Grand final preview at Adelaide Oval?
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Round 22 kicks off in spectacular fashion with a heavyweight clash on Friday night between premiership fancies Adelaide and Sydney. Having already guaranteed themselves a home final in the first week, if the Crows beat the Swans they will claim their second minor premiership with a round to go. With 12 wins from their past 14 games, Sydney resemble an out-of-control freight train and a victory over Adelaide could see them enter the top four which is incredible given they started the year 0-6. The Crows are undefeated since round 14 and would like to do everything they can to keep the Swans out of the top four and avoid possibly facing them again in a qualifying final in a few weeks' time. Sydney have won five of their past six meetings with Adelaide whose captain Taylor Walker will line up for his 150th game.
Eureka! The AFL has discovered Ballarat!
History will be created on Saturday when the famous Victorian town of Ballarat hosts its first ever VFL/AFL game. Mars Stadium will become the 46th venue to be used in league history and the meeting between the Western Bulldogs and Port Adelaide will serve as the first match played for premiership points in Victoria outside Melbourne or Geelong in 65 years. And luckily for the locals, they aren't going to be treated to a "dead rubber". Far from it. This match is absolutely huge. The Bulldogs simply have to win to keep their finals hopes, and fading premiership defence, alive, while the Power are aiming to stay in touch with the top four. Underscoring the urgency for the Dogs is the fact that veteran defender Dale Morris has been named a mere four weeks after breaking both bones in his right arm. There were fears earlier in the week that the game might be affected by snow, but that has been dismissed by the Bureau of Meteorology which said light showers, at most, would occur.
A famous name returns for Collingwood
The season might be over for the Magpies but their fans have plenty of motivation to attend Saturday's match against Geelong at the MCG as the son of one of their all-time greats Peter Daicos runs out for the first time. After banging the selectors' door down for weeks, Josh Daicos finally gets his chance on the big stage in what promises to be a memorable afternoon for the black-and-white faithful. And the Cats better be careful. As they look to cement their spot in the top four, they know all too well how tricky an opponent Collingwood are. Nathan Buckley's men have the equal best active streak against the Cats in the AFL (three wins) and with a final-round meeting against GWS, another loss to the Magpies could be catastrophic for Geelong's double-chance hopes. In-form Geelong tagger Scott Selwood plays his 150th AFL game.
It's do or die for the Bombers
The equation for Essendon is simple - beat Gold Coast and Fremantle and finals are a real possibility. On the face of it, it seems like a pretty easy task. The Suns and Dockers are in the lower section of the ladder and appear to be cooked for the season. But the Bombers have made hard work of taking care of lesser opposition this year with losses to Carlton and Brisbane and a hard-fought win over North Melbourne after being pushed for three quarters. The first part of Essendon's task takes place this weekend when they face the depleted and dispirited Suns at Metricon Stadium. There really are no excuses for the Dons who have welcomed back Zach Merrett, Tom Bellchambers, Mark Baguley and Michael Hartley. Conversely, Gold Coast head into the encounter without Gary Ablett, Tom Lynch, Jarryd Lyons, Sean Lemmens, Michael Barlow, Sam Day and Rory Thompson, while their top three ruckmen are also all unavailable. If Essendon can't win this, they certainly have no business taking part in the September action.
Demons inching closer towards finals dream
Melbourne can take another step towards breaking their 11-year finals drought when they face the Brisbane Lions at the MCG on Sunday. The seventh-placed Demons are enjoying their best season since 2006 and they have one foot in September. While the Lions find themselves on the bottom of the ladder, they have enjoyed a mini resurgence in recent weeks with impressive wins over Carlton and Gold Coast and a hard-fought loss to the Western Bulldogs. So the Demons would take them lightly at their own peril, especially when you consider they have lost to strugglers North Melbourne (twice) and Fremantle this year. Amazingly, Melbourne have named Jesse Hogan three weeks after breaking his collarbone. If he ends up playing, that would be a huge boost for the Demons' prospects.
Bennell back after two years out
Troubled Fremantle speedster Harley Bennell will run out onto an AFL field for the first time in 723 days on Sunday when the Dockers host Richmond at Domain Stadium. It's been a long and difficult road for the former Sun with off-field issues and a persistent calf injury keeping him sidelined for the best part of two years. The Tigers will be hoping Freo don't get an extra boost from Bennell's return because they are fighting to stay in the top four and secure themselves a double-chance. What effect will Damien Hardwick's post-match comments about umpires last week have on the way the game is officiated? Time will tell. But as they rank last in the competition for free kick differentials this year (-75), the Tigers will be hoping they're cut a little bit of slack. Richmond have a fantastic record at Subiaco, anyway, having won four of their past five games there. Hayden Ballantyne is due to play his 150th game, while Dylan Grimes will run out for the 100th time.