For the first time since Round 8, 1952 not one team is playing on their home ground this weekend.
Not only that, the entire AFL competition is being played on the other side of the Barassi line with all nine matches in New South Wales and Queensland.
Never has the “A” in AFL meant so much.
We don’t need to dwell on the reasons why this is the case but it’s sure going to make for an interesting trivia question in years to come.
Round six of the AFL has some seriously good footy ahead of us and those who are able to attend are in for an absolute treat.
As for our tipping, she’s been a tough year so far and as a result I’m putting it all on the line – literally.
A clash between second and third on the ladder played at the neutral ground of the SCG is set to be a beauty.
The Cats and Lions were super impressive last weekend and both sides beat their respective opponents by 37 points.
Geelong got the job done over those young upstart Gold Coast Suns last weekend in what could possibly be their last game at the Cattery for a while.
They will also be relieved to finally get two wins on the trot, something they haven’t done since Round 12 of last year.
The Brisbane Lions (proudly sponsored by Neds) are second on the line of premiership betting at the time of publish, and rightfully so.
In the past fortnight, the Lions have gotten the job done over the team that’s bottom of the ladder and top of the ladder in convincing style.
They are actually fun to watch, Lachie Neale already has the Brownlow around his neck and there’s a real belief amongst Fages and his men right now that they could go all the way this year.
In a normal situation, you’d be thinking that the Lions playing the Cats away would be the ultimate test as to where they are at but the game being played at the SCG might give them some more confidence.
This will be a good test for the Lions and if they can chalk up a win on the road this Thursday night they may be on top of the ladder and premiership betting by the end of this weekend.
The Pies and Hawks will both be desperate for a win as they meet at the strange, exotic location that is Giants Stadium at Sydney Olympic Park.
Both teams have already played at the ground once this season so the surroundings won’t be as unfamiliar to them.
Collingwood has faced more drama than Ramsay Street of late.
There was Jeremy Howe’s season-ending injury, Steele Sidebottom and Lynden Dunns COVID breach suspensions, Jordan De Goey’s indecent assault charge, trying to address issues of racism with Héritier Lumumba – and that’s just off the field.
On the field, the Pies have lost their past two games and Mason Cox is in serious danger of heading down the Right Said Fred path of being a one-hit-wonder.
The next month and then some on the road really puts a spanner in the works for the Magpies.
Hawthorn, on the other hand, never recovered from their goalless first quarter against the Giants.
Their record against the Magpies is impressive having won 12 of their last 13 games against them.
This is a hard game to tip, but I’ll take the Magpies to beat the line.
If St Kilda are a serious football team this season, they simply need to win this kind of game and win it convincingly.
Freo will have a little bit of confidence, finally breaking through for their first win of the 2020 season with a 20 point victory over Adelaide in one of the worst games of Australian Rules Football you will ever see.
The Saints have been super impressive to watch this past fortnight.
They were able to back up toppling reigning premiers Richmond with a convincing 18 point win over the Blues last Thursday night.
There’s never a dull moment when Freo takes on the Saints, dating back to that infamous sirengate day in Launceston.
If a sirengate moment were to happen again, 2020 would be the year for it.
Three out of the last four matches between these two sides have been decided by under 10 points.
Even with Nat Fyfe a chance to return to the Dockers, the Saints should be simply too good for Freo and should win this easily.
Two clubs that simply can’t wait to get back home meet at the Gabba this Saturday afternoon in what should be a fairly one-sided affair.
Things are grim at the Adelaide Crows.
They are the only club without a win and had they been playing a team that was good last weekend, they would have lost by a lot more than 20 points.
West Coast will be glad to have snapped a three-game losing streak, getting the chocolates with a 34 point win over the Swans.
They go into this game the clear favourite and while they are not the dominant team we’ve seen in recent seasons, the Eagles should be able to win this and win this easily.
Going back home 3-3 with a nice long streak of games in Perth headed their way and suddenly things look a-ok for the rest of the season.
The Dees and the Suns in Western Sydney, you simply love to see it.
To put it bluntly, Melbourne is terrible.
They had more inside 50s and clearances than Richmond last weekend, yet still were convincingly beaten by the Tigers playing them back into form.
Stats like these have increasingly become the norm for them.
Melbourne can’t even tank like the good old days because they traded their first-round draft pick for this year.
As for the Gold Coast Suns, everyone is feeling the season-ending shoulder injury at the expense of Matt Rowell.
2020 struck yet again reminding us we can’t have nice things like Matt Rowell, who actually gave us a reason to smile and enjoy footy in an otherwise bleak climate.
Some have written the Suns off thinking no Rowell, no Gold Coast but that is foolish.
The Suns were competitive all day against the Cats last weekend and found themselves in front at one stage in the second half.
They have easily accounted for other contenders for the Wooden Spoon in the Crows and Freo and were simply outstanding when they faced West Coast.
Melbourne is in the mix for the wooden spoon, the Gold Coast Suns are not.
I expect the Suns to be 4-2 at the end of this weekend and still very much in the mix.
It’s taken 12 years and a global pandemic but Andrew Demetriou, Caroline Wilson and co have finally got their wish with North Melbourne being based on the Gold Coast.
They face their old arch-rival the Bombers, who have also relocated to the Sunshine State at Metricon Stadium in what should be a fascinating encounter.
Essendon has had an eventful few weeks.
Their game against Melbourne was postponed, they lost to Carlton by a point and they were able to upset the Pies by 15 points last Friday night.
Pressure will be on Dylan Shiel who is dominating in the midfield for the Bombers and having one of his best seasons.
The recent injury to Jake Stringer will hurt them and Sheil will really need to ramp things up to ensure the Bombers forward line remains functional.
North Melbourne have been trending downwards since upsetting the Giants when the season resumed.
The Kangaroos had a Darren Crocker last week against the Doggies kicking only five goals and going down by 49 points.
Despite the recent poor form from North, I expect this game to be a close one and for the Kangas to cover the line.
Two teams very much in the premiership mix meet in what should be a cracker of a game this Sunday arvo at Metricon Stadium.
The Power got their first taste of a loss in 2020 at the hands of the mighty Brisbane Lions (proudly sponsored by Neds) and will have no doubt studied the tape of that first quarter where they kicked one goal, six behinds which ultimately put them out of the game.
Port Adelaide will desperately want to bounce back this Sunday to maintain their top spot on the ladder and prove they are no flat-track bullies when it comes to playing contenders not just pretenders.
GWS had a much-needed win last Sunday night and was super impressive over Hawthorn.
In the past two weeks, the Giants have had two big wins over two top eight teams and are starting to get their groove back.
The Giants go into this game the narrow $1.85 favourites in what is a very competitive head to head market with Port at the solid $2.
Expect this one to be a thriller.
With our tips all on the line this week, we’re backing Port to cover it.
The Tigers play host to the Swans at the G…abba this Sunday afternoon in yet another weird and exotic location for AFL season 2020.
Richmond got back to their winning ways with a solid 27 point win over Melbourne.
The injury list for Richmond is concerning – Dion Prestia and Toby Nankervis along with skipper Trent Cotchin will be significant outs.
Bachar Houli and Shane Edwards won’t be joining the Tigers in the hub for family reasons.
The Tigers with a mounting injury list is nothing new and didn’t stop them from going all the way last season.
In the past fortnight, the Swans lost to the Dogs by 28 points and are coming off a 34 point loss to the Eagles last weekend.
Sydney also has a long injury list and their season is starting to slip.
Even with the mounting injury toll from last weekend, the Tigers should be able to get the job done this Sunday.
Carlton and the Bulldogs finish off the round with the fourth match to be played at Metricon Stadium this weekend.
The Western Bulldogs have been impressive the past three weeks and will go into this game with plenty of confidence after easily accounting for North Melbourne last week to the tune of 49 points.
Josh Bruce’s move to Whitten Oval is coming up roses with six goals last weekend, Tim English is dominating in the ruck and seven Bulldogs players got 20+ disposals in one of the great displays of team football.
Along with the ball magnets and Josh Bruce, the Bulldogs have held their opponents to an average of 36.7 points per game in the past three weeks.
Carlton was incredibly slow-starting against the Saints last weekend going down by 18 points.
The Blues will be hoping the likes of Mitch McGovern and Patrick Cripps can lift.
They will need to if they are to be any chance to break the dogs fast movement of the football.
All roads point to the Western Bulldogs making it four on the trot this Sunday night.