2019 AFL Finals preview
The 2019 home and away fixtures are done and dusted and we have our top eight finalised. The Geelong Cats have taken out the minor premiership after thumping the Blues by 50+ points at GMHBA stadium which hosted its last game of season 2019 much to the disappointment of coach Chris Scott who says it’s totally unfair that the AFL don’t let the Cats play their in the finals.
The other shock in the final round was the Eagles losing to the Hawks which in the end cost them a top four finish and ultimately the much sort after double chance this in my eyes have cost the Eagles the opportunity to defend their premiership in season 2019.
It will be near impossible for the Eagles to make it to a Grand Final, they will play the Bombers at home next weekend and if they win that they will have to travel to the MCG to face either the Pies or the Cats and then if they win that travel back to the MCG to face the Tigers or travel to Brisbane to face the Lions which is the longest plane trip in football so I am putting a line through them.
The team I am most excited about is the GWS Giants who I think can be a Giant killer pardon the pun. Yes they have been up and down all year but with a host of stars coming back for the first final against the Bulldogs. I know they can do some damage in the final series.
The team that will make the grand final will be the Brisbane Lions; they have a home final against the Tigers a side who beat them last week by five goals at the MCG but Chris Fagan didn’t pull a lot of punches and would of been impressed with the way his side went about their business. They were down by four goals in the first qtr and rallied back to be down by seven points leading into the last qtr. Their home ground has turned into a fortress this year and like the Eagles last year teams will find it very difficult to get a win up there.
I am predicting something bold here; the Geelong Cats will be knocked out in straight sets and Tim Kelly will announce that he is leaving the Cats for the Eagles after the finals series. The Cats over the last month haven’t been the side that won games with ease at the start of the year. They are very predictable and if you clamp down on their midfield, you can score very easily. That’s why Collingwood will beat them first week of finals and then they will play the Eagles or Bombers. If it’s one of those sides, I am predicting an upset.
The Pies are the side I am picking to make the Grand Final and face the Lions. They got gifted a top four finish last week when the Eagles lost to the Hawks and you need a little bit of luck leading into the finals. Yes they have a big injury list but week in week out they have proved that injuries don’t matter for this side, they will welcome back Jordan De Goey for the first final who has been rested with hamstring tightness but will be ready to rock and roll for the first final and he could single handedly cut them apart.
This leaves the Tigers and Bulldogs to speak about they have been beat up in the media over the last month and rightly so the Tigers have beaten the Eagles and Lions in the past two weeks but haven’t left the MCG in eight weeks, which is the biggest free kick I have ever seen they travel to Brisbane first week of the finals and when the Gabba is rocking it is very hard to get the win up there. They will lose that then will have to face the Giants or the Dogs the next week and my god I would not want to play any of those sides.
The Dogs have been barking demolishing the Giants, Bombers and Crows to cement themselves in the top eight and just like season 2016 where they won the Grand Final they could cause an upset. They need to get past the Giants first which will be a massive task. In summary I have the Lions playing the Magpies in this years 2019 Grand Final and then having the Magpies to win the 2019 Grand Final.
They say you need to lose one to win one and I totally agree the Pies have the double chance and their players will be so hungry because of what happened last year.
Best Bets
Lions to make the Grand Final $2.65
Collingwood to make the Grand Final $2.50
Collingwood to win the Grand Final $5.50
