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Can Melbourne go back-to-back? Will the Blues improve under Michael Voss? Can Dusty revive the Tigers? Jon Ralph predicts the fortunes of all 18 clubs.
These are the rankings
1 - Melbourne
2 - Port
3. Western Bulldogs
David King says the Dogs have the biggest premiership window in the competition.
If they had a top-six ruckman playing for them this year they would enter this summer as reigning premiers.
So all the lofty predictions apply – the Bont had one hand on the Norm Smith early in the third term of the grand final, Sam Darcy and Jamarra Ugle-Hagan could be anything, the depth is off-the-charts good.
But it is understood the Dogs had a significant crack at Richmond’s premiership ruckman Ivan Soldo before he re-signed for three years in September, then didn’t chase a Peter Ladhams or Jon Ceglar as a fall-back option.
So until Tim English can consistently show us he is the player that mauled Brodie Grundy in Round 1 (with help from Stef Martin), we will continue to wonder if the rucks will cost them another flag.
Early prediction: You know how the Dogs really hate GWS? Prepare for the Dogs and Melbourne to go at it in Round 1 after the grand final loss and its aftermath, just as the fuse was lit the summer after the Giants roughed up Marcus Bontempelli in that infamous elimination final.
4 - Brisbane Lions
5 - Geelong
6 - Essendon
7 - Sydney
8 - Richmond
9 - StKilda
10 - GSW
11 - Carlton
12 - West Coast
13 - Hawthorn
14 - Fremantle
15 - Collingwood
16 - Gold Coast
17 - North Melbourne
18 - Adelaide
These are the rankings
1 - Melbourne
2 - Port
3. Western Bulldogs
David King says the Dogs have the biggest premiership window in the competition.
If they had a top-six ruckman playing for them this year they would enter this summer as reigning premiers.
So all the lofty predictions apply – the Bont had one hand on the Norm Smith early in the third term of the grand final, Sam Darcy and Jamarra Ugle-Hagan could be anything, the depth is off-the-charts good.
But it is understood the Dogs had a significant crack at Richmond’s premiership ruckman Ivan Soldo before he re-signed for three years in September, then didn’t chase a Peter Ladhams or Jon Ceglar as a fall-back option.
So until Tim English can consistently show us he is the player that mauled Brodie Grundy in Round 1 (with help from Stef Martin), we will continue to wonder if the rucks will cost them another flag.
Early prediction: You know how the Dogs really hate GWS? Prepare for the Dogs and Melbourne to go at it in Round 1 after the grand final loss and its aftermath, just as the fuse was lit the summer after the Giants roughed up Marcus Bontempelli in that infamous elimination final.
4 - Brisbane Lions
5 - Geelong
6 - Essendon
7 - Sydney
8 - Richmond
9 - StKilda
10 - GSW
11 - Carlton
12 - West Coast
13 - Hawthorn
14 - Fremantle
15 - Collingwood
16 - Gold Coast
17 - North Melbourne
18 - Adelaide
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