Carlton and the Western Bulldogs were the big winners as they secured AFL finals spots on a dramatic last day of the home-and-away season.
The Bulldogs surged into September with a 37-point victory over fellow finalists GWS, while the Blues survived in eighth place despite their heartbreaking two-point defeat to St Kilda.
As the finals race went down to the wire, Port Adelaide’s hard-fought win over Fremantle guaranteed them second spot and knocked the Dockers out of contention.
The round-24 results have set up a mouth-watering first week of finals action, with the AFL set to confirm the schedule on Monday morning.
Minor premiers Sydney will face cross-town rivals GWS in one qualifying final, with Port Adelaide hosting Geelong in the other.
Carlton’s prize for sneaking into the top eight is an elimination final against the Brisbane Lions at the Gabba, where their flag hopes ended last year.
And the Bulldogs take on Hawthorn in the only game in Victoria, with both sides riding waves of momentum into the finals.
In a season so tight, Geelong coach Chris Scott believes the premiership could be decided by as little as 15 minutes of brilliance – or even luck.
“Besides the way the finals is structured – the location of games and second chances and all that sort of stuff – I’d just throw a blanket over the eight teams,” Scott said.
“It’s going to be the same as the rest of the season … it will likely come down to a 15-minute patch (of football) here or there.
“It’s not just the teams who end up in the eight. I think there are teams outside the eight who have had their moments this year where they would say they can beat anyone.
“That’s one reason to be proud of the situation that we find ourselves in (finishing top four), because it doesn’t feel like it’s ever been as hard to maintain consistency.”
Under the current finals system – introduced in 2000 – only three sides have reached the grand final from outside the top four.
And the Bulldogs are the only team to have won four consecutive finals to claim the flag, when they triumphed in 2016.
But there’s every chance Brisbane, the Bulldogs, Hawthorn or Carlton could repeat that feat from the bottom half of the eight this season.
“If the team is good enough (now), then the rest of the year doesn’t matter,” Scott said.
“You don’t get a prize for being the most consistent through the course of the season, as long as you qualify high enough.
“The prize comes for the team that plays best in the last month and we feel like we’ve given ourselves a chance to be that team.”
AFL FINALS – WEEK ONE
(AFL to confirm schedule on Monday)
Qualifying finals: Sydney v GWS, Port Adelaide v Geelong
Elimination finals: Brisbane Lions v Carlton, Western Bulldogs v Hawthorn
Source Agencies
