Until last weekend the game between traditional rivals Hawthorn and Geelong at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on Monday was shaping as one of the season’s Marquis matches.
Then both sides suffered defeats with the Hawks going down to St. Kilda and the Cats surrendering to Greater Western Sydney at home.
It seems Geelong will bounce back better than from those setbacks than the injury riddled Hawks.
Captain Joel Selwood and superstars Patrick Dangerfield and Gary Alblett will be stirred into further lifting their games even further while Hawthorn will suffer from the almost certain loss of strong, reliable defender James Frawley to injury.
The round-opener between Brisbane and Collingwood at the Gabba on Thursday night will be an intriguing affair.
The Lions were jolted back to reality against Essendon after winning each of their first three encounters and it would appear another loss is looming against the Magpies.
Last Week: 3
2019 Total: 14
Collingwood Magpies by 38pts
North Melbourne Kangaroos by 10pts
West Coast Eagles by 30pts
GWS Giants by 40pts
Melbourne Demons by 15pts
Richmond Tigers by 30pts
Western Bulldogs by 24pts
Adelaide Crows by 15pts
Geelong Cats by 25pts