St Kilda’s Jack Steele gets a handball away last time the Saints faced Richmond in Round 3 last year. Photo: AFL MEDIA

PORT ADELAIDE v GEELONG (Adelaide Oval, Thursday 7.10pm local time)
Round 14 kicks off in spectacular fashion with a blockbuster match-up between the high-flying Power and reigning premier Cats. Port Adelaide heads into this contest riding a club record 10-game winning streak which has catapulted them up to second on the ladder, two games clear of third. Meanwhile, the wheel looks like it’s finally starting to turn for the Cats who managed to end their three-match losing run prior to their bye with a very impressive win against the Bulldogs, despite fielding a badly undermanned midfield. Well, that midfield is no longer undermanned because the cavalry has finally arrived for Chris Scott’s team with star trio Patrick Dangerfield, Mitch Duncan and Max Holmes all returning this week. And in a huge blow for the hosts, in-form defender Lachie Jones has been forced out of their line-up with a fractured jaw after playing the game of his short career against the Bulldogs last week. Led by their star-studded midfield, the Power have been absolutely outstanding this year. But it’ll be interesting to see how they go on the back of their third consecutive six-day break. Then again, the Cats are historically atrocious off the bye, so those two factors might just cancel each other out. Logic suggests that Port Adelaide will have to lose eventually, but it’s very hard to tip against them in the form that they’re in.
RONNY’S TIP: Port Adelaide by 19 points.
ROCO’S TIP: Port Adelaide by 8 points.
ROCKET’S TIP: Port Adelaide by 15 points.

BRISBANE v SYDNEY (Gabba, Friday 7.50pm local time)
After starting the year 8-2, and winning seven games in a row at one stage, the Lions’ status as a top-four team is looking vulnerable all of a sudden. Back-to-back disappointing losses to Adelaide and lowly Hawthorn either side of their bye have seen questions about their premiership legitimacy rear their head again. And they won’t go away until they can win consistently at the MCG. Brisbane will also have to make to do without star midfielder Hugh McCluggage after he was concussed by the controversial James Sicily tackle. But despite that blow, they should still be far too good for the struggling Swans at their Gabba home fortress as they chase their first win in almost a month.
RONNY’S TIP: Brisbane by 32 points.
ROCO’S TIP: Brisbane by 26 points.
ROCKET’S TIP: Brisbane by 27 points.

GWS v FREMANTLE (Giants Stadium, Saturday 4.35pm local time)
These are two of the most erratic teams in the AFL which makes this a very hard game to analyse. The Giants have lost their last two games at home, yet have won their last two games on the road – one of which being the Cats in Geelong, aka. Mission Impossible. As for the Dockers, just when it looked like they had finally overcome their horrible 2-5 start to the season by winning four matches in a row (including the scalps of Melbourne and Geelong), they revert to type by dropping a game to Richmond at home which they had no excuse to lose. It was a really poor performance from Freo, and undid a lot of their good work as they attempt to stay in the finals race. GWS could receive a massive boost this week with Josh Kelly (hamstring), Sam Taylor (hamstring) and Isaac Cumming (calf) all a chance of returning to the line-up, while Freo will lose James Aish to concussion. But on the plus side for the Dockers, Michael Walters should be right to play a full game this week after making a massive impact as the sub against the Tigers. If the Giants regain all three of those aforementioned players, they will be a huge show of winning, but incredibly they have lost their last five home games, with their solitary win at home coming all the way back in Round 1. The Dockers probably don’t deserve it, but they get the benefit of the doubt due to the impressive month of footy they put together prior to their upset loss to Richmond.
RONNY’S TIP: Fremantle by 10 points.
ROCO’S TIP: Fremantle by 2 points.
ROCKET’S TIP: Fremantle by 7 points.

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RICHMOND v ST KILDA (MCG, Saturday 7.25pm local time)
And this match isn’t any easier to pick apart. The Tigers looked dead and buried when former coach Damien Hardwick abruptly retired after they managed just three wins from their first 11 matches. But under interim coach Andrew McQualter, they too are showing renewed vigour having won two out of three games, the only loss a gallant effort against red-hot Port Adelaide. Conversely, the Saints have been up and down like a yoyo since winning their first four games, going loss-win in their last eight matches. The Tigers could regain Maurice Rioli (hamstring) and Ivan Soldo (foot), but will not select Marlion Pickett who is facing serious criminal charges in WA. What kind of unsettling impact that massive distraction has had on the club during the week remains to be seen. At the time of writing, it’s unclear whether Rhyan Mansell will be available either with the club confirming it will appeal his three-match suspension for his hit on Aish. It’s a big match for Richmond with triple premiership captain Trent Cotchin becoming just the sixth Tiger to play 300 games, but the Saints are a tough nut to crack and could put a dampener on those celebrations.
RONNY’S TIP: St Kilda by 15 points.
ROCO’S TIP: Richmond by 4 points.
ROCKET’S TIP: St Kilda by 9 points.

CARLTON v GOLD COAST (MCG, Sunday 1.10pm local time)
The Blues are in freefall. Just when you thought their season couldn’t get any worse, they cop a six-goal spanking from arch rival Essendon in the inaugural King’s Birthday eve clash. Michael Voss’ men have now lost eight of their last nine games to slip into the bottom four – ahead of only Hawthorn, North Melbourne and West Coast who are all waist-deep in their rebuilds. The Blues’ only win in this horror stretch was against the Eagles who are performing worse than Fitzroy in its final year. It’s like a broken record down at Princes Park. The same issues keep plaguing them week after week, chiefly poor ball movement and shocking goalkicking. They have now kicked a diabolical 33.65 in the past five games, averaging less than seven goals a game in that period. And to cap things off, they registered 33 tackles against the Bombers which is their lowest tally in eight years. It almost looks like they have given up. Meanwhile, the Suns are at the other end of the spectrum with positivity and enthusiasm enveloping the expansion club. Stuart Dew’s team has now won five of its last seven games, including the scalps of top-eight aspirants Adelaide, the Western Bulldogs and Richmond, to now find itself in finals contention. And the news gets better for the Suns with reliable defender Connor Budarick (knee) and Sean Lemmens (hamstring) both good chances of returning this week. Carlton could regain George Hewett (concussion), Nic Newman (hamstring) and Marc Pittonet (hand) but at this point, it appears to be all academic. The Blues’ season is cooked and their players’ confidence looks completely sapped which means the Suns are a huge chance of clinching just their fifth win at the MCG as they chase a maiden finals appearance.
RONNY’S TIP: Gold Coast by 17 points.
ROCO’S TIP: Carlton by 18 points.
ROCKET’S TIP: Gold Coast by 21 points.

NORTH MELBOURNE v WESTERN BULLDOGS (Marvel Stadium, Sunday 4.40pm local time)
The Kangaroos produced easily their most disappointing performance under caretaker coach Brett Ratten last weekend. A match against GWS in Hobart on paper should’ve provided the Kangas their best chance of a win since Round 2. Instead they capitulated in the third quarter to slump to their 11th consecutive loss – their second such streak in as many seasons. This week they face a much more daunting task in the form of a desperate Bulldogs team frantically aiming to put the brakes on their three-match losing skid. The Dogs actually haven’t been playing terribly recently, but in defeats to the Suns, Cats and Power they have just lacked the polish necessary to capitalise on all of the good work from their midfield. Jy Simpkin (concussion) and Hugh Greenwood (concussion) might return to North’s line-up this week, but it won’t be enough to cause an upset.
RONNY’S TIP: Western Bulldogs by 25 points.
ROCO’S TIP: Western Bulldogs by 32 points.
ROCKET’S TIP: Western Bulldogs by 25 points.

SEASON TOTALS
RONNY 77
ROCKET 73
ROCO 70