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Fixture 2022 AFL Fixture

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How many finals will they get down there???

Surely none??
scott will be demanding it - were cleaned out by freo in a final down there several years ago I recall which was so fabulous..........
 
For anyone saying we have had an easy draw, it's always good to look at the teams you play twice, especially with how bad North and West Coast have been and the soft wins that gets. Geelong the big beneficiary of that and in a tight season that propels them to a home final. I think the Tigers will still make the 8 given how hard the Dogs and Saints last 4 games are. Correlates pretty well to the ladder except for the Tigers who have performed poorly with an easy draw.

From easiest to hardest

1. Geelong with easily the easiest draw, North and West coast twice and potentially only one top eight team twice in the Bulldogs/Saints and both of those sides are scraping into 8th in all likelihood. No top 4 opponents. Criminally easy and will be why they finish top - West Coast, North Melbourne, St Kilda, Port Adelaide, Western Bulldogs

2. Sydney with the next easiest fixture, like Geelong if the Dogs/Saints don't make it then will have played none of the top 8 twice - Essendon, GWS Giants, North Melbourne, St Kilda, Western Bulldogs

3. Richmond with an easy fixture, just 1 top 8 team and West Coast twice - Carlton, Essendon, Hawthorn, Port Adelaide, West Coast Eagles

4. Brisbane with the next easiest. Play one top four team twice in the Dees and maybe the Saints - Essendon, Gold Coast Suns, GWS Giants, Melbourne, St Kilda

5. Fremantle fifth, play us and Dees twice and get West Coast Twice - Melbourne, Greater Western Sydney, St Kilda, Carlton, West Coast

6. Collingwood sixth, like Freo play us and Dees twice, don't get North or West Coast twice - Essendon, Carlton, Gold Coast, Adelaide, Melbourne

7. Carlton seventh. Like the Dees with the Pies and Freo twice but also likely Tigers, no North or West Coast - Richmond, Collingwood, Greater Western Sydney, Fremantle and Adelaide

8. Melbourne eighth play the Pies, Lions and Freo twice - Western Bulldogs, Port Adelaide, Brisbane, Collingwood, Freo

9. Western Bulldogs 9th, tough draw with Cats, Dees and Swans twice and no West Coast or North twice - Geelong Cats, GWS Giants, Hawthorn, Melbourne,
Sydney Swans

10. St Kilda the hardest draw, cop 4 top 8 teams and no one from the bottom 4 - Brisbane, Fremantle, Geelong Cats, Hawthorn, Sydney

The better teams usually come out on top, but given our injuries and draw think people shouldn't undersell the season we are having given where we are coming from. Give us an extra game against North at the expense of a top 8 side like Geelong have had and that could be the difference to top 4 and not. Anyway, its just a bit of perspective more than anything. If you are good enough you win (Saints game... *!)

It's not as simple as a raw look at who plays who twice, though that absolutely has an impact. As others have mentioned, home ground advantage plays a significant role, as does travel, as does the recovery days between matches.

But... just looking at "who plays who twice"... what you have is looking at it in retrospect, i.e. based on current ladder positions. It's different if you look at the draw from the perspective of where teams finished at the end of 2021.

So, to put some numbers to it... Simple spreadsheet that adds the ladder positions of the 5 teams played twice to produce a "draw difficulty number" - higher number = softer draw.

Ordered by current ladder positions:
1658722960944.png

As you say, Geelong, Sydney & Richmond are at the top. We're mid-table. Poor old Sainters have a raw deal. This pretty much goes along with what you were saying, perhaps a few differences mid-table.

Ordered by final 2021 position:
1658723144373.png

This makes more 'sense' - teams that finished low last year, generally had an easier draw on paper. Saints and Freo perhaps copped the worst of it - Weagles a good draw for their position.

Finally, note also, the last column - the difference between the expected draw difficulty and actual. Again, we see Sydney and Geelong have done much better out of the draw than expected. Our draw has turned out more difficult than expected (but not quite as bas as Saints & Weagles).

Again, this doesn't take into account other variables. That's a lot more difficult to gauge.
 
It's not as simple as a raw look at who plays who twice, though that absolutely has an impact. As others have mentioned, home ground advantage plays a significant role, as does travel, as does the recovery days between matches.

But... just looking at "who plays who twice"... what you have is looking at it in retrospect, i.e. based on current ladder positions. It's different if you look at the draw from the perspective of where teams finished at the end of 2021.

So, to put some numbers to it... Simple spreadsheet that adds the ladder positions of the 5 teams played twice to produce a "draw difficulty number" - higher number = softer draw.

Ordered by current ladder positions:
View attachment 1456066

As you say, Geelong, Sydney & Richmond are at the top. We're mid-table. Poor old Sainters have a raw deal. This pretty much goes along with what you were saying, perhaps a few differences mid-table.

Ordered by final 2021 position:
View attachment 1456068

This makes more 'sense' - teams that finished low last year, generally had an easier draw on paper. Saints and Freo perhaps copped the worst of it - Weagles a good draw for their position.

Finally, note also, the last column - the difference between the expected draw difficulty and actual. Again, we see Sydney and Geelong have done much better out of the draw than expected. Our draw has turned out more difficult than expected (but not quite as bas as Saints & Weagles).

Again, this doesn't take into account other variables. That's a lot more difficult to gauge.
Simple solution to all this bullshit.
Everyone plays each other once until round 17.
Then a computer system designed to give fairest outcome comes up with what teams you play twice in last 5 rounds of the season and factors that should come into account like how many interstate trips etc. all factored in the program at the time with most up to date feedback. Not some outdated twelve months ago thing the AFL continue to use back the previous October.
In October, all they should be doing is designing the first 17 rounds so that everyone plays each other once.
 

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As expected:

Carlton and Collingwood’s final round blockbuster will be the penultimate game of the home and away season, scheduled for 3.20pm on Sunday, August 21 to take advantage of the massive interest in the finals-shaping clash.

The AFL has decided that the other massive game from the final round (23), between the Brisbane Lions and Melbourne at the Gabba, will be played on Friday night.
 

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Fixture 2022 AFL Fixture

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