Adelaide’s Ned McHenry celebrates a goal in the Crows’ win over Carlton in Round 20 last year. Photo: GETTY IMAGES

ADELAIDE v CARLTON (Adelaide Oval, Thursday 7.10pm local time)
The first ever ‘Gather Round’ takes place this weekend, and it all kicks off with a mouth-watering encounter between the resurgent Crows and the undefeated Blues. Carlton was one of two unlucky teams to draw a local side in what, for the most part, is a neutral round of footy, but having made their best start to a season since 1995 – the last time they won a premiership – it’ll take a bit more than a slight fixturing injustice to knock the confidence out of the Blues at the present time. Carlton is yet to lose this year, despite being outplayed in large chunks of all four of their matches, which is a very ominous sign for the rest of the competition. And now that their lethal forward tandem of Charlie Curnow and Harry McKay are finally simpatico, another piece in the Blues’ puzzle has been sorted. Welcoming back Sam Walsh, Blake Acres and Matthew Kennedy is a pretty handy boost as well. It took the Crows a couple of weeks to find their mojo, but since they did, they have looked very impressive. Matthew Nicks’ team might have the second most dangerous forward line behind Carlton with the likes of Izak Rankine, Riley Thilthorpe, Josh Rachele and Taylor Walker all wreaking havoc, and the Crows are adding Darcy Fogarty and Luke Pedlar back to that mix this week. This promises to be an entertaining match-up, but having lost all six of their games at Adelaide Oval, the Blues should finally break the drought and tick off another milestone for season 2023.
RONNY’S TIP: Carlton by 13 points.
ROCO’S TIP: Carlton by 10 points.
ROCKET’S TIP: Adelaide by 11 points.

GOLD COAST v FREMANTLE (Norwood Oval, Friday 4.40pm local time)
The next game on the schedule is one of an uninspiring nature to say the least, which probably explains why it’s one of three matches being staged off Broadway and in a terrible timeslot. If nothing else, the Suns are consistent. Yet again, after achieving a meritorious victory (against Geelong) which looked like the springboard for something big, they backed it up with a putrid effort (against St Kilda) that once again proved the previous performance was an aberration rather than the rule. It’s the story of Gold Coast’s 13-year existence. The Suns really are the Michael Corleone of the AFL: just when you thought they were out of their cycle of mediocrity, they get pulled back in. And the likely absence of Jarrod Witts for a second week running will surely make it hard for them to return to the winners’ list, especially up against the one-two punch of Sean Darcy and Luke Jackson who, admittedly, haven’t exactly set the world on fire yet this year. Their struggles to coexist in the same side have been emblematic of the Dockers’ underwhelming start to the year, but while they are miles off from being the finished product, they should surely be good enough to handle the Gold Coast threat.
RONNY’S TIP: Fremantle by 17 points.
ROCO’S TIP: Fremantle by 18 points.
ROCKET’S TIP: Fremantle by 17 points.

SYDNEY v RICHMOND (Adelaide Oval, Friday 7.40pm local time)
Things all of a sudden look desperate for the Tigers who have only managed a win and a draw from the opening month. Key pillars Tom Lynch (foot) and Toby Nankervis (ankle) have been ruled out for extended periods, Jack Graham (hamstring) will miss 2-3 weeks, while Nathan Broad (suspension), Jayden Short (calf), Josh Gibcus (hamstring), Robbie Tarrant (hip) and Ivan Soldo (foot) all remain sidelined. Richmond’s depth will be severely tested as a result, and there’s no grace period, either, as the Tigers come up against last year’s runner-up Sydney this week. For all intents and purposes, the Swans should be 3-1, but they stole defeat from the jaws of victory last round in one of the most thrilling finishes to a game in recent memory against Port Adelaide. John Longmire’s men will still be seething. Their biggest issue now appears to be the legendary Lance Franklin and his place in the team. They smashed the Power for inside-50s last week (67-45) yet still lost. They remain Franklin-conscious despite the fact that, at 36, he is not what he was. Franklin (knee) will miss this week which, privately, the Swans coaching staff probably won’t be too upset about as it will once again give the likes of Logan McDonald and Joel Amartey the chance to shine as they did so brightly against Hawthorn. Lynch’s absence up forward for Richmond will also be offset by Paddy and Tom McCartin both being unavailable due to concussion, but the Swans still look a bit more potent.
RONNY’S TIP: Sydney by 15 points.
ROCO’S TIP: Richmond by 2 points.
ROCKET’S TIP: Sydney by 27 points.

NORTH MELBOURNE v BRISBANE (Adelaide Hills, Saturday 12.40pm local time)
The air is starting to slowly be let out of the Kangaroos’ tyres after their buoyant opening fortnight to start the year. Consecutive wins over West Coast and Fremantle have been backed up by losses to Hawthorn and Carlton, and they face another big test this week in the form of flag fancy Brisbane. The Lions are the clubhouse leaders for the Jekyll-and-Hyde award this year, proving to be a vastly better team at home than they are away. They need to fix that and bridge the gap between their best and their worst quick smart if they want to be deemed a legitimate premiership threat. They’ll be presented an ideal opportunity to do so this week. The Kangaroos to their credit have been no pushovers this year, and you can expect them to put up another fight this week, but it won’t be enough to overcome the power and talent of Brisbane.
RONNY’S TIP: Brisbane by 22 points.
ROCO’S TIP: Brisbane by 32 points.
ROCKET’S TIP: Brisbane by 31 points.

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MELBOURNE v ESSENDON (Adelaide Oval, Saturday 3.40pm local time)
With both of these Victorian teams in the top four, club executives must be cursing the timing of ‘Gather Round’ as this match probably could’ve drawn over 50,000 fans had it been staged at the MCG. Much like Carlton, Essendon finds itself with a very favourable win-loss record despite looking vulnerable in large parts of their first four games. But unlike the Blues, who have already played Richmond and Geelong, the Dons are yet to play a 2022 finalist, although St Kilda does look top-eight-bound at the moment. After being so accurate in their first three games, diabolical goalkicking came back to haunt the Bombers with a vengeance last week (11.22), and if they don’t straighten up this week, the Demons will eat them alive. Essendon’s midfield has been pretty effective so far this year, but it will get one hell of an audit against a Demons engine room that is humming along ominously. Brodie Grundy looks back to his All-Australian best in the absence of Max Gawn, while the likes of Clayton Oliver and Christian Petracca are in brilliant form too. It’s going to be a tough one for the Bombers.
RONNY’S TIP: Melbourne by 27 points.
ROCO’S TIP: Melbourne by 22 points.
ROCKET’S TIP: Melbourne by 25 points.

PORT ADELAIDE v WESTERN BULLDOGS (Adelaide Oval, Saturday 7.20pm local time)
The second team to draw the short straw in this ‘neutral’ round of footy are the Western Bulldogs, who play the other local team, the Power. And the Dogs get Port Adelaide riding one of the biggest highs imaginable after Aliir Aliir’s golden fist prevented Ollie Florent’s shot after the siren from sailing through for a goal, to ensure a famous two-point win for the men in black, silver, white and teal. And Ken Hinkley has almost a full list to choose from, with only Orazio Fantasia (quad) unavailable. Meanwhile, the Bulldogs will be without Alex Keath (concussion), Hayden Crozier (back) is in doubt, while Laitham Vandermeer (leg) and Roarke Smith (foot) remain unavailable. But in some good news, Cody Weightman (groin) should line up for his first game of 2023. Suffice to say, the Power’s defence answered its critics last week, helping the team to victory despite contending with 22 more inside-50s. And for the second week running, the Dogs showed enormous amounts of grit and determination to down the Tigers. This promises to be a sensational contest.
RONNY’S TIP: Port Adelaide by 4 points.
ROCO’S TIP: Western Bulldogs by 8 points.
ROCKET’S TIP: Port Adelaide by 7 points.

WEST COAST v GEELONG (Adelaide Oval, Sunday 12.40pm local time)
It took three weeks, but finally the Geelong team that struck fear into the hearts of their 17 rivals last year made its first appearance for the season last round with a merciless 82-point annihilation of arch rival Hawthorn on Easter Monday. And it was that man again Jeremy Cameron who stole the show, producing another virtuoso performance with seven goals. It looks as though the reigning premiers have belatedly righted their ship and are back on course for season 2023, which is very bad news for an injury-ravaged West Coast line-up.
RONNY’S TIP: Geelong by 60 points.
ROCO’S TIP: Geelong by 42 points.
ROCKET’S TIP: Geelong by 37 points.

GWS v HAWTHORN (Norwood Oval, Sunday 2.50pm local time)
The Hawks looked impressive in their solitary win against North Melbourne a couple of weeks ago, but their problem is that when they lose, they lose really badly. Their average losing margin this year is already a whopping 74 points and questions continue to be asked of their aggressive rebuilding strategy which saw them part ways with star veterans Jack Gunston, Tom Mitchell and Jaeger O’Meara last off-season. They truly look bereft of any meaningful leadership in their defeats, and it remains to be seen what kind of long-term damage these pummellings may cause to this young side’s psyche. The Giants haven’t been going great guns either this year, but aren’t travelling anywhere nearly as badly as Hawthorn is. They’ve been pretty competitive in all four of their matches with the final margins hovering between 10 and 19 points. Their injury list might be lengthy, but they should still have enough quality to take care of the downtrodden Hawks.
RONNY’S TIP: GWS by 25 points.
ROCO’S TIP: GWS by 30 points.
ROCKET’S TIP: GWS by 15 points.

ST KILDA v COLLINGWOOD (Adelaide Oval, Sunday 4.20pm local time)
In a twist of fate, ‘Gather Round’ has saved the best for the last as the team with the only perfect record in the league, St Kilda, take on a side that was installed as an early premiership favourite in Collingwood. But like the Demons-Bombers match-up, the top brass at both Moorabbin and Olympic Park must be punching the odd wall considering how big the attendance would’ve been for this match had it also been staged in Melbourne. In any case, this should still be an incredible game of football. How long can the Saints keep playing this scintiallting brand of football while dealing with an enormous injury list? And can the Magpies rebound from a humbling defeat to Brisbane following their red-hot start to the season? These are the intriguing questions that will be answered on Sunday evening. Jack Bytel (ankle) is just the latest addition to the Saints’ sick bay, but finally in some good news for them, Tim Membrey (knee) could make his first appearance for the season. The lack of a recognised ruckman really looked to throw out Collingwood’s forward structure last week, as pinch-hitters Ash Johnson and Dan McStay were forced to shoulder the burden. It affected them so badly that the Pies might consider giving the untried Oscar Steene a game this week against one of the league’s best big men Rowan Marshall. The Saints have been riding high under the returning Ross Lyon and will be sure to push Collingwood right to the end.
RONNY’S TIP: Collingwood by 10 points.
ROCO’S TIP: Collingwood by 14 points.
ROCKET’S TIP: Collingwood by 15 points.

SEASON TOTALS
RONNY 20
ROCO 18
ROCKET 15