval)
The Roos got their groove back two rounds ago against the Blues and continued their hot form last round against the Tigers, while the previously red-hot Dogs couldn’t hang in the second half against the swooping Magpies. North’s A-grade midfield, led by Ashleigh Riddell, Emma Kearney and Jasmine Garner, is in excellent form, Emma King has been dominant lately in the ruck, and Daisy Bateman scored a round 6 NAB Rising Star nomination. The Doggies looked stagnant and flat last week after riding a four-game winning streak, and Izzy Huntington, Ellie Blackburn, and Jess Fitzgerald will try and lead a bounce-back. North boasts too many weapons, though, and is too motivated to possibly drop this one, as the Roos firm up for finals on their home deck.
GIL TIPS: North Melbourne
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MELBOURNE v ADELAIDE (Saturday 7.10 pm, Casey Fields)
Adelaide at its best, is scary good, the Crows having obliterated the Suns last round, while Melbourne partially realigned its radar for the big sticks, re-tied its kicking boots, and its senior coach Mick Stinear shuffled the magnets to romp home over St Kilda. Shifting Daisy Pearce up forward worked, and Lauren Pearce caught fire in the ruck, doing her best Dean Cox impression by winning a heap of ball. But in addition to their history as two-time premiers, the Crows are also physical, and bring an intimidation factor few other clubs match. Adelaide has scored more points (322) than any other AFLW club and has won its last three matches after the wake-up call defeat Fremantle handed it. Erin Phillips, Anne Hatchard and Chelsea Randall have been standouts this year, and none of them show any signs of slowing down. The Crows will miss defender Nikki Gore, who’s out for the season with a fractured ankle, but they bat deep, and should get another road win here.
GIL TIPS: Adelaide
CARLTON v FREMANTLE (Sunday 1.10 pm, Ikon Park)
Hell hath no fury like the Dockers’ women scorned – at least that’s how it appeared last round with the absolute thumping they heaped on West Coast after Brisbane broke their 11-match win streak. The up-and-down Blues, meanwhile, better hope the Dockers don’t have long memories. A highly-motivated Carlton eliminated Fremantle in a 2019 preliminary final – winning by 36 points a week after the sexist internet trolling of the Blues’ Tayla Harris outraged Australia – and the Dockers will surely have redemption and revenge on their minds. For captain Kara Antonio, it will be sweet satisfaction to play, as a knee injury forced her to be a late withdrawal for that final. Meanwhile, after being held goalless for two weeks, Gemma Houghton kicked a bag of five, to remind everyone how dominant she can be, while her cohort Sabreena Duffy kicked three. Freo must find a way to negate star Blue Darcy Vescio’s influence, as she too has often shown how she can turn the course of a match with bursts of absolute brilliance, either setting up teammates for goals, or kicking them herself. The past knock on the Dockers has been that they struggle on the road – but Freo dispelled that notion earlier this year with a 30-point win in Adelaide, and a focused team will take care of business in Melbourne.
GIL TIPS: Fremantle
BRISBANE v COLLINGWOOD (Sunday 3.10 pm, Whitten Oval)
The Lions don’t scare easily – staring down the Dockers two weeks ago on their home deck and ending their 11-game win streak proved that. In that match, the Lions also shook their reputation for being pushovers against quality sides. So expect Brisbane to have no fear against the undefeated Magpies, even given the last-minute switch of this game from home to interstate (at Whitten Oval) because of COVID-19, the Lions now having to fly into Melbourne on Sunday morning, just hours before the game. Collingwood prevailed last week in a match that proved to be a tale of two halves – the Pies side that kicked 0.7 in the first, transformed into one that kicked a dominant 7.2 in the second. Plenty of stars will feature here, from the Lions’ star forwards Dakota Davidson, Jesse Tawhiao-Wardlaw and Courtney Hodder, to the Pies’ ball-winners, Brianna Davey and Britt Bonnici – whose respective possession-per-match averages of 24.8 and 23.8 make them No. 1 and No. 2 in the comp – and electric forward, Chloe Molloy. As tough as the Pies are, though, Brisbane already took down one seemingly invincible team, and even away, are capable of a repeat performance. This one has thriller written all over it, and the Lions will just get over the line.
GIL TIPS: Brisbane
WEST COAST v GEELONG (Monday 5:10 pm, Optus Stadium)
Each of these sides has been taken by rivals to the woodshed a fair bit this season, with the Eagles winning their only match by one point in a thriller over Gold Coast. The closest Geelong has come to tasting victory this year was a 15-point loss to the Western Bulldogs. Crunching the numbers, the Eagles may only be marginally better than the Cats and while both teams have been hard hit by injuries – Olivia Purcell for Geelong and Dana Hooker for the Eagles – West Coast has a stealth weapon in teenage sensation Mikayla Bowen, plus, it’s playing at home. Look for the Eagles to prolong the Cats’ pain.
GIL TIPS: West Coast
