Lance Franklin and Jarryd Roughead. Friday night at the SCG could be the last time we seem them on centre stage together.

1. Forget the talk about a late-season farewell game. Big Roughy is back.

What’s more, the Hawthorn veteran will line up against close friend (and two-time premiership teammate) Buddy Franklin in his return at the SCG on Friday night.

Former Hawks captain Roughead was dropped after round seven and has hardly set the world on fire during his VFL stint. But team structure has demanded the recall of a man who still possesses the required tools to cause havoc for opposition defenders.

Hawthorn failed to take a mark inside-50 during the first half of its loss to Essendon last week (despite 19 entries) and will be hoping Roughead can provide the required target.

The 32-year-old kicked eight goals from six AFL games earlier this year. But he managed only one major from a meagre eight disposals (his lowest tally since 2010) in his most recent appearance.

Meanwhile, Franklin got his famous strut back before the mid-season bye with a commanding performance in Sydney’s shock thrashing of West Coast. The eight-time All-Australian tore the game apart early and finished with 5.4 from 18 disposals. Both were personal season-high tallies and the week off would not have hurt the superstar.

Franklin has played nine matches against Hawthorn since his high-profile move to Sydney after the Hawks’ 2013 premiership. The record has gone 6-3 in favour of Hawthorn. He’s kicked 21 goals in those clashes – including four in the 2014 grand final – and has often threatened to dominate. But he has also been held goalless twice by former teammates and missed both meetings last year.

Roughead and Franklin enjoyed plenty of good times together at Hawthorn after being selected with picks two and five respectively in the famous 2004 national draft, and this is almost certain to be their final appearance together on the big stage.

Sydney is out of the finals race and doesn’t meet Hawthorn again this season. When 2020 rolls around, four-time premiership hero Roughead is likely to have been waved off into the sunset.

So, savour one last duel between two great key forwards as they attempt to kick their respective sides to victory in what neutrals can only hope will develop into a shootout. And expect a warm embrace between the pair at the final siren.

2. This column is generally about the things you will see during the upcoming round, as opposed to what you won’t see.

But surely a few lessons have been learnt in the past week that will ensure players won’t be gambling on football, pinching opponents or stomping on opponents any time soon.

Nobody would dare commit those sins this week. Want a bet? If you’re an AFL player, the immediate answer should be a resounding “no”.

Jaidyn Stephenson’s suspension and fine by the AFL on Wednesday for betting on games involving his team follows a string of betting offences committed by players and club officials over the past decade.

Bizarrely, most of them appear to have been small bets that would hardly have been worth the trouble for a well-paid player to put down in the first place.

Jake Melksham, Jack Crisp, Dean Wallis and Heath Shaw were all found to have breached league betting rules in recent seasons and were duly punished.

Those incidents should have served as a deterrent to Stephenson. So, too, should teammate Brayden Sier’s experience just last year, when was hit with a suspended $5000 fine for betting on AFL matches and events.

As for Ben Stratton’s stomping and pinching of Essendon opponents, the fallout has been huge. The Hawthorn captain’s two-week penalty – one week for each of the indiscretions, on top of his financial sanction for an obscene finger gesture – feels about right.

Speaking of the Hawks, here’s one last thing you would hope we don’t see this week: a club president starting a sentence with, “I’m not being racist when I say this, but…”

3. The bye rounds – are they an awkward and unnecessary evil? Or are they a good chance to give everyone, including fans, a little breather in order to break up a long winter?

There will be differing views on that. Regardless, the normal service of nine-match rounds will resume next week. And just where the chips lay as the dust settles on the third and final bye round this week will have a huge bearing on the run towards September.

As many as seven teams could find themselves out of genuine top-eight contention by Sunday evening. (Keep in mind there’s no so-called “wildcard round” in place to keep the also-rans alive just yet.)

Geelong is sailing towards its first minor premiership since 2008 – it has finished second after the home-and-away season a remarkable six times since then – and only a dramatic late-season collapse would see any of the other current top five sides miss out from here.

It leaves mid-table clubs Fremantle, Brisbane, Port Adelaide, Essendon and St Kilda – and even Hawthorn and the Western Bulldogs further down the ladder – to stamp their claims for a finals spot this week.

Injury-hit Richmond and North Melbourne, reeling from having its three-match winning streak snapped by GWS last week, will both watch anxiously from the sidelines as their fellow hopefuls slug it out.

4. Footy fans have received plenty of mixed messages from league and stadium officials in recent weeks regarding what is and isn’t acceptable behaviour.

The whole saga has been a mess, and league boss Gillon McLachlan’s press conference on the matter (held on Tuesday) came far too late.

But here’s a clear message from us to anyone planning on heading Optus Stadium on Thursday night: don’t be afraid to wave your jackets! One of the game’s great modern traditions must live on.

Fierce rivals West Coast and Essendon clash in a battle that shapes as a superb way to kick off the Round 14 action.

The Eagles are looking to rebound against a dangerous Bombers side that kicked the first eight goals in the corresponding fixture 12 months ago and went on to cause one of the biggest boilovers of the 2018 season.

John Worsfold’s men will be hell-bent on repeating the dose in order to boost their flagging finals hopes.

Whichever way the result goes, let’s just hope supporters of the winning side will continue the jacket-waving celebration sparked by Kevin Sheedy’s post-match outburst of emotion way back in 1993.

It couldn’t possibly be considered over the top by the AFL’s “behavioural awareness officers” or stadium security, could it?

Anyway, good luck trying to tell 50,000 Eagles fans to sit down and put their jackets back on. You’re even less of a chance to get them to stop booing during the match.

No doubt those clad in blue-and-yellow would love to get one over Worsfold. The dual West Coast premiership skipper and 2006 flag-winning coach remains a favourite son of the WA club, but those Eagles fans love knocking off Essendon.

This match-up shapes as a beauty and could have huge ramifications for both sides.

5. It is somewhat of a blessing for Jesse Hogan that he hasn’t had to confront his former club until this point in the year.

He’ll no doubt be eager to play well against his old teammates, particularly at the MCG, where he may cop the ire of Melbourne fans, and the fixture has given him time to build into the season after a rocky start.

Hogan is coming off arguably his best game for Fremantle, when he produced a game-high 11 marks to go with his 17 disposals, seven score involvements, and three goals in a gritty win over Port Adelaide.

The 24-year-old key forward also underlined his work rate and running capacity by covering 15.3 kilometres – more than any other player on the ground. Another performance like that would go a long towards securing a fourth straight win for Fremantle, which is firming as a serious finals contender.

The Dees, meanwhile, are in a world of hurt at 3-9. Their dream of taking a step forward from last year’s drought-breaking preliminary final appearance is well and truly over for this season.

Tom McDonald has managed just eight goals from a dozen games this season without former attacking partner Hogan by his side. Youngster Sam Weideman, thrust into the spotlight as Hogan’s replacement, has kicked the same tally from eight matches, and no Demon has booted more than Jayden Hunt’s 14 majors.

Melbourne averages just 69.8 points a game – better than only Gold Coast (62.2) – and ranks last for points against (91.8 a game), with Simon Goodwin’s side on a four-match losing streak. It all makes early betting markets somewhat perplexing, most major outlets having installed Melbourne as favourite this week.

Fremantle, of course, has to travel, and still has some work to do to convince punters it is a reliable interstate performer. Ross Lyon’s old “anywhere, anytime” mantra doesn’t apply these days.

But the Dockers have won six of their last nine MCG matches and have upset flag contenders Collingwood and GWS away from home this season. The nail-biting win over the Pies in their last outing at the home of football three weeks ago would have done wonders for the developing group’s confidence ahead of another trip east.

6. What does Alan Richardson have to do to stave off the wolves? A few more wins would certainly help.

The proverbial knives would have been out this week if his Saints had failed to squeeze past lowly Gold Coast. Next-up is finals hopeful Brisbane at Marvel Stadium, with St Kilda to start underdog, and the constant watch on Richardson’s position continues.

He isn’t alone. Essendon’s John Worsfold is still under the pump.

Two head coaching positions are already available at North Melbourne and Carlton, and the coaching merry-go-round could soon be in full swing.

North Melbourne greats Wayne Carey and Denis Pagan have urged their club to throw a “Godfather” offer at John Longmire, potentially leaving another post open at Sydney.

Ross Lyon says he is committed to Fremantle and certainly looks safe right now, while other candidates are putting their hands up in no uncertain terms.

North caretaker Rhyce Shaw has never hid his ambition, and Port Adelaide assistant Michael Voss is eager to return to senior coaching ranks, this time because of his skills rather than his name (his words, not ours). Voss believes he would be a better coach second time around.

Paul Roos is reportedly open to playing some sort of role in rebuilding a club – be it as part of a succession plan or head of football sort of role – and there are a swathe of experienced assistants quietly jockeying for position behind the scenes.

This will be a space to watch through the back half of the season.