While most people are debating whether or not Carlton and North can make the eight or the final make up of the top four, there are two intriguing battles at the bottom end of the ladder.
They are the battle for the wooden spoon and the battle to avoid bottom four.
Firstly, let’s looks at the wooden spoon. At the moment Melbourne are at two wins and 53.59% margin. GWS are on one win but have a (slightly) superior percentage – 54.64%.
In the four remaining games, GWS have away games against Fremantle, Brisbane and Gold Coast and a home game against Richmond. Given the promise they have shown over the past six weeks, wins against Brisbane and/or Gold Coast does not seem too unlikely.
The travel for GWS may prove difficult, though, with the Brisbane match occurring just six days after the Fremantle match.
Melbourne, the other wooden spoon contender, have away matches to Gold Coast and Port Adelaide, a home match against Fremantle then a Round 23 showdown against a Western Bulldogs team that has vastly improved over the last month.
It is hard to see Melbourne winning any of these games, meaning that if GWS gets a win (and that is a big if), the wooden spoon will be decided on percentage. With just 1.05% separating the two clubs at the moment, every goal in every game becomes vital for the two clubs.
With Melbourne and GWS fighting it out for 17th/18th spot, there are two spots left in the bottom four.
St Kilda look dead certain to come 16th with just three wins to date and three matches against top four teams in their run home.
This leaves Western Bulldogs or Gold Coast to fill the last spot in the bottom four.
At the moment, the Dogs are on five wins and 79% with Gold Coast on six wins and 88%. In the final month, though, both clubs have a relatively easy run home that could help get some momentum into 2014.
The Dogs have no matches against a current top eight side and the hardest match Gold Coast will play is a trip on the road to meet Port Adelaide.
Gold Coast have improved vastly this season but have looked flat in their past two outings against Carlton and West Coast.
After Round 14, the Dogs were just on three wins and had just been beaten by Melbourne. Since then, they have put in impressive performances against Essendon, Melbourne and Sydney and caused an upset win over West Coast.
Both clubs should be expecting two to three wins in the last month, meaning if either team slips up, the bottom four beckons.
Adelaide are just one win ahead of Gold Coast but given their easy run home and their current percentage (over 100), it is highly unlikely they will round out the bottom four.
These matches for lower ranked sides is a sneak preview of the 2014 season.
If the past month is anything to go by, the future at Whitten Oval, Gold Coast and Blacktown is a bright one. But for Melbourne and St Kilda, it appears the worst is yet to come.
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