Essendon will need another monster performance from captain Zach Merrett to be any chance of beating Port Adelaide. Photo: GETTY IMAGES

ESSENDON v PORT ADELAIDE (Marvel Stadium, Thursday 7:30pm)
It hasn’t taken long for the alarm bells to ring loud and clear at Tullamarine. A week after a commendable season opener against Hawthorn, the Bombers crash landed last week to the Crows as their defensive frailties were laid bare in brutal fashion at the MCG. But Essendon’s all round skill level and decision-making were also lamentable. It’s hard to imagine the Dons performing much worse than that. And this week they come up against a team which has made an erratic start to 2025. It’s hard to get a read on the Power so far. A week after having their pants pulled down by Collingwood, they walloped the consensus pre-season pick for the wooden spoon in Richmond. While Port welcomes back Esava Ratugolea, it loses key trio Ryan Burton (hip), Jack Lukosius (knee) and Lachie Jones (adductor) to injury. Crucially for the Bombers, they regain star defender Jordan Ridley. For all those reasons mentioned, the Round 3 opener is actually quite intriguing. The Power should get the job done, but if the Bombers don’t respond strongly to their insipid showing last time out, they might as well pack up for the rest of the year.
RONNY’S TIP: Port Adelaide by 17 points.
ROCO’S TIP: Port Adelaide by 26 points.
ROCKET’S TIP: Port Adelaide by 17 points.

CARLTON v WESTERN BULLDOGS (Marvel Stadium, Friday 7:40pm)
Twenty-four hours later back at Docklands and we’ve got ourselves another fascinating encounter. The winless Blues gave a better account of themselves last week against the premiership favourite Hawks, but they still seem a bit rattled from their stunning start to the season which culminated with their upset loss to Richmond. Meanwhile, the undermanned Dogs have been admirable so far by beating the Kangaroos and losing a close one to Collingwood. Unfortunately for Luke Beveridge’s side, it will still be missing Marcus Bontempelli (calf), Adam Treloar (calf), Cody Weightman (knee), Jason Johannisen (hamstring) and Jamarra Ugle-Hagan, but could regain key defensive pillars Liam Jones (hamstring) and James O’Donnell (jaw). And that pair may not have to worry about star Carlton forward Harry McKay (illness) who is no guarantee to return. There shouldn’t be any excuses for the Blues to lose to such a depleted Bulldogs outfit, but the Dogs are a plucky bunch, and have made a habit of surprising the Blues, like they did in Round 18 last year with a host of key players missing.
RONNY’S TIP: Western Bulldogs by 8 points.
ROCO’S TIP: Western Bulldogs by 2 points.
ROCKET’S TIP: Western Bulldogs by 7 points.

MELBOURNE v GOLD COAST (MCG, Saturday 1:20pm)
The blowtorch has come early for Simon Goodwin and his Demons after lowly North Melbourne registered its biggest win in five years against them last week. The same old attacking problems continue to haunt Melbourne which won the inside-50 count but lost the game by 10 goals. Alarmingly, the Dees were completely run off their feet by the end of the match, and they come up against a Gold Coast unit fresh from a bye after registering its biggest win in club history against West Coast the week prior. A week off isn’t necessarily a good thing, especially at this time of year, but there’s no doubt the Suns will head to the home of football with enhanced self-belief. In a boost for the Demons, they might regain Steven May (larynx) and Jake Melksham (hamstring), but Jake Lever (ankle) is under a cloud and they’re still missing Kysaiah Pickett (suspension), Juddd McVee (hamstring), Caleb Windsor (foot) and Koltyn Tholstrup (back). The Suns are basically at full strength and ready to roll, but Melbourne was impressive against GWS a fortnight ago, and gets a reprieve because of that.
RONNY’S TIP: Melbourne by 10 points.
ROCO’S TIP: Gold Coast by 8 points.
ROCKET’S TIP: Gold Coast by 9 points.

ST KILDA v RICHMOND (Marvel Stadium, Saturday 4:15pm)
The Saints produced the early clubhouse leader for rebound performance of the season last week, responding to their first-up shellacking at the hands of Adelaide to down premiership fancy Geelong in a thriller. Conversely, the young Tigers were brought back down to earth with a thud courtesy of a 12-goal drubbing from Port Adelaide following on from their sensational win over Carlton. Richmond should perform better this weekend, but the Saints looked super against the Cats, and appear to be a class above.
RONNY’S TIP: St Kilda by 28 points.
ROCO’S TIP: St Kilda by 28 points.
ROCKET’S TIP: St Kilda by 35 points.

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HAWTHORN v GWS (Launceston, Saturday 7:35pm)
Could this be a grand final preview? Both of these teams have started the year all guns blazing, and while it’s well-known that a footy season is a sprint and not a marathon, it’s hard not to be seduced by the early formlines of these two sides. The Hawks sit pretty on top of the ladder having beaten Sydney, Essendon and Carlton impressively, while the Giants have a pair of victories against Collingwood and Melbourne in their back pocket. Like the Suns, GWS heads into this match off the back on early bye. Connor Macdonald (ankle) will be forced out for the Hawks, while Jesse Hogan (thumb), Jake Stringer (hamstring), Kieren Briggs (concussion), Jake Riccardi (suspension), Toby McMullin (suspension) and Harvey Thomas (suspension) are pushing for selection for GWS. This promises to be an absolute cracker, but the Hawks will be hard to beat at their second home in Tasmania.
RONNY’S TIP: Hawthorn by 4 points.
ROCO’S TIP: Hawthorn by 12 points.
ROCKET’S TIP: GWS by 7 points.

BRISBANE v GEELONG (Gabba, Saturday 6:35pm)
Or maybe this is a possible grand final preview? What a Saturday night double feature. It’s a shame that fans are going to be forced to flick between both games because these heavyweight contests will almost certainly deliver the goods. The Lions and Cats have great recent history to help build the anticipation for this match. The last time they met, Brisbane came from behind to down Geelong in an epic preliminary final, but in their previous encounter, which happened to be at the venue they’re playing each other at this weekend, the Cats won comfortably. Yet both sides head into this match on the back of ordinary performances. The Lions struggled to overcome lowly West Coast, while Geelong was shocked by the Saints. The visitors will be hoping to regain Bailey Smith (calf) and Tom Stewart’s miraculous recovery from a knee injury could end up with him lining up on Saturday night. Meanwhile, Brisbane could get back gun forward duo Charlie Cameron (calf) and Kai Lohmann (ankle). This will be another must-watch match, and the Lions should probably be just too good in the rescheduled Round 0 game.
RONNY’S TIP: Brisbane by 15 points.
ROCO’S TIP: Brisbane by 16 points.
ROCKET’S TIP: Geelong by 9 points.

ADELAIDE v NORTH MELBOURNE (Adelaide Oval, Sunday 2:50pm)
The Kangaroos are still basking in their best win since 2020, and they can’t be blamed considering they’ve only been victorious 16 times in their last 109 outings. Exhilarating and ruthless are words scarcely associated with North Melbourne, but they were both apt adjectives last Sunday against a shellshocked Melbourne. However, expecting the Kangaroos to carry that momentum over to Adelaide against the Crows is a tall order. Granted, Adelaide hasn’t played much so far this year, but it has been absolutely merciless in the way it has brushed aside St Kilda and Essendon, thanks largely to its extremely potent, and numerous, attacking options. The Crows are posting cricket scores early in the piece, and they’re going to be very hard to stop, as good as North was last round.
RONNY’S TIP: Adelaide by 32 points.
ROCO’S TIP: Adelaide by 38 points.
ROCKET’S TIP: Adelaide by 29 points.

WEST COAST v FREMANTLE (Optus Stadium, Sunday 3:10pm)
Two winless teams in a Western Derby can only mean one thing: pressure – and lots of it. But given not many pundits were expecting much of the Eagles this year, it’s fair to say that the Dockers will be feeling the heat more this weekend, considering they were widely tipped to return to the finals in 2025, and maybe even sneak into the top four. The Dockers have been disappointing in losses to Geelong and Sydney so far, but while the Eagles were smashed by Gold Coast first up, they really tested the Lions in Brisbane last week, which could augur well for Sunday’s clash. And of course let’s not forget West Coast threw a spanner in its arch rival’s works last year with a 37-point win in Round 6 that came from out of the blue. So this is by no mean’s a foregone conclusion. And West Coast is hopeful of regaining All-Australian forward Jake Waterman (back/calf) as well as new recruit Jack Graham (hip). A 0-3 start would be a disaster for Fremantle and its coach Justin Longmuir, but it should be able to avert that scenario.
RONNY’S TIP: Fremantle by 12 points.
ROCO’S TIP: Fremantle by 32 points.
ROCKET’S TIP: Fremantle by 31 points.

SEASON TOTALS
ROCO 13
ROCKET 13
RONNY 11

*all times are local