Star Collingwood wingman Josh Daicos gets a handball away after evading Brisbane’s Lincoln McCarthy. Photo: GETTY IMAGES

COLLINGWOOD v BRISBANE (Marvel Stadium, Friday 7:50pm local time)
What better way to kick off the round than with a blockbuster clash between the two top sides? Granted, recently the Magpies and Lions haven’t been in the sparkling form which has been instrumental to their current ladder positions, but it promises to be a great contest nonetheless. Collingwood needs just one more win to seal both a top-two spot and the minor premiership, while Brisbane has to keep winning to ensure it remains in the box seat for second position and an all-important pair of home finals. So, there is plenty riding on this one. The Magpies have copped a triple hammer blow with Darcy Moore (hamstring), Jordan De Goey (glute) and Bobby Hill (hamstring) all joining Nick Daicos (knee) on the sidelines. But they do regain Steele Sidebottom. Meanwhile, Brisbane loses Jack Gunston (knee) but welcomes back Keidean Coleman. Much has been made of the Lions’ horrific recent record at the MCG, which has seen them win just one of their last 15 games there, but their Melbourne issues are confined to the home of football. At Marvel Stadium, it’s a different story, with seven of their last eight games at the venue ending in victory. It’s for that reason why Chris Fagan’s men will go very close to snaring the four points. Collingwood should be good enough to hang on, but don’t be surprised if the Lions cause an upset.
RONNY’S TIP: Collingwood by 4 points.
ROCO’S TIP: Collingwood by 2 points.
ROCKET’S TIP: Brisbane by 7 points.

RICHMOND v NORTH MELBOURNE (MCG, Saturday 1:45pm local time)
With both sides no longer having anything to play for, all the focus switches to Richmond’s retiring legends Trent Cotchin and Jack Riewoldt, who will both play their final games this weekend. It’s sure to be an emotion-charged occasion at the MCG as the Tiger Army bids farewell to their triple premiership heroes. Unfortunately for the Kangaroos, they drew the short straw as Richmond’s opponents for this massive event. The Tigers meekly bowed out of the finals race in the last two weeks with timid performances against the Bulldogs and Saints. But with so much riding on this game, notwithstanding the fact Richmond has been one of the few teams North has beaten in recent years, the Kangaroos’ worst drought in 88 years looks set to extend to a 20th consecutive match.
RONNY’S TIP: Richmond by 18 points.
ROCO’S TIP: Richmond by 32 points.
ROCKET’S TIP: Richmond by 49 points.

GOLD COAST v CARLTON (Carrara, Saturday 2:10pm local time)
The Suns are also out of the finals picture, meaning all they have to play for in this one is potentially throwing a huge spanner in the works of Carlton’s finals ambitions. And the way the Blues have been playing in recent weeks, the Suns are going to need to produce one hell of a performance to threaten Michael Voss’ men. Carlton is the form team of the competition, having now won eight games in a row, including matches against premiership contenders Collingwood, Port Adelaide and Melbourne, to not only all but book itself a finals spot, but throw its hat in the ring as a legitimate flag fancy. What a spectacular turnaround it’s been for the team that was languishing in the bottom four as recently as Round 15. And now the Blues have the luxury of welcoming back Harry McKay earlier than expected from a knee injury. Gold Coast has welcomed backed some decent reinforcements of its own in the form of Ben King, Connor Budarick, Brayden Fiorini and Alex Sexton, but Carlton’s momentum seems unstoppable at the moment – even if the game is being played on the Suns’ home ground where they have a respectable 5-3 record this year, including wins over Brisbane, St Kilda and Geelong.
RONNY’S TIP: Carlton by 12 points.
ROCO’S TIP: Carlton by 16 points.
ROCKET’S TIP: Carlton by 21 points

GWS v ESSENDON (Giants Stadium, Saturday 4:35pm local time)
Now we get to the juicy part of the weekend. Super Saturday officially kicks off in western Sydney when the Giants and Bombers lock horns in the twilight match. It is the first of three virtual elimination finals that will round out a high-stakes day of AFL football. These two teams could barely be closer together on the ladder. They both sport 11-10 records, and Essendon is in ninth spot with a percentage of 99.1, just 0.5 per cent ahead of GWS which is in 10th position on 98.6. The loser of this game will find it very hard to make the finals, while the winner will keep its head above water heading into the final round. And the Bombers have brought back the big guns for this massive occasion with star duo Sam Draper and Jake Stringer making their long-awaited returns from injury. Meanwhile, GWS regains important duo Brent Daniels and Toby Bedford from suspension, but Nick Haynes (illness) makes way. With neither side in sparkling form in the past fortnight, it makes it even harder to get a read on this contest. However, Essendon’s record at this ground is terrible, with five of its last six games there ending in defeat. Having said that, the Giants have only won two of their last six games there. This has ‘coin flip’ written all over it, but when in doubt, go with the home team. Just.
RONNY’S TIP: GWS by 2 points.
ROCO’S TIP: GWS by 20 points.
ROCKET’S TIP: GWS by 35 points.

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ST KILDA v GEELONG (Marvel Stadium, Saturday 7:25pm local time)
The second pseudo elimination final will be played between the Saints and Cats. If St Kilda loses this, it will have to beat Brisbane at the Gabba next week to guarantee itself finals action – a tough task considering the Lions have won all 10 games at home this year. And if Geelong loses, it would need a football version of a miracle to finish in the top eight. Both teams have to win this game. The Cats head into the clash without Rhys Stanley (hip/adductor) and Gary Rohan (hamstring), but crucially regain Tom Hawkins as well as Jed Bews. However, without Stanley, Geelong doesn’t have an established ruckman, and considering the form that St Kilda big man Rowan Marshall finds himself in, that could prove to be a massive issue. The Saints seemed to turn a corner last week with their clinical victory over Richmond and while the Cats were far from disgraced against Collingwood, they really struggled to handle the Magpies’ manic pressure. The Saints were similarly impressive in the pressure department last week and if they maintain that against a Geelong midfield, which appears to be struggling, then it’ll go a long way to ensuring a win.
RONNY’S TIP: St Kilda by 15 points.
ROCO’S TIP: Geelong by 10 points.
ROCKET’S TIP: Geelong by 13 points.

ADELAIDE v SYDNEY (Adelaide Oval, Saturday 7:10pm local time)
And the third and final chapter of the Saturday elimination final special will be fought out between the Crows and Swans. The equation is quite simple for Adelaide – lose and it’s season over. As for Sydney, if it loses, it will almost certainly drop out of the top eight and will then need to beat Melbourne in the final round to have any chance of playing finals footy – not an ideal scenario. Truth be told, the Crows’ season is hanging by a thread because even if they do win their last two games, they will still need results to go their way for them to sneak in the top eight. But where there’s life, there’s hope, and they won’t die wondering with the return of the electrifying Izak Rankine. Playing at Adelaide Oval will also help their cause considerably given nine of their 10 wins this year have been achieved there. But the Swans certainly can’t be discounted. They’ve won their last five games, and have only lost one of their last eight matches. While the loss of Joel Amartey (hamstring) hurts, the inclusions of Dane Rampe and Braeden Campbell are crucial. This promises to be a magnificent contest and Adelaide should finish the game with its faint pulse still intact.
RONNY’S TIP: Adelaide by 8 points.
ROCO’S TIP: Adelaide by 4 points.
ROCKET’S TIP: Adelaide by 7 points.

WESTERN BULLDOGS v WEST COAST (Marvel Stadium, Sunday 1:10pm local time)
The Bulldogs just love tempting fate. After blowing another golden opportunity for victory last week, they find themselves clinging onto eighth spot by percentage alone. Luckily for them, they will shore up their position in the top eight heading into the final round because they host one of the worst teams of all time, fresh from a record-equalling fifth loss by 100 points or more in a single season.
RONNY’S TIP: Western Bulldogs by 77 points.
ROCO’S TIP: Western Bulldogs by 76 points.
ROCKET’S TIP: Western Bulldogs by 85 points.

MELBOURNE v HAWTHORN (MCG, Sunday 3:20pm local time)
A couple of weeks ago, this match looked like a shoe-in for the Demons. Not anymore. After taking the scalps of premiership favourite Collingwood and finals aspirants the Western Bulldogs in the past two weeks, the Hawks are finishing this season with a head of steam and are relishing their role as top-eight wrecking ball. They might still be in the bottom three, but they are not looking anything like a cellar dweller at present. And that spells bad news for Melbourne which is still yet to guarantee itself a top-four spot and the coveted double chance. To do so, it will need to win one more game. But the Demons aren’t exactly in terrible form. After winning five in a row, they were denied a sixth-straight victory by a controversial score review at the death against the form team of the league in Carlton last week. Injuries to key Hawks Chad Wingard (Achilles) and Mitch Lewis (foot) will further help Melbourne’s cause.
RONNY’S TIP: Melbourne by 22 points.
ROCO’S TIP: Melbourne by 12 points.
ROCKET’S TIP: Melbourne by 15 points.

FREMANTLE v PORT ADELAIDE (Optus Stadium, Sunday 2:40pm local time)
The Dockers have turned their season around in recent weeks with a pair of impressive wins against Geelong and West Coast sandwiching a gallant loss to Brisbane. But it’s too little, too late for the men in purple whose disappointing season will end without a finals appearance. Conversely, the third-placed Power have it all to play for in their pursuit of a top-two spot and a pair of home finals. They trail the Lions by just percentage and need to keep the heat on them right until the end, ready to pounce on any potential slip-up. After a worrying four-game losing streak, Ken Hinkley’s men returned to form with a bang last week as they crushed the in-form Giants by 51 points. They look like they’ve overcome their huge slump and should therefore be too strong for Fremantle.
RONNY’S TIP: Port Adelaide by 25 points.
ROCO’S TIP: Port Adelaide by 24 points.
ROCKET’S TIP: Port Adelaide by 27 points.

SEASON TOTALS
RONNY 128
ROCO 128
ROCKET 119