AFL Weekly Preview Round 15 2007

(Last week 7 from 8 total 67 from 112 =59.8%)

Tipsters, it has been a hard road to travel this season but last week’s 7 was a good result and I bet many of you were kicking yourself for ignoring the preview no doubt due to some pretty ordinary picks in the past. But looking at the total of 67 which is a low overall percentage it is still up there relative to the front runners and if you have stuck with the previews you will be breathing down the neck of the leaders with 8 rounds to go. It’s a shame that it has taken up to round 15 to perform because the sooner you fall behind the more time you have to catch up!!

This was a week without much controversy in the AFL and all the attention seems to have gone onto the coaches. Whoosha didn’t like the comments made about the effort of the Eagles against the Lions as Lethal said West Coast treated the game against them as a bit of a joke. The reason for the weak effort by West Coast is pretty easy to guess because if I was a player in that team and had worked my **se off for 14 weeks of play and 12 weeks of pre-season only to lose my place to a player who had trained for just one week then my lack of motivation would be very explainable. In the true way of AFL footy it is now good to see that a serious drug addiction has given way to a strained hamstring.

The rumour mongers are having a ball with the Daniher, Connolly and Voss triangle of possibilities and Sheeds, in his inimitable way, has thrown another spanner into the works saying that he may be considered too old to continue coaching the Bombers, Pagan’s position with the Blues looks as shaky as Fevola’s, Laidley doesn’t want to talk about anything but this season and Malthouse continues to show that the ox is slow but the earth is weak, as weak as the decisions made by the umpires in the Collingwood versus the St Kilda game in which some atrocious free kicks against the Pies nearly cost them the game and certainly cost Thomas the goal of the year. Let me finish the diatribe for this round by saying that 42.7% of all statistics are made up on the spot.

Last week I showed that too much thought put into the tips only leads to confusion so again, we will be short and sweet with the selections this round.

St Kilda V Adelaide at Telstra Dome Friday Night

The Saints had the Pies on toast last week going into the last quarter but gave it up to lose by 9 points. The Crows slaughtered the young Hawks in their match last week and while the game is at the Dome and not AAMI I cannot find a case for the Saints to win apart from the desperation they will need to stay in touch with the top 8. It won’t be enough.

Adelaide Crows by 27

Geelong V Collingwood MCG Saturday

Collingwood face challenges every week and this will be a ripper against the league leaders in Geelong. The return of Rocca, while welcome, will not be a winning change and the pace of the Magpies will be matched by that of the Cats. Expect another bumper crowd at the MCG with two Victorian teams going for finals spots but I reckon the Cats have just a bit more than the Pies in experience as well as accuracy in front of goal which is costing Collingwood heaps this season. Should be a great game, again, but I think Geelong can do it.

Geelong by 18

Port Adelaide V West Coast Eagles At AAMI Saturday

What a miserable effort by the Eagles last week. It was a terrible game to watch especially if you are an Eagles supporter as the players bumbled from one disaster to another with poor disposal by hand and foot. West Coast have lost their premiership favouritism and they need to do something to allay the slide further down the ladder as there are now 4 sides all with the same premiership points and a loss could see some serious, downward positional change. Without the distraction of Ben Cousins’ return the guys may get to concentrate on the game and West Coast do well when travelling to Adelaide. This won’t be easy but I sense a come back and let’s face it, the Eagles area far better side then Port anyway.

West Coast by 21

Essendon V Western Bulldogs at Telstra Dome Saturday Night

I stated some time ago that Essendon would not make the finals and a loss here would see them drop from from the 8 as Sydney will beat Carlton. Injuries and suspension hasn’t helped their cause this week and the Bulldogs need to firm their position in the race for the finals as well. The game should be pretty tight in the first couple of quarters but it will be a brave punter who will pick against the Dogs in this one. I won’t.

Western Bulldogs by 36

Melbourne V Brisbane at Gabba Saturday Night

This is Melbourne’s annual home game against the Lions at the Gabba and they have carried out this fixture with mixed success over the past few years. The Lions should be pretty high after their inspired win against the Eagles at Subiaco last week so they will come into this clash with the Demons brimming with confidence. The teams are pretty evenly matched and we are heading for either the second draw of the season or a runaway win by Brisbane as I don’t think Melbourne can win by lots. When in doubt stick with the home side – okay.

Brisbane by 1

Sydney V Carlton at SCG Sunday

At last an easy one.

Sydney by 44

Hawthorn V Richmond at MCG Sunday

And another easy one.

Hawthorn by 66

Fremantle V Kangaroos at Subiaco Sunday

In an effort to save Connolly and an opportunity to make Pavlich think twice about leaving I reckon the Dorks will fight back from the brink of defeat and give the fans a warm, fuzzy purple feeling.

Fremantle by 19