2019 Multicultural AFL Football TV and Radio Show - Round 17

L-R Habir Singh Kang, Vanessa Gatica, Gabriel D'Angelo and Fiv Antoniou

 The Multicultural AFL Football TV and Radio Show – Round 17

By Fiv Antoniou10/7/2019

NEMBC Live Match Day broadcast this week in ARABIC: Richmond v. GWS Giants from the MCG, Sunday 1:10 pm EST on 3ZZZ Digital on-line.

Last week was a tipster’s disaster as only a few favourites got up from some roughies which really did shine. In a nutshell, Essendon beat the Swans to be well on their way to making the 8. Collingwood went down again this time to the Hawks by 4 points. Richmond decimated the Suns, so watch out, the Tigers are coming! Port Adelaide wiped the floor with the Crows, the Bulldogs ate the Cats, West Coast crushed Fremantle, Brisbane monstered the Giants, the Roos rolled over the Saints, while the Blues and Demons fought out a thriller at the “G”.

Essendon outplayed the Swans to win by 10 points. The score was not the most significant factor in this game it was the way the Bombers, without captain Dyson Heppell who was a late withdrawal, dismantled the Swans defence. 

Collingwood had another dismal day losing by 4 points to the Hawks. Is there anything wrong with the ‘Pies? Yes on many fronts: Lots of injured players, in fact, 9 players from last year’s Grand Final are all out injured. There are other factors which may be playing on the player's psyche, such as, is Brody Grundy leaving next year? is Dane Beams coming back from illness? and what about the Stephenson betting debacle? all this has probably taken its toll.

Richmond, Port Adelaide, West Coast and North Melbourne all cruised past their opposition with ease last week, but it was a different story at the MCG on Sunday afternoon where Carlton without Cripps, Curnow and McKay and the Demons without Max Gorn played an outstanding game. This was the fourth week in a row Carlton came back from being 38 points behind in the last quarter to almost snatch victory with the last kick of the game. Melbourne’s win came with bad news for the Dees, as Tom McDonald is out for the rest of the year with a knee injury.

So what does round 17 have in store for the fans? More of the same as last week, some favourites may go down to surprisingly unpredictable winners. It all adds up to being daring but still cautious with one’s tips this week!

Friday Night Footy from Optus Stadium in Perth will pit the West Coast Eagles against the travelling Magpies. Last time these sides met the Eagles were good to the tune of 22 points. Looking at both sides recent form and with the home ground advantage the West Coast Eagles look the goods by at least 24 points.

Picking a winner from the SCG on Saturday is difficult. Sydney lose more matches at home than away. Earlier this year at Marvel Stadium in round 3 the Blues went down to the Swans by 19 points, even after registering more scoring shots. This time the Swans will meet a different Carlton and, on form, both sides have a chance at winning this game. The Blues, with their star players returning, will prevail following their big effort last week! Meanwhile, in Launceston, the Hawks, coming off a blinder over the Magpies last week, are facing Fremantle who don’t play very well in Launceston. Hawthorn will have the edge and will defeat the Dockers.

Essendon and North Melbourne meet at Marvel Stadium in what promises to be a closely contested game. The Bombers and Kangaroos have both been in good form lately. In my opinion, it’s anybody’s game. So I will take a punt, go against the grain and tip North Melbourne. The Gold Coast Suns at home host the Adelaide Crows who will win easily, while Geelong will make short work of an ailing St. Kilda side.

Three crackerjack games are in store for Sunday. Richmond at the MCG take on the GWS Giants. Although the Giants are a great team they often fall short - like getting beaten at home by Brisbane last weekend. The Tigers have discovered their zing again and are starting to look determined and dangerous. It’s bad news for the Giants, Richmond to win a thriller. Western Bulldogs are also cranking up the intensity and after what I assume will be a see-sawing game, the Doggies will defeat the Melbourne Demons.

Final game of the round from Adelaide Oval will match an in-form Port Adelaide against the Brisbane Lions, who are riding the crest of a wave after their emphatic win over GWS last week. The Lions are set to make it two out of two on the road and well into consolidating their spot in the 4.

That’s it from me for this week, catch you next week with more comments and tips.

Round 17, I am picking: West Coast, Carlton, Hawthorn, North Melbourne, Adelaide, Geelong, Richmond, Western Bulldogs and Brisbane. (Progressive tip score: 85) Top AFL tipster(s) form the AGE have 84 and from Foxtel 82.

NEMBC Live match day broadcast this week in ARABIC: Richmond v. GWS Giants from the MCG, Sunday 1:10 pm EST on 3ZZZ Digital on-line.

To listen or download our regular weekly podcast, visit the NEMBC website, or NEMBC Soundcloud. The Multicultural AFL Footy Show is also available in English all around Australia on the Community Radio Network. The AFL News podcasts are available in Arabic, Sudanese-Dinka, Hindi, Greek, Italian, Mandarin and Spanish languages. You can view the Multicultural AFL Football TV Show on C31 Melbourne and Geelong on Thursdays at 7:30 pm, C44 Adelaide Friday 6:00 pm, on Aurora–Foxtel at 11:30 am Saturdays and on YouTube. 

For all enquiries please email: operations@nembc.org.au