MILESTONES
Nil!
GAME OF THE ROUND
The Devils have rightly won plaudits all season, and the Roughnecks and MaherShalalHashBaz have made the big-ticket trades. But these two clubs have mostly slid under the radar and quietly gone about their business.
This weekend they find themselves in the spotlight.
The Defenestrators upset victory over the Devils in round 19 has opened up a range of interesting possibilities as we enter the final fortnight.
Suddenly, the Defenestrators are a shot at a top two spot. The Sparkles are a chance at the minor premiership – or falling out of the top two entirely. The Devils aren’t guaranteed a top 2 finish.
Granted, the top two hold the advantage still – it’s particularly hard to see the Devils tumbling out. And a Sparkles victory here likely relegates the Defenestrators back to 4th (though they’ll have a shot to fix that the final week of the season)
The Defenestrators will be hoping to have club champion Max Gawn back, and would love Coniglio back as well. Given the outs they had, dethroning the Devils last weekend was quite something (all glory to bestest boy Adam Treloar I say)
Meanwhile, an unexpected end-of-season gift in the return of Matt Crouch has the Sparkles dreaming of a stacked midfield getting even stronger at just the right time.
Even without Crouch they’ll be hoping, and perhaps should even expect, to dispatch a Defenestrators team that isn’t at full strength.
Last time these two met
The Sparkles broke the 2000 point barrier on their way to a 215-point victory.
Both teams had some high performers. But only one team had multiple players score under 50. And only one team had 18 players – 18! – score 80 or more.
The history between these two is interesting! The Sparkles actually hold the lead, with 12 wins to the Defenestrators’ 8. Doubt many teams have the lead on the Defenestrators…
DangerGawn votes
- 3 votes: Max Gawn (Defenestrators) – 152
- 2 votes: Nick Daicos (Sparkles) – 133
- 1 vote: Christian Salem (Defenestrators) – 133
SNEAKY INTERESTING MATCHUP
The Vipers need to beat the top of the ladder Devils this week, and then the second placed Sparkles the following week, to have any chance of playing finals.
Oh and they need the Chiefs to lose to the Roughnecks, and then MaherShalalHashBaz the following week.
I believe we would describe these odds as slim. Very slim. But slim is better than none, and until it’s none, we watch with interest.
The Devils put in a bit of a shocker last weekend – just two players tonned up! They’ll be keen to rectify that and cement a top two spot with victory.
The good news for the Vipers is they’ll wake up Saturday morning with a fair idea of their chances, given Carlton play Port Adelaide on Friday night…
Last time these two met
The Devils won another high scoring affair, this time by 131.
They managed to put up a 1939 despite only getting a paltry 43 from Connor Rozee. But luckily for them 19 other players scored 70 or more, with 7 hitting triple figures.
The Vipers 1808 would be enough to win most matchups – but not this one.
The Vipers have dominated this matchup historically, with 14 wins to the Devils’s 5. But 4 of those Devil victories have come since the start of the 2023 season.
DangerGawn votes
- 3 votes: Luke Ryan (Vipers) – 144
- 2 votes: Jordan Clark (Devils) – 128
- 1 vote: Karl Amon (Devils) – 125
STRAY OBSERVATION
This weekend’s Roughnecks v Chiefs matchup could be an early preview for an elimination final. With the Roughnecks having made yet another present-focused trade during the week, they’ll be very keen to see that investment lead to at least one finals victory…