Tag: Giants

NFL playoffs: Giants threatening to cause upset against Packers

Posted on by Online Betting Pro

Playoff fever has gripped America as the regular season has ended and we are just a few weeks away from the Super Bowl. First up is the Wildcard Round and tensions are running high as just three games stand between these teams and a shot at the ultimate glory. In the NFC the wildcards are the New York Giants and the Detroit Lions, who travel to Green Bay and Seattle respectively with everything to play for.

New York Giants at Green Bay Packers

The Giants finished the regular season 11-5, a record that would have been good enough to win every other division but theirs. It is their misfortune that they play in the same NFC division as the Dallas Cowboys, who earned the best record in the conference this season by finishing 13-3. The Packers could only manage 10-6 despite their status as fifth favourites for the Super Bowl (9/1 with William Hill), but they are in sensational form. They looked down and out in the autumn when they were 4-6, but they have embarked on a remarkable six-game winning streak that has left their fans daring to dream, mainly thanks to the near-perfect form of quarterback Aaron Rodgers.

The Giants go into this game as 4-point underdogs on the spread and serious underdogs with all bookmakers, with William Hill and Coral offering 9/4 on them causing an upset in Green Bay. The Giants lost 23-16 to the Packers in week 4, which will give Green Bay fans further hope, but they should be nervous about their badly injured defence. They were already banged up going into week 17 when they lost Quinten Rollins, Damarious Randall and Makinton Dorleant. They already rank a lowly 31st against the pass this season, and injuries will compound the problem, making the Giants – led by Odell Beckham Jr – the worst team they could have faced in this round. The Giants have a great chance of winning this one and the odds are fantastic at 9/4. A more cautious option would be to back the Giants +4.5 on the Spread at 19/20 with Coral, which looks a great bet.

Detroit Lions at Seattle Seahawks

Nobody is giving the Lions much of a chance of pulling off a similar upset in Seattle. Detroit sneaked into the playoffs by the skin of their teeth after finishing 9-7, the same record as the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, but progressed by sheer virtue of having a slightly better record against common opponents with the Bucs. The Lions are on a three-game losing streak – all against playoff teams – and they make the long trip to Seattle to face a team that won their division comfortably, with a record of 10-5-1.

The Seattle offence is hardly firing on all cylinders, but they should have enough about them to get the job done here. Of the 12 teams in the playoffs, bookmakers are offering the longest odds on the Lions, who are 80/1 to win it, compared to 12/1 for Seattle. The Seahawks have won their last nine playoff games at home, and quarterback Russell Wilson has never lost a home playoff game. The Lions, meanwhile, have not won a playoff game on the road since 1957, so history is very much against them. The bookmakers have them as serious underdogs here, with Paddy Power offering a huge 31/10 on them, while Seattle is massively odds-on.

Most bookmakers are offering 1/4 on the Seahawks winning this and that looks a good one to add to an accumulator, but not great value as an outright bet. The point spread is huge, with the Lions eight-point underdogs, but the Detroit defence has given up 73 points in the last two games, so they can cover it. A safer option, however, might be to go down to the 6.5 point alternative Bet365 is offering and take 4/6 on Seattle -6.5.

NFC Conference: Giants and Packers look like good outside bets

Posted on by Online Betting Pro

The race to reach the playoffs is heating up, with just two games to play and several spots still up for grabs. In the NFC, the Cowboys and the Seahawks have already made it through, while the Giants look good for a wildcard spot. The second wildcard spot will either come from the NFC North or NFC South, divisions in which it looks set to go down to the wire. The Lions, Packers, Falcons and Buccaneers are now essentially fighting it out for the final three NFC playoff places, although the Vikings and Redskins also have an outside chance. There are several exciting games to look forward to and plenty of good value for punters in week 16.

New York Giants at Philadelphia Eagles

The early game next weekend sees the Giants travel to Philadelphia, and they will be buoyed by a two-game winning streak built on a truly formidable defence. They have gone 27 drives without yielding a single touchdown, including an entire game against the Dallas Cowboys, who are second favourites to win the Super Bowl. They were superb in beating the Lions 17-6 last weekend and Odell Beckham Jr looked unplayable at times, capping a great performance with a one-handed touchdown catch in the fourth quarter. Philadelphia has lost five in a row and threw it away against the Ravens last weekend by going for a two-point conversion right at the death, a plan that failed. They are done for the season and should have no chance against the Giants, who should cover a -3 spread, with Paddy Power offering a generous 21/20 on this.

Minnesota Vikings at Green Bay Packers

The Packers are the form team of the conference at the moment, on a four-game winning streak that has taken them to within a game of the Lions at the top of the NFC North. The Lions were tamed by the Giants last time out to leave them 9-5, while the Vikings have gone from 4-6 to 8-6 to leave them looking good either to win the division or claim a wildcard spot. The Vikings are third in the division at 7-7 and have a slim chance of making the postseason, but the Packers can put an end to that by beating them here, and home advantage should help them prevail. Green Bay are on fire at the moment and are just 2/7 to win this with Sky Bet, so for more value back them to cover a -7 spread, with Paddy Power again offering the best price, 21/20.

NFC outrights

The Dallas Cowboys are deservedly favourites to win the conference (they are second favourites to win the Super Bowl after the New England Patriots) at 6/4 with William Hill and Coral as they have the best record in the NFC and will enjoy a bye to the Divisional Round, where they will have home advantage. But the NFC is not as clear cut as the AFC, where the Patriots are head and shoulders above the rest and expected to walk it. The Giants have the second-best record in the conference, but it is their misfortune to be in the same division as the Cowboys, so they look destined for a wildcard spot and will have to do it the hard way. But their recent back to back wins over the Cowboys and the Lions will give them confidence and they look a great bet at 12/1 with William Hill. The Seahawks, 5/2 with Coral, are in with a shout, as are the Falcons (9/1 with William Hill), but the Packers have hit form at just the right time and look a really good outside bet at 9/1 with Coral and Paddy Power. You could spread your stake between the Giants and Packers and be in with a great chance of making a profit.

Cowboys and Patriots on Course for Super Bowl Battle

Posted on by Online Betting Pro

The two favourites for the Super Bowl are in action in the days ahead as the Dallas Cowboys travel to New York while the New England Patriots host fierce rivals the Baltimore Ravens. A couple of weeks ago New England was odds-on in the NFL betting markets to win the Super Bowl, but everything has changed thanks to the superb form of the Cowboys, who now have the best record in the league at 11-1 and have already made it through to the playoffs in style. Injuries to key players like Rob Gronkowski have rocked the Patriots and their odds have gone out to 11/4, while the Cowboys are right behind them at 4/1 now.

Baltimore Ravens at New England Patriots

The Pats beat the Rams last weekend to go 10-2, giving them the joint best record in the AFC. The Raiders are also on 10-2 but have a more difficult fixture list in the last four games of the season, so the Patriots are looking good to secure home advantage throughout the playoffs if they extend their three-game winning streak against the Ravens. You would fancy them to beat the Ravens as they should have a psychological advantage, having beaten them in a thrilling 35-31 encounter in last season’s playoffs. The odds are low on this, however: just 3/10 at Coral and 5/16 at Ladbrokes, so you might consider betting on the spread and it will be tough for the Patriots to cover it. You can get evens on the Ravens +7 and that looks a good bet considering Baltimore are on a two-game winning streak and ran New England very close in their last meeting.

Dallas Cowboys at New York Giants

The Cowboys are the form team in the league right now. After losing the season opener, they have won a remarkable 11 games in a row and have already qualified for the playoffs. They may take a foot off the pedal a bit now, but they still want to keep the confidence surging through the team with more wins, and be assured of home advantage in the playoffs, so they are likely to make life very difficult for the Giants. The Cowboys have a great young roster, full of talented stars like Dez Bryant and Tyron Smith. The Giants, led by veteran quarterback Eli Manning and exciting wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr, are no slouches, but the Cowboys are on a roll right now and should have too much offensive power for them. The Cowboys are 3/5 to win this with 888 Sport and that looks tempting given their incredible form, but you could push it a bit further and back them to cover a -3 spread at 20/23 with Coral.

Futures betting

The Cowboys have such fantastic momentum that it is hard to look past them for the NFC right now. The Seahawks look to be their toughest opponent in the conference, but the Cowboys have proved they can win in style and win ugly and look a good shout at 13/8 with Bet365 to win the NFC Conference and go to the Super Bowl, where their most likely opponent will be New England. The Pats are 21/20 with William Hill to win the AFC, but face ferocious competition from the three teams in the exceptionally strong AFC West – the Raiders, the Chiefs and the Broncos – so that might be best avoided for now, and the 4/1 on the Cowboys winning the Super Bowl looks a good option as their odds keep dwindling.

AFL Round 7 Results

Posted on by Online Betting Pro

After last weeks round of shock upsets, the AFL settled down to a degree and pretty much ran the course predicted.  Upsets (while there were still a few) were replaced with huge scores, low scores and just two close contests (as exciting as they were).  Fremantle kept winning and at the other end of the table the Brisbane Lions finally hauled themselves off the bottom.

Here’s a quick run down of all the moments that matter in Round 7:

Essendon (12-10-82) v North Melbourne (13-15-93)

The North Melbourne Kangaroos did enough to get by a Dons side that has far too many wADA and drug scandal distractions to be expected to put together some decent footy.  But put together okay footy they did, matching the Kangaroos for much of the close Etihad Stadium that acted as a replay of last years elimination final.

The difference was Jack Ziebell who collected 29 disposals (15 of them contested), had 11 disposals and kicked 2 goals (including one from outside the 50) to help seal the 11 point win.  Goals also came from Petrie (2), Thomas (2), Waite (2) but the Roos will be keen to work on their kicking during the week as accuracy in front of goal was a little concerning.

The win means North Melbourne get to 4-3 for the season and the Bombers the opposite at 3-4.

Adelaide Crows (18-11-119) v St Kilda (10-13-73)

A brutal encounter at the Adelaide Oval may have robbed the league of two of its stars for a significant amount of time.  Both Nick Riewoldt and Matthew Jaensch appear to suffer serious injuries in contrasting nasty and innocuous challenges.

Injuries aside the match was relatively one-sided once the Crows were able to overcome a quick three goal start form the Saints.  Eddie Betts was the star of the match, kicking five goals for the third straight week (he had six in all here) and seeing his protege Charlie Cameron also kick three.

Josh Bruce was excellent in a losing side.  He again led the forward line with five goals and 12 marks.  His man bun was everywhere and kicking goals from some obscene angles.

Adelaide’s win takes them to second on the ladder, ahead of a tricky period which starts with GWS in Sydney then Fremantle at home before facing an unpredictable Carlton side who may have some players back by then.

Hawthorne (24-11-155) v Melbourne (7-8-50)

The Hawks came out as everyone expected and buried the Demons (of last week) with a huge win at the MCG.  Gearing up for next weeks Grand Final rematch against the Swans, the Hawks won by a mammoth 105 points and in the process gave Melbourne coach Paul Roo’s his biggest coaching defeat.

As the scoreline suggested the match was largely uncompetitive.  Hawthorne led at every quarter and kicked at least four majors in each of the four terms.  Jarryd Roughead was the most prolific of the Hawk’s front line with four goals, while Luke Breust (3) and Cyril Rioli (3) also got amongst the fun as did ten other goal kickers.

The reigning premiers were never going to be rolled over two weeks in a row, but nevertheless the 40,000 plus crowd will be disappointed by the Demons showing.  Schoolboy errors in the face of unrelenting pressure are excusable but unforced errors such as the failure of Cameron Pedersen to get the distance from 35m out, and his teammates failing to contest the resultant scramble.

Carlton (9-3-57) v GWS Giants (19-21-135)

The Greater Western Sydney Giants backed up their win over reigning premiers Hawthorne with another quality performance to comprehensively beat Carlton in Saturday’s twilight fixture at the Etihad Stadium.

The 78 point thrashing heaps more misery on a Blues team that could see coach Mick Malthouse fired by the end of the week.  The Giants registered their highest ever score thanks to five majors from the in form Jeremy Cameron.  But the real winning of the game was the Giants getting the better of a lopsided 78-32 inside the 50 count.

The result proves two things.  One, the Giants are actually shaping as a pretty decent side.  And two, Carlton are not.  Expect a few more renditions of the club song from the Giants as they continue to build on  their 2014 season, and expect plenty of turmoil for the Blues.

Sydney Swans (18-12-120) v Geelong Cats (11-11-77)

Lance Franklin was again wasteful in front of goal but still managed four goals to make amends for his donut last week.  His effort wasn’t the major talking point of the Swans 43 point win over Geelong however,   instead the arrival of Luke Parker to the upper echelon of Aussies Rules players took that honour.

Parker was the best midfielder on display and the catalyst of a dominant second half that saw the Swans kick10 goals to two and streak away.  Geelong actually led at halftime before being blown away by the Swans second half show.

Jarrad McVeigh celebrated his 250th game by marshalling the Swans defence in his usual professional manner.  He also added his second goal of the season and was carried off by his teammates in recognition of his longevity, loyalty and ongoing Swans contribution.

The Swans move up to third and will be hoping they can take Saturday’s form into next weeks epic encounter against the Hawks.

West Coast Eagles (21-9-135) v Gold Coast Suns (6-7-43)

The Eagles continued their dream run in 2015 with a relentless win over the Gold Coast Suns at a wet and miserable Domain Stadium.  The 92 point win means the Eagles early season march continues all the way to second on the competition ladder, and inflicted a damp and dreary mood on the Suns to match the conditions.

26,000 brave fans saw a number of records and almost records.  The Eagles had 12 goals in the third quarter which set a new club record, while the Suns narrowly avoided posting their lowest ever score.  That was largely due to four goals in the final term a much better effort than the solitary minor they managed in the second quarter.

Standouts were everywhere for the Eagels.  Matt Priddis gathered 39 disposals and kicked two goals; Elliot Yeo kicked 4 goals from 29 touches; Shannon Hurn was also involved, he had 25 touches and 12 marks; Chris Masten had 43 disposals; and Josh Kennedy kicked four goals.

Western Bulldogs (14-4-88) v Fremantle (15-11-101)

Fremantle’s unbeaten start to the season continued, but Sunday’s result was perhaps the closest of them all as they narrowly beat a dogged Western Bulldogs unit.  The win seventh straight may come with a hefty price tag mind you, with Brownlow Medal contender Nat Fyfe facing a possible suspension for tripping (slightly souring his 30 disposals performance).

The Dogs outlined exactly what it takes to defeat the Dockers without actually doing so.  They were accurate, disciplined and above all plucky as they fought back from 34 points adrift only to see late goals to Michael Walters and Matthew Pavlich break their hearts.

Tory Dickson was on target seven times for the Bulldogs, and captain Bob Murphy was at his snappy best, but the side were left to lament a ground ball that stifled a scoring chance to Mitch Wallis.

The Bulldogs drop to 8th bit should be able to regain a placing or two if they beat Melbourne next week like they should.

Richmond (16-9-105) v Collingwood (15-10-100)

It took 7 rounds to find an absolute classic and it might not be matched for the rest of the season.  The mid table clash between the Tigers and the Magpies served up a thrilling contest in one of the best games in recent memory with ebbs and flows, lead changes (ten to be exact) and only five points separating the sides at the final whistle.

The Tigers were able to grind out the narrow win despite an inside 50 deficit of 7.  They relied on big plays in the closing moments from Trent Cotchin and Brett Deledio.  Cotchin was particularly influential in the final quarter, racking up 9 disposals, including 3 inside fifties, 6 contested possessions and 3 score involvements.  Deledio had 30 possessions (10 contested) and 13 marks for the game.

The win means the Tigers snap a worrying three game losing streak and are now just one win outside the top 8.

Travis Cloke and Dane Swan were the best from the beaten side.  Swan worked tirelessly all day, and while his stats didn’t quite match the Tigers’ best, he didn’t deserve to be on a losing side.

Brisbane Lions (15-12-102) v Port Adelaide (8-17-65)

The Brisbane Lions have gone back to back and dragged themselves off the bottom of the ladder with a win over an unenthused Power side at the Gabba on Sunday.

The scalp is an excellent result for a Lions side that reward 17,000 loyal fans, however some serious questions will need to be asked of a Port Adelaide side that failed to fight for loose ball or bring any energy or intensity to the contest.

A low scoring first quarter would have had the purists worried, but Brisbane exploded with six majors to take the lead (one they never relinquished) and control of the game.  The goals in that period were shared around, but Josh Green (3), Mitch Robinson (3), Allen Christensen (2) were the leaders in that respect for the match.

Port Adelaide have exactly a week to change their attitude and improve their intensity.  They meet the much improved Tigers who will be riding high over this weeks win over Collingwood and need a win to keep in touch with the leaders.

AFL Round 7 Preview

Posted on by Online Betting Pro

Two months into the AFL season and we’re now starting to get a good handle of where the teams are at.  Fremantle obviously appear to be the team to beat, but with so many upsets thrown around last week, it’s getting harder to separate the mid table sides.  We’ll do our best to come back form our horror tipping show last week, and provide some better quality predictions this week in our AFL Round 7 Preview:

Essendon v North Melbourne

Essendon – $2.35

North Melbourne – $1.60

I doubt this one will be one for the purists but it is an important match for the two teams.  Essendon host North Melbourne in the Round 7 opener where both teams will be looking to stay in touch with the top 8 after up and down starts to the season.

North Melbourne are favourites on the back of their defeat of Richmond last week.  They should be too strong for an Essendon side that have gone backwards in recent weeks after a pleasing start to the season.  Although both teams are struggling to bring intensity in defence this season, their attack has also been disjointed so a winning score in the 80’s or early 90’s seems about right.

North Melbourne to win.

Adelaide Crows v St Kilda

Crows – $1.25

St Kilda – $4.15

Round 6’s surprise packages the Saints have it all to do against an Adelaide side that has been decimated by injury in recent weeks.  Both sides enter this one on the back of Round 6 wins.  As alluded to St Kilda recorded their biggest come from behind win in the history to beat the Western Bulldogs away from home. The Crows also enjoyed a win, their’s a comprehensive win over the Suns.

History is against St Kilda in this fixture.  They have lost their last four games against Adelaide, meaning it will take some special to overcome then on Saturday.  Perhaps the fact that the Crows are missing Rory Sloane is the slice of luck they need to in.

We doubt it.  The Crows to take this one out.

Hawthorne v Melbourne

Hawthorne – $1.08

Melbourne – $8.50

The Demons are about to see a demon unleashed on them this week.  Melbourne hosts an embarrassed Hawthorne side that suffered a shock loss to the Giants last week.  The result of which will be a revengeful monster that doesn’t bode well for Melbourne’s chances.

The Hawks very rarely suffer two losses in a row and despite still being without suspended duo Luke Hodge and Jordan Lewis should have too much firepower for their opponents.  If they win on Saturday it will be their 12th straight victory over the 15th placed Demons.

Hawthorne to get through comfortably.

Carlton v GWS Giants

Carlton – $2.70

Giants – $1.48

Carlton coach Mick Malthouse is under huge pressure to get a result in his side’s match with the Greater Western Sydney Giants on Saturday.  The three time premiership winning coach has been lambasted in the media throughout the week after Carlton’s loss to Brisbane last week.  Malthouse calls the media comments “unsavoury”, but the media and greater AFL public are likely to determine his employment status over the coming weeks, so a win on Saturday is probably more needed than any other win in his glittering coaching career.

The Blues were so poor last week.  The opposite of the Giants, who enjoyed a ten point win adjacent reigning premiers Hawthorne.  The Giants are in the unfamiliar position of favourites, and we’re a little worried how they’ll respond to that.

Therefore, we’re giving the Blues the win (in a risky tip).

Sydney Swans v Geelong Cats

Swans – $1.27

Cats – $3.90

The Sydney Swans at ANZ Stadium presents a stern test for an improving Geelong side in Saturday nights penultimate game.  The Cats returned to some form by destroying high flying Collingwood with one of the best half of footy we’ve seen this season.

But, the Swans are in some quality nick too. Currently 4th on the championship ladder and having enjoyed a comfortable win in last week’s action against Melbourne, the Swans should be too much for Geelong.

Isaac Heeney’s forced injury layoff is the only change to the Swans side.  In his place Dean Towers in a move that shouldn’t affect the play of the team too much.

Sydney to win.

West Coast Eagles v Gold Coast Suns

Eagles – $1.10

Suns – $7.50

The Suns have never beaten the West Coast Eagles, a statistic that is unlikely to change at Domain Stadium on Saturday.  The Eagles are always a difficult proposition at home, and currently sit second on the AFL ladder despite many pundits assuming they would struggle this year after key retirements in the back field.

However, they have proven themselves to be finals contenders with key wins in four of their last five games.  The Suns best chance of causing an upset is through the middle of the paddock, however that’s hard to fathom given the relative inexperience of their midfielders.  Gold Coast were better than the 31 point losing margin suggested last week but will find their Round 7 opponents too tricky.

West Coast to remain in the competitions top three with an easy win.

Western Bulldogs v Fremantle

Bulldogs – $3.65

Fremantle – $1.28

Fremantle are not only the early leaders of 2015, they’re also the team to beat the entire year after putting together six wins from as many games to start the season.  Getting plenty out of stars Nathan Fyfe, Aaron Sandilands and David Mundy, Fremantle have already established an 8 point lead at the top of the ladder.

While other sides that were tipped for success in 2015 stumble through the opening rounds, the Dockers look untouchable.  That should hold even against a Bulldogs side that are the surprise packages of this year’s action.  It’s somewhat remarkable that an unbeaten side is still only at $1.28 to get the job done – a testament to the Bulldogs play.

The Western Bulldogs have gone 4-2 to start the season, and should have beaten St Kilda last week when they led by as much as 50 points before letting it slip.

While we think this will be close, we can’t see Fremantle losing.  Dockers to get up.

Richmond v Collingwood

Richmond – $2.05

Collingwood – $1.75

A strange game to predict features a Tigers side that were tipped to finish well inside the top 4 this season, but are now languishing in 13th, playing a Collingwood side who were pathetic in last Friday’s loss to Geelong.

Ordinarily we’d give this to Collingwood, however the pressure on both sides could result in some desperation that makes it close and difficult to determine a winner.

Players aside the major talking point of the match will be the tactics and performance of the two coaches.  Damien Hardwick in charge of the Tigers, and Nathan Buckley at the helm of Collingwood are both under pressure (more so Hardwick) and it will be interesting how they ask their chargers to play in this one.

We think Collingwood should be okay.  They’ll win in by 15 points.

Brisbane Lions v Port Adelaide

Lions – $4.50

Port – $1.20

Brisbane enjoyed a win last week, their first of the 2015 campaign, but we can’t see them getting any points out of their Sunday showdown against the Power at the Gabba.  The Lions snuck a win over the under pressure Carlton side, mainly thanks to Tom Rockliff and new recruit Dayne Beams.

They’ll need plenty more out of their in form big men if the are to trouble a Power side who currently occupy 10th on the ladder with a 3-3 record.  That’s an okay return from a difficult opending draw, and they showed signs last week against the Eagles that they would compete with the better teams this year.

They were slightly unlucky to lose at home last week, however with Robbie Gray kicking goals for fun.  We think they’ll justify their favourite tags and beat the Lions.

 

AFL Round 6 Results

Posted on by Online Betting Pro

An unimaginable number of upsets gave bookie all sorts of headaches over the AFL weekend.  The upsets also made a mockery of our predictions – we struggled to four tips for the week.

All the action reviewed in our weekly piece titled AFL Round 6 Results below:

Collingwood (8-11-59) vs Geelong Cats (15-10-100)

A hot first half from the unfancied Geelong team helped them get the better of the Collingwood Pies at the MCG on Friday night.  In the first of many upsets in Round 6, the Cats jumped out of the gates and kicked the first seven goals of the match before surviving a brief comeback in the second stanza to win by 41 goals.

An incredible 425 possession form the Cats undid the Magpies and confounded them to their second loss of the season, no doubt incredibly flummoxed as to how they gave up 11 goals in the first half to their 2.

Mitch Duncan, Steven Motlop (3 goals) and Cory Gregson (3 goals) were all standouts for Gellong.  While Scott Pendlebury was excellent in a losing cause for Collingwood.

Geelong’s third win of the campaign gets them to three wins from six matches and up to 12th on the ladder, however they’re equal on points with Hawthorne who currently occupy 8th.

North Melbourne (16-13-109) vs Richmond (10-14-74)

A 16,000 strong crowd at Blundstone Arena saw North Melbourne get the better of Richmond in the first of Round 6’s Saturday games.

In a close first half only a goal separated the teams as both teams benefitted from a direct running game and tight control of the ruck.  However, six consecutive goals in the crucial third term sent North Melbourne on their way as Richmond suffered a monumental lapse in concentration.  They’ll need to get to the bottom of that ahead of their difficult upcoming fixtures against Collingwood, Port Adelaide, Essendon and Fremantle.

Lindsay Thomas will receive most of the praise for his five goal effort (from just nine attempts), but Shaun Higgins and Brent Harvey were also key contributors.

North move to 9th on the competition ladder but will face much more tougher matches than this one.  They were gifted 92 points from Richmond turnovers, a statistic that is unlikely to be offered by the competitions stronger teams.

Western Bulldogs (13-9-87) vs St Kilda (14-10-94)

St Kilda staged a dramatic comeback to shock almost everyone and beat the Western Bulldogs at Etihad Stadium.  The cellar dwellers were down by 55 points in the third quarter but amazingly kicked twelve goals to three in an incredible second half.  The comeback is the fifth biggest comeback in AFL history and will no doubt have had bookies seething.

The comeback may have been sparked by an all in brawl right on the stroke of halftime because directly after the break the teams showed up with wildly different energies.

St Kilda midfielder David Armitage was the star of the show.  He had a career best 45 possessions and 8 clearances.  Together with Jack Billings who kicked 4 goals, he was largely responsible for sparking the wild scenes.

GWS Giants (16-12-108) vs Hawthorn (14-14-98)

In another Round 6 match we failed to predict the Giants beat last year’s premiers by ten points in Sydney.

The win is arguably the Giants greatest ever in their short history and was delivered courtesy of an incredible second half that completely shocked the Hawks.  Jeremy Cameron was the hero at Spotless Stadium kicking seven goals to help reel in a 27 goal first half deficit.

Much like other games in the round the impetus came in a flurry.  GWS kicked five straight goals to finish the half and take an unexpected cushion into the second half.  They managed to hold on to that lead and with it two valuable completion points.  They are now ahead of Hawthorne six games into the season.

The Giants’ 2015 record resembles a symmetrical gang sign – WLWLW.  They’ll be hoping to turn this into a web address over the next few weeks.

Gold Coast Suns (11-12-78) vs Adelaide Crows (18-11-109)

Fellow league infants, the Gold Coast Suns, couldn’t replicate the amazing win of the Giants, instead suffering a large defeat at the hands of the Adelaide Crows.  The match was largely one-sided.  The undermanned Suns struggling to feature after conceding five straight goals in the first quarter.

After a number of their players were given bans for breaching the alcohol policies of the Club, the Suns were always destined to struggle, and that’s exactly how it panned out.  The Suns were simply not good enough.  The only silver lining was a last quarter win.

Eddie Betts had five goals, taking him to twenty for the season.  He’s currently second behind West Coast’s Josh Kennedy in the Coleman Medal race, and the Crows are back on track.

Melbourne (7-8-50) vs Sydney Swans (12-16-88)

Sydney atoned for last week’s shock loss to the Western Bulldogs by beating a wasteful Melbourne side in Melbourne on Saturday night.  The Swans got plenty of return from star forward Kurt Tippet (4 goals) but are facing six weeks without talented youngster Isaac Heeney who badly injured his knee.

The Swans crushed the haunting memories of last years grand final disappointment and reeled of seven goals to one in a first half that essentially killed off the contest.

Melbourne may cling to some positives from a gutsy second half.  They actually took the half out by two points in a display that had coach Paul Roos pleased his side didn’t lose by 100.

Fremantle (12-8-80) vs Essendon (7-10-52)

The Dockers kept up their unbeaten start to the season by beating the Bombers in a low scoring encounter at home on Saturday night.  A crowd of 37,000 packed Domain Stadium to see their ladder topping heroes get the better of an Essendon side that were expected to give them more trouble than they did.

The Bombers have gone away form their aggressive hard nosed footy and looked directionless at times in the face of constant Fremantle pressure.

Aaron Sandilands, was brilliant for the home side, registering 33 hit-outs, and he was aptly supported by the disposals of Lachie Neale (33), David Mundy (28) and Nat Fyfe (27).  That service was in stark contrast to the ball Fremantle had to deal with, but they were wrong around the stoppages.

A 54 goal three quarter lead was shortened in a fourth quarter that won’t concern the Dockers coach Ross Lyon too much.  It felt as though the Dockers were simply going through the motions, and that’s understandable after five consecutive wins and a handy lead in the sixth.

Carlton (11-9-75) vs Brisbane Lions (12-12-84)

Carlton lost to the Brisbane Lions in the battle of the early season wooden spoon.  The Lions were given little chance by the bookies ahead of their matchup, however overturned their $4.00 odds to grab a narrow victory over 17th placed Carlton.

The nine point win came courtesy of a brave second half as they built up a third quarter lead and held on to it during a tense finale.  The win gets them underway for the season and helped answer the critics who accused them of not caring about their results.

Dayne Beams and big off season recruit Allen Christensen were instrumental in winning quality ball for their unlikely attacking spearhead to kick the goals.  Daniel McStay was that unlikely spearhead – he kicked a career best 4 goals in what turned out to be a one on one battle with Brisbane’s Levi Casboult (4).

The drought breaking win will give Carlton some confidence ahead of their Round 7 home match against the Giants, whereas the Lions have now lost four in a row, amounting to huge pressure on coach Mick Malthouse.

Port Adelaide (10-8-68) vs West Coast Eagles (11-12-78)

The final match of the round at the Adelaide Oval continue the trend of Round 6 upsets as the West Coast Eagles got up over the more favourited home side.

The Eagles ripped the form book, and their pre match odds of $4.50, to shreds as they responded brilliantly to a fierce last quarter barrage by the Power.  Port gave it their all in an engrossing last quarter, but their all wasn’t enough to get past the Eagles desperate backline.

We had said before the game that the Eagles start to the season was a little misleading because of their favourable draw, however, on this evidence that is simply not true.  They are genuine contenders, and with a number of youngsters (Jeremy McGovern, Elliot Yeo) starting to hit their straps they have the basis of a strong team for a number of seasons.

The Eagles remain near the top of their leaderboard after the win.  The four points gets them to second on percentage.  Port are in 10th, but with no cause for immediate panic.