Game-by-game preview for round 22

Preview of round 22 AFL games (all times local).

Teams FREMANTLE V COLLINGWOOD
Venue SUBIACO
Date Friday, August 29
Time 7.40pm
Head.to.head Fremantle 7 Collingwood 10 Drawn 0
Last.time Collingwood 16.15 (111) bt Fremantle 13.7 (85) R1 2008, MCG
Betting TABSportsbet Collingwood $1.50 Fremantle $2.40 Centrebet Collingwood $1.48 Fremantle $2.65
Summary For Collingwood to finish fourth, they must beat Fremantle and hope North Melbourne loses to Port Adelaide. A loss to the Dockers could see the Magpies slump to eighth if Adelaide, Sydney and St Kilda all win. But the Magpies will travel to Perth riding a wave of confidence following three straight wins. It seems the absence of Alan Didak, Heath and Rhyce Shaw because of club imposed suspensions have jolted the team into action. While they will miss their captain Scott Burns (calf), the Dockers will feel a greater loss with their captain Matthew Pavlich (foot) on the sidelines. Expect Paul Medhurst to be given a hostile reception on and off the field when he plays against his former team while Josh Carr and Jeff Farmer are both tipped to join retiring Mark Johnson in playing their final games for the Dockers.
Key Travis Cloke is the key to the Magpies’ system going forward and his great endurance on the wide expanses of Subiaco will be difficult for the Dockers to counter
Tip Collingwood by 37 points

Teams NORTH MELBOURNE V PORT ADELAIDE
Venue MCG
Date Saturday, August 30
Time 1.10pm
Head.to.head North Melbourne 13 Port Adelaide 5 Drawn 0
Last.time North Melbourne 10.16 (76) bt Port Adelaide 10.14 (74) R15 2008, AAMI Stadium
Betting TABSportsbet Nth Melbourne $1.20 Port Adelaide $4 Centrebet Nth Melbourne $1.19 Port Adelaide $4.75
Summary North Melbourne will not only be keen to bounce back from losing to Geelong last weekend but more importantly retain fourth spot to earn the all-important double chance in the finals. They will also be determined to give one of their favourite sons – Shannon Grant – a fitting tribute in his 300th match. North will want to keep Port Adelaide’s runners on a tight leash. Expect Brady Rawlings to get the job of shutting down Power playmaker Shaun Burgoyne while Kane Cornes will do the same on North’s Brent Harvey. After being well-held by Geelong’s Cameron Ling, Harvey will be out to produce an eye-catching performance in his last chance to stake a claim for the Brownlow Medal.
Key North need Daniel Harris to step up. He was quiet against Geelong as the Cats midfielders ran rampant. In North’s victory against Carlton the week before, Harris was instrumental at winning the 50-50 contests.
Tip North Melbourne by 44 points

Teams GEELONG V WEST COAST
Venue Skilled Stadium
Date Saturday, August 30
Time 2.10pm
Head.to.head West Coast 21 Geelong 15 Drawn 1
Last.time Geelong 28.14 (182) bt West Coast 5.17 (47) R13 2008, Subiaco
Betting TABSportsbet Geelong $1.01 West Coast $11 Centrebet Geelong $1.01 West Coast $15
Summary Last time these two teams met, Geelong beat them by 135 points. If anything, Geelong are now going better and the Eagles worse. A scary thought indeed. The Cats have dispatched all three of their top four rivals with ease in recent weeks and will use this match for training drills going into next week’s finals. They lose defender Max Rooke through suspension, but does it really matter? The star-studded Cats have the ideal opportunity to make a pre-September statement against a badly weakened Eagles outfit who have won just four games for the season. They’d lose a priority pick should they pull off a miracle here. That won’t happen
Key Whether the Eagles can find any way of limiting the effectiveness of the Cats’ brilliant midfield. Brownlow Medallist Jimmy Bartel has been in great recent form, and 37 touches against North Melbourne last weekend suggests he should top 40 against the Eagles.
Tip Geelong by 75 points

Teams ADELAIDE v WESTERN BULLDOGS
Venue AAMI Stadium
Date Saturday, August 30
Time 7.10pm
Head.to.head Western Bulldogs 15 Adelaide 14 Drawn 0
Last.time Western Bulldogs 19.12 (126) bt Adelaide 18.15.(123) R1 2008, Telstra Dome
Betting TABSportsbet Western Bulldogs $1.75 Adelaide $1.95 Centrebet Western Bulldogs $1.08 Adelaide $2.75
Summary As it has been for the past few weeks, the third-placed Bulldogs have nothing to gain by winning. For Adelaide, a home final or even a top four spot are on offer with a victory. The Crows were a huge disappointment against St Kilda last weekend, while the Bulldogs played themselves back into some form against Essendon. Adelaide are likely to roll the dice with forward Jason Porplyzia despite more shoulder problems at training this week. And the announcement of stalwart defender Nathan Bassett’s impending retirement may give the Crows a further lift. The Dogs have mothballed veteran Scott West and youngster Tom Williams for the year, and really need to impose themselves a week out from the finals if they hope to go deep into September.
Key The Bulldogs’ ex-Adelaide forward Scott Welsh has had a patchy past six weeks, but booted four against his old club in an unforgettable round one win.
Tip Western Bulldogs by eight points

Teams CARLTON v HAWTHORN
Venue Telstra Dome
Date Saturday, August 30
Time 7.10pm
Head.to.head Carlton 102 Hawthorn 52 Drawn 1
Last.time Hawthorn 27.18 (180) bt Carlton 12.8 (80) R12 2007 Telstra Dome
Betting TABSportsbet Hawthorn $1.33 Carlton $3 Centrebet Hawthorn $1.40 Carlton $2.95
Summary What was shaping as a dead rubber has turned into a massive crowd puller with the prospect of Hawk Lance Franklin and Blue Brendan Fevola booting 100 goals for the season. Franklin is all but a certainty, needing just two goals, while Fevola will need the Blues midfielders to dominate to help his cause. He requires eight more goals to reach the magical mark – something that is not beyond him after eight goal hauls against Essendon and Collingwood earlier in the year. Due to the vagaries of the draw, the clash will be the first time the sides meet this year. Hawthorn will be looking to beat the Blues to carry good form into September
Key The midfield battle looms as the key. Blue duo Chris Judd and Nick Stevens were pivotal in the final quarter of last weekend’s comeback win over Brisbane, while Bryce Gibbs, Marc Murphy and Kade Simpson are a good support cast. But the Hawks engine room of Sam Mitchell, Jordan Lewis, Chance Bateman, Brad Sewell and Luke Hodge should hold their own.
Tip Hawthorn by 8 points.

Teams SYDNEY V BRISBANE
Venue SCG
Date Saturday, August 30
Time 7.10pm
Head.to.head Sydney 11 Brisbane 9 Drawn 1
Last.time Sydney 13.10 (88) bt Brisbane 10.11 (71) R3 2008, Gabba
Betting TABSportsbet Sydney $1.42 Brisbane $2.65 Centrebet Sydney $1.48 Brisbane $2.65
Summary Sydney could yet finish fourth but it’s a remote possibility as all four teams above them would have to lose. But the Swans’ main objective will be to regroup and produce a solid performance on their home turf after their demoralising loss to Collingwood, after which Paul Roos admitted their golden era was over. They have lost six of their past eight matches and it wouldn’t surprise if Brisbane picked them off as the Swans limp into the finals. Sydney can take solace in the fact Brisbane haven’t beaten them in their last seven attempts
Key Craig Bolton and Leo Barry will have the job of containing Brisbane’s twin towers of Jonathan Brown and Daniel Bradshaw in attack. If the Swans can quell the duo’s influence, it will go a long way to helping them defeat the Lions.
Tip Sydney by 10 points

Teams MELBOURNE V RICHMOND
Venue MCG
Date Sunday, August 31
Time 2.10 pm
Head.to.head Richmond 97 Melbourne 75 Drawn 2
Last.time Richmond 16.20 (116) bt Melbourne 14.10 (94) R12 2008, Telstra Dome
Betting TABSportsbet Richmond $1.18 Melbourne $4.25 Centrebet Richmond $1.19 Melbourne $4.75
Summary With Richmond falling out of finals contention last round, there is not much left for either of these sides to play for. The bottom-placed Demons will at least be seeking to end a horrible year on a high note. Another performance like their 78-point capitulation to Port Adelaide last weekend would leave supporters with very little optimism to take into the summer. Melbourne will also want to provide a decent farewell to long-serving players Jeff White and Adem Yze, who will be playing their last game in the red and blue. The Tigers are also saying goodbye to one of their veterans, midfielder Greg Tivendale. They can at least head into the off-season in a positive frame of mind, having won six of their past nine games. Another win here would give them seven out of 10, including three in a row to end the year, setting a platform for an improved 2009.
Key Richmond midfielders Shane Tuck and Brett Deledio have been in fine form over the last part of the season, with Tuck racking up more than 30 touches in each of his past four games. The Demons will need to quell that pair’s influence to have a chance.
Tip Richmond by 35 points

Teams ESSENDON V St KILDA
Venue Telstra Dome
Date Sunday, August 31
Time 4.40pm
Head.to.head Essendon 134 St Kilda 61 Drawn 4
Last.time St Kilda 18.15 (123) bt Essendon 14.3 (87) R5 2008, Telstra Dome
Betting TABSportsbet St Kilda $1.15 Essendon $4.80 Centrebet St Kilda $1.12 Essendon $6.25
SummaryIt will be a day of mass farewells for the Bombers, who will send off 2000 premiership players Jason Johnson and Adam Ramanauskas, along with fellow veterans Damien Peverill and Mal Michael. The emotion stimulated by those players should ensure they at least give the Saints a solid pre-finals hit-out, if not get up and cause an upset. While St Kilda are locked into the eight, a win gives them a chance to better position themselves ahead of the opening finals weekend. They are an outside chance of a top four berth, but more realistically could grab a home elimination final with a win. Their form in downing Adelaide convincingly last round suggests they should be too good for the Bombers. Skipper Nick Riewoldt has been superb in recent weeks and will severely test the Essendon defence.
Key Essendon will be throwing everything at the Saints, knowing this is their last match for 2008, and for some their last match ever. The big question for St Kilda is whether they can bring the same intensity, or will they already be thinking of more important contests
Tip St Kilda by 32 points