Sports

Digby Beacham’s AFL Preview: Round 10

Posted on | Posted by Digby Beacham

MONDAY

Port Adelaide v Western Bulldogs, Adelaide Oval, 5.10pm

In this helter skelter, condensed AFL season, many matches can morph into each other. Tonight’s round 10 encounter between Port Adelaide and the Western Bulldogs at Adelaide Oval is not one of them.

We are about to find out what the Western Bulldogs stand for. Genuinely exciting at their best, they have struggled to operate at a consistent level and were again embarrassed by Richmond last week. Their inability to defend with any purpose or system provided critics with further ammunition about their deficiencies.

Conversely, Port Adelaide rebounded from their shock loss to St Kilda with an electric start against Melbourne and didn’t relent. They were slick. Ollie Wines found a heap of football early, adding another dimension to a midfield that can service a forward line with multiple options.

VERDICT: Port Adelaide by 19 points

TUESDAY

Richmond v Brisbane, Metricon Stadium, 5.10pm

The surging champs against the in-form challengers … welcome to Tuesday night football in prime time between Richmond and Brisbane. The winner might be well disguised, but make no mistake, whoever emerges victorious will trim up in premiership betting.

If Dustin Martin maintains his current form, you can mount a strong case for the Tigers to prevail. Ditto in regards to ball magnet Lachie Neale when it comes to Brisbane’s fortunes. Neale is compiling ridiculous numbers this season and it will be interesting to see whether Damien Hardwick breaks with tradition and applies a tag to the former Docker.

The Tigers’ twin towers Tom Lynch and Jack Riewoldt showed glimpses against the Western Bulldogs last round, but will be hard pressed to split this contest apart given the presence of Harris Andrews and a defence that is extremely efficient.

VERDICT: Brisbane by 12 points

WEDNESDAY

Geelong v North Melbourne, Gabba, 3.40pm

North Melbourne recorded an overdue victory against Adelaide last Saturday and will think they are genuine hopes of dealing Geelong’s top-four hopes a blow here. The Cats only arrived in Queensland on Sunday evening and face a quick spin around after their narrow loss to West Coast at Optus Stadium.

The Cats’ ability to overcome the compromised lead-up has been offset by the return from injury of captain Joel Selwood, who will bolster a midfield that fared very well opposed to the Eagles’ on-ball brigade.

Ben Brown and Jared Polec are back for the Kangaroos after being omitted against the Crows and coach Rhyce Shaw will be chasing a spike in their performance to assist his charges’ bid for an upset.

VERDICT: Geelong by 11 points

Adelaide v Melbourne, Adelaide Oval, 6.10pm

If the old saying “every loss you have, you are closer to a win” applies, then surely Adelaide are knocking on the door. Having taken small steps in recent weeks, the Crows took a huge step back against North Melbourne last weekend.

That performance left them 0-9 and Matthew Nicks aghast at how poor his players were. Normally, that would be the main story entering the following week’s match. That isn’t the case here by virtue of Melbourne being their opponents.

The Demons were dreadful against Brisbane, with president Glenn Bartlett taking aim at just about everyone involved at the club, notably coach Simon Goodwin and his players. The response tonight will be intriguing. Anything less than a Melbourne victory will be unacceptable.

VERDICT: Melbourne by 18 points

THURSDAY

Collingwood v Sydney, Gabba, 3.40pm

Collingwood would have been delighted to get out of Perth after a dreadful last two weeks in WA, highlighted by their defeats to West Coast and Fremantle … and a publicised COVID-19 breach by coach Nathan Buckley and his assistant Brenton Sanderson.

The Magpies now need to get back on the horse and quickly, starting with an extremely winnable game against Sydney. The Swans were outclassed by St Kilda last round, further emphasising the struggle young sides have in the course of a season, especially when playing interstate.

Collingwood defend well and have a gun midfield, but they need to start applying scoreboard pressure. Sydney are quite content to be involved in an arm-wrestle and as we saw against the Dockers in the second term last weekend, a quarter of efficiency can be difficult to overcome.

VERDICT: Collingwood by 20 points

Gold Coast v St Kilda, Metricon Stadium, 6.10pm

There is no denying Gold Coast have come forward in leaps and bounds this year. However, given the opportunities they have been presented with courtesy of a bulk of games being played in their home State, they would love to sneak into the finals.

A win over St Kilda would certainly go a long way towards making that a reality. The Saints represent a daunting challenge. Fresh off back-to-back victories in Adelaide over the two South Australian sides, Brett Ratten’s men did a number on Sydney last weekend, showcasing their spread of talent.

Jarrod Witts has led the ruck stocks boldly for the Suns, but the dual-pronged combination of Rowan Marshall and Paddy Ryder will ensure he and his midfielders have their work cut out.

VERDICT: St Kilda by 21 points

FRIDAY

Essendon v GWS, Metricon Stadium, 5.50pm

The football world continues to wait for Greater Western Sydney to underline their credentials in the manner we all think they are capable of. As for Essendon, many have given up expecting anything grandiose again in 2020.

At their best, the Bombers play a ballistic brand that requires a great deal of concentration and planning to curb. What we witnessed against Brisbane last week was a stilted, conservative approach that left them sitting ducks.

GWS have the weapons to contend again this season, but they have yet to wheel them out. Their midfield remains high class and Lachie Whitfield provides enormous rebound off half-back. If the Giants are to secure a double chance, this is non-negotiable. A big total wouldn’t go astray either.

VERDICT: GWS by 19 points 

*Remaining games still to come.

Market Market



Recent Articles