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The five Saturday games this week all involve at least one finals contender, so by the end of the day we will have a slightly clearer view of the finals landscape, although some upsets are on the cards.
The two big games on Saturday are those that involve two finals contenders going head-to-head in what is often described as an eight-point game.
The first of these is the early Saturday game between Collingwood and North Melbourne. Both were losers last week but the Kangaroos were gallant in defeat by Sydney whereas Collingwood was overrun by an impressive West Coast Eagles side. Collingwood is still a warm favourite for the game with the return of Mason Cox whereas North go into the game with an unchanged line-up.
Collingwood, despite having a notional four current top-100 game players at the club, has had to rely on Scott Pendlebury and Steele Sidebottom to provide the milestones on the club’s game-players list as Tyson Goldsack has not played a game this year due to injury and Jarryd Blair has managed only two.
However, Pendlebury has made steady progress up the Magpies elite players list and this weekend joins former champion ruckman Len Thompson at fourth on the club’s all-time top-100 game-players list. Sidebottom will better the games tally of Graham Wright, who was recruited from East Devonport and had a standout 1990 in which he finished second in the Brownlow Medal and equal third in Collingwood’s best and fairest. He also played in a premiership.
(AAP Image/Julian Smith)
North Melbourne’s Scott Thompson will equal the deeds of Ian Fairley and Jamie Macmillan will do the same with Les Foote and Jim Krakouer.
Sydney will do their usual pre-final consolidation by beating the Gold Coast Suns. Nick Smith and Josh Kennedy will both pass the number of games played by Mark Tandy, who started at the Swans in 1911 and played for 16 years.
To be a true finals contender Essendon will need to defeat Fremantle convincingly in a game the three Hs – Cale Hooker, Michael Hurley and Dyson Heppell – all improve their standing on the club’s top-100 game-player list and Darcy Parish plays his 50th game.
Similarly, Adelaide will need to celebrate Jake Kelly’s 50 games with the club and Josh Jenkins, Luke Brown and Rory Laide’s progress up the game-playing ranks with a convincing win over the rapidly improving Brisbane, who in turn will be celebrating Allan Christiansen’s 50th game for the club and Daniel Rich’s elevation to equal 15th with Darryl White on the Lion’s game-players list.
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The other Saturday night game between two more final-eight candidates also includes two conventional milestone game players in Melbourne’s team in Jake Melksham (150 AFL games) and Angus Brayshaw (50 games). Tom McDonald continues his stellar year, drawing level with Col McLean and Brownlow medallist Shane Woewodin.
For Geelong, Mitch Duncan catches up to goal-kicking champion Lloyd Hagger while Cameron Guthrie takes a giant step up the Cats game-players list by joining Les Hardiman, Geoff Ainsworth, Max Rooke and Steven Motlop.
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