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It’s going to be a big round of footy in Round 16, and I’m not just saying that for the fun of it.
This could well be a round we look back on at the end of the year as one that makes or breaks the season for a lot of teams.
Take Friday night for example, as North Melbourne host Essendon. It’s probably too late for the Bombers this year, but North really need to show they can string two wins together.
Saturday is packed with games that could go either way, and will have an impact on the make-up of the final eight. The Bulldogs and Geelong? Collingwood and West Coast? Sydney and Hawthorn? Good luck tipping these with confidence.
Sunday might not be quite as appealing, but has as its centrepiece what will undoubtedly be a Showdown to remember.
The game of the round
While there’ll be a lot of eyes on the top four clash between Sydney and Hawthorn on Saturday night, the match I’m most looking forward to this week is Showdown 39, this year’s second meeting between Port Adelaide and Adelaide.
If the contest between these two hardened rivals wasn’t appealing enough, this promises to be arguably the most intriguing clash yet.
Rather than a bout of hatred and competition, this week’s showdown will, for perhaps the first time, display instead the strong unified spirit of football in South Australia.
In the first match between these two sides since the death of Phil Walsh, they will come together to pay tribute to a man who had an enormous impact on both clubs.
With emotions running high, and the result important for both clubs’ finals hopes, this is a game you will not want to miss.
The fizzer
Thank goodness Sydney and Hawthorn is on at the same time because if we all had nothing but Fremantle and Carlton to watch on Saturday night, we might go insane.
Sure, the Dockers haven’t looked great lately – with a 72-point loss to Hawthorn last week casting some serious doubt over their premiership aspirations.
And okay, Carlton haven’t been as rubbish as they were earlier in the season, with a bit of a rebound under John Barker – though the honeymoon period is on the verge of wearing thin.
Really though, the gap between these two teams is enormous. Aside from maybe a few spicy quips about Ross Lyon meeting with Carlton executives, this one’s going to be as bland as they come.
The big IN
While there’s a few well-known names coming back to AFL level this week, the biggest – both in reputation and physical stature – has to be Hawthorn’s Jarryd Roughead.
Roughead’s missed the last two weeks for a more unusual reason than most, having some skin cancer removed from his lip.
His operation went perfectly and after some recovery time he’s now back in the line-up, with a cool villainous scar on his face to boot.
The Hawks haven’t exactly struggled in his absence, with wins against Collingwood and Fremantle extending their run to six straight, but they’ll be mighty glad to have him back when they face the Swans on Saturday night.
A few other notable inclusions for the week: Ted Richards and Mitch Duncan both return from injury, Levi Greenwood will play his first game for Collingwood, and Stefan Martin is back from a two-week suspension.
The big OUT
It might only be for a week but Cats captain Joel Selwood is a massive out for his side this week as they come up against the young upstart Bulldogs.
It’s a hard match to pick as you’re forced to choose between a champion team on the way down, and a young exciting team on the way up.
If Selwood was in the side I’d be tempted to give the Cats my tip, but with him sitting on the sidelines – having copped a one week suspension for a chicken wing tackle on Sam Wright – it’s hard to see the Cats getting up.
The suspension will bring to an end a run of 64 consecutive games for the Cats skipper, the eleventh longest current streak in the AFL.
The longest of those streaks will also end this week, with North Melbourne’s Drew Petrie – who has played 105 consecutive games for the club – also suspended for a week.
Stat of the week
Having played under Scott Camporeale for the first time last week, Adelaide’s Eddie Betts has now played under five different coaches in his last 52 AFL games – including Brett Ratten, Mick Malthouse, Brenton Sanderson and Phil Walsh as well as Camporeale.
Compare that to Dustin Fletcher (400 games) and Brent Harvey (398 games) who have played under just four coaches each during their long-running careers.
Milestones
200 games – Dale Morris
100 games – Andrew Gaff, Tom Scully, Isaac Smith
50 games – Curtly Hampton, Aaron Mullett