GWS
Geelong
Sydney
Bulldogs
Adelaide
Ess
St Kilda
Gold Coast
In no particular order
BTW the odds on this combo are only 140:1, i thought they would be higher
Only need 1 team to drop out for us to finish 1st
Last time I checked all the teams were having the best preseason in living memory. Their best players have been recording personal bests in every area, the draftees have hit the ground running and adapted to the life of elite athletes. Boom recruits in a range of teams are powering ahead. Even Jaeger Omeara is going well, with his knee held together by gaffer tape. So, all 18 clubs will make the 8 this year.
Now back to reality.
Carlton, Brisbane , Fremantle, Whorethorn and North to occupy the bottom of the ladder, Dogs, Sydney, West Coast and Adelaide to finish in the 8.
Throw a blanket over the 9 others, see which 4 get enough wins to get into the 8
Whorethorn and North to drop out. Window shutters down, and boarded up.
geelong (only an injury to Duckwood or the golden boy away from disaster but will struggle anyway)
dorks (teams are gonna love exploiting their vulnerability this year)
north
Could the dogs do an EFC of '94 or dorks of '09?
We are in a group of sides - Adelaide, wce, saints, us, dees who could finish 6-10th
It’ll come down to injuries and form
l expect we our season to improve as it goes on. Depending on how well the returning players gel with the young players from last season will determine to a great extent how well our season goes. If we win more games than we lose in the first half of the season. then expect us to grow stronger and perform better as the season goes on. Given that we have a favourable draw, the finals are a definite possibility.
North are gawn.
Dawks are an unknown quantity, but will slide, only a matter of how far.
Cats are a known quantity, but their stars have mostly departed and will find it harder to maintain the level of excellence they have enjoyed over the last decade. We are competing with them for a spot in the finals.
West Coke Eagles at home, budgies away. They rely too much on too few, like Nic Nat and Kennedy. Will make the finals, but are not top 4 material.
geelong (only an injury to Duckwood or the golden boy away from disaster but will struggle anyway) dorks (teams are gonna love exploiting their vulnerability this year) north Could the dogs do an EFC of '94 or dorks of '09?
Agree with this, don’t rate Geelong at all. Sydney, GWS, Bulldogs, and Adelaide are too good not to make it, but it wouldn’t surprise me if the rest aren’t good enough this year.
Nic Nat gone for the year CJ.
Couple of things to consider-
We have a great fixture
Our players are super hungry to do well
WCE won’t have an AFL standard Ruckman till mid year at the earliest.
I honestly expect us to finish top 4.
Collingwood to finish 19th
We’ll finish 5th.
North, Hawks and Eagles will drop out.
Nic Nat gone for the year CJ.
l wasn’t sure if he was coming back or not. l thought he was due back later in the season. Eagles will struggle big time without him.
I think West Coast will be top 4. Naitanui is a huge loss but they’ll be ok with their backups Lycett and Petrie. Their midfield looks very good especially with the addition of Mitchell.
Priddis, Mitchell, Shuey, Gaff, Masten, Sheed, Yeo, L.Jetta, Wellingham etc.
Mitchell might be a year older but he was basically carrying the Hawks last year so is still playing very good footy.
I think we’ll finish 1st. Everyone else will finish 18th.
No seriously…
I don’t see us making the 8 unless it is an absolutely perfect storm of a season where everything goes right.
GWS, Sydney, Adelaide and the Eagles have enough home games and enough talent to make finals.
I see North as definitely dropping out.
Hawthorn are a small chance, but I think they’ll beat enough teams to scrape in.
I don’t see Geelong dropping far enough to miss finals.
The Bulldogs are too tough to tell. Will they struggle being the hunted?
Regardless…
I see Melbourne and the Saints battling for a spot in the 8 and it’ll come down to injuries.
We’re in a level just underneath them who could make the 8 if things go incredibly well or drop to bottom 4 if things turn sour,
We are coming through like a runaway freight train from hell going straight up the…of the competition.
We play so many bozzo teams twice we have finals in the bag!
Worth noting that every year sees only 1 or 2 teams drop out of the eight. I don’t believe Hawthorn is ready to slide down, so I think only North will slide. The question is who will replace them.
Melbourne and the Saints had a charmed injury run last year. Same with Adelaide.
Worth noting that every year sees only 1 or 2 teams drop out of the eight. I don't believe Hawthorn is ready to slide down, so I think only North will slide. The question is who will replace them.
It’s also worth noting that teams only win the flag from 1st or 2nd place, or at the outside, 4th. Right? 
Good thread.
I think there will be multiple changes this year. North is obvious and I think they will be bottom 3.
Hawks will drop out. Consolidation year while Mitchell and Jaeger integrate themselves into the team. I’m also not convinced Geelong will make it. Last year they did well on the back of Danger having his best ever season - but if he copped an injury they would struggle. I also just don’t see where any improvement is going to come from.
The Eagles I think also won’t be as strong without NN and Lycett for most of the year, but It’s hard to see them missing with 12 games in Perth and with Mitchell/Priddis feeding JK. But they could also miss with a few injuries.
So, my prediction:
Out: North, Hawthorn, Geelong, West Coast (possible)
In: Essendon, Melbourne, Collingwood, St.Kilda (possible).
My draft 8:
Sydney
Bulldogs
GWS
Adelaide
Essendon
West Coast
Melbourne
Collingwood