Fixture 2026 Fixture

[Ford Fairlane]

Saints are way overrated. TDK and Marshall will make each other less effective like Gawn and Grundy did or Darcy and Jackson do. Sam Flanders isn't better than Jack Steele. Jack Silvagni is a solid at best player whose dad came along and offered him $200k more than any other club was offering him in a conflict of interest that makes the greyhound syndicate look tame. Liam Ryan is a decent pickup but hardly a needle mover given how bad West Coast have been with him in the side the last few years.

Lower half of the 8 at best.

Plus .... they're St Kilda.

 

[Steve Dore]

Was just thinking that. Was a massive disadvantage last year. The Crows will cop it this year, playing Collingwood away, after theyve had a solid R1 hit out.

But Collingwood will have had to travel to Sydney the week before for Opening Round

 

[RossFC]

So with 4 Sunday games in the first 5 weeks, it's likely that the SANFL side is weakened with 1 or 2 emergencies being held back and missing games.

 

[Coobk001]

But Collingwood will have had to travel to Sydney the week before for Opening Round

Thats what I was saying. Big advantage for Collingwood, just like last year. Having had their first game out the way already.

 

[Wargreymon90]

You’ve again described a customer.

Stop talking nonsense. You aren’t entitled to your seat for a non-home game despite it being at Adelaide oval.

You also can’t sit in your seat at the Adelaide home showdown.

 

[Steve Dore]

Thats what I was saying. Big advantage for Collingwood, just like last year. Having had their first game out the way already.

Sorry, I was being sarcastic.

Despite Opening Round supposedly being all about promoting the game in the northern non-traditional Aussie Rules states Collingwood are playing their Opening Round game in Malbun. So no travel for them.

 

[Ford Fairlane]

Probably been mentioned but crom fans will be thrilled to play Collingwood again and have Izak Rankine

23

Izak Rankine

Age

25

Ht

179cm

Wt

82kg

Pos.

M/F

Career

Season

Last 5

D

13.0

3star

K

9.0

3star

HB

4.0

3star

M

2.7

3star

T

2.7

4star

CL

1.7

4star

D

13.0

3star

K

9.0

4star

HB

4.0

3star

M

2.7

3star

T

2.7

4star

CL

1.7

4star

D

13.0

4star

K

9.0

4star

HB

4.0

3star

M

2.7

3star

T

2.7

5star

CL

1.7

4star

still unavailable

 

[RussellEbertHandball]

Why are both SA teams playing away in R1 (and both at home in R2) are a bunch of 70-80 year old rock legends using Adelaide Oval that weekend?

SA play NSW on the 14th March 2026 in a WCNL game - ie 1 day game.

The Adelaide Oval Redevelopment Act says the SACA are in charge of AO until 11.59:59pm on 14th March every year.

Given this years bullshit that the AFL wouldn't let the SACA's swap 1 drop in pitch tray for 1 drop in turf tray for the Shield Final after Port's Rd 2 game on Saturday 22nd March the Shield final at AO would have been played Monday 24th to Friday 28th and the crows Rd 3 home game was Sunday 30th, so the SACA and Cricket Oz have said FU AFL.

The AFL first came up with the bullshit excuse that it wouldn't be safe for the players, then it came out that it was really a cash grab and that the AFL wanted several hundred thousand dollars compo, trying to squeeze the SA government to drop the transport levy the 2 SA clubs had to pay for the footy season.

Malinauskas told the AFL to go and stick it where the sun don't shine.

As I wrote a couple days ago in this post #1,224 in the Cricket Discussion thread, the MCG in 2000 built a concrete slab (approx 25m x 30m) that the 10 cricket pitch trays are dropped onto and then when they pull them out, they replace the sand and lay turf for the footy season and it takes a couple of weeks to bind and grow and for the ground to be ready for footy. This whole swapping process takes a few days to swap over between seasons.

At AO and Perth Stadium, they have small concrete foundations, with sand between each foundation footing/line, and they have drop in trays for footy turf, and replace them with drop in pitches for cricket after the swap over. No need for new turf to be planted and to grow it before you can play footy.

I don't think the AFL are smart enough to understand the difference between the MCG and AO and Perth Stadium.

At AO you could have 7 footy turf trays in place for the cricket game on the 14th March, have one middle of ground cricket wicket tray to play the one day game, then straight after the game, within a few hours swap out one cricket pitch tray for one footy turf tray well before the midday of the next day its ready for footy.

The AFL stuffed up with their greed in March, so they wont let the change over happen over 5-10 hours next March.

 

[RussellEbertHandball]

From my 30 minutes study of the FIXture:

The Big Positives

• ANZAC Round on ANZAC day, twilight home game v Geelong
• No Tassie, No Ballarat, No Alice Springs and No Kardinia Park games
• The start to the season to end of Gather Round is pretty straight forward and winnable

The Positives

• Only 1 trip to WA, NSW, Qld and Darwin (Darwin is a lot better than Alice Springs IMO)
• 3 Friday night games in a row Rd 8 to 10 - Away showdown, Dogs at AO, GC in Darwin
• Only 3 x 6 day break games, no 5 day breaks
• Night footy. 3 home Saturday nights, 2 away Saturday nights, 1 home Friday night, 2 away Friday nights and 1 home Sunday, 2 away Saturday twilight games
• Apart from Gather Round closing game - no other Sunday 4.40pm twilight games.
• Sunday arvo 2.45pm AO game v Essendon Rd 2 - will be national broadcast game as 4 teams have a bye
• Dont play Brisbane until Rd 20

The Negatives

• Gather Round Port game could have been a more exciting opponent
• Only 2 MCG games (Rich and Coll) and 4 at Docklands (NM, Haw, Stk, Ess) in Victoria
• 1 home 12pm Sunday game v WCE Rd 3 and 1 away 1.10pm Sunday game in first 14 games.
• Last game against first time oppo is Rd 23 Melbourne at AO
• Double up games against Sydney and the crows are only 8 rounds apart. Other 4 between 10 and 22 rounds.

The Shithouse
* Friday Night overlapping games. The farken AFL just wont put on a stand alone Showdowns, Derbys, Battle of the Motor Tolls and the Pineapple Grapples. The Cocaine snorters at 7, Fox Sports and AFL have to make sure there is at least 1 Vic team on a Friday night.

• Opening Round = Bullshit Round Continues
• Distortions from Bullshit Round continues with none of 10 teams that play that round, and when have the bye, they then don't play another team who has had a bye in the same round the following week.

• Mid season byes, same bullshit spread out over 5 rounds as last few years and not over a preferred not 2 or 3 rounds.
• Of the 18 bye teams, 16 of them return playing a team that didn't have the bye. Only Brisbane and Sydney have a bye - in round 15 and then play each other in Rd 16. We have a bye Rd 12 play WCE away in Rd 13. Collingwood have a bye round 14 then play us at MCG round 15.

* 3 Friday night games in a row Rd 8 to 10 - Away showdown, Dogs at AO, GC in Darwin - all 3 games are part of the 6 Friday night overlap games and are all the 2nd game, so wont be a national broadcast, that will go to games involving 1 Victorian side vs non Vic side.

 

[MrChow]

Was just thinking that. Was a massive disadvantage last year for us. The Crows will cop it this year, playing Collingwood away, after theyve had a solid R0 hit out.

Crows could easily miss finals this year. Much tougher draw. Teams will have studied them too over the summer with their breakout season.

1 or 2 injuries to key players, and another homophobic or racial slur - and they will slide.

 

[Scholz Supremacy]

In the first Showdown, the Crows will be coming back from Brisbane off a 5 day break.

 

[The Terrible Thinker]

In the first Showdown, the Crows will be coming back from Brisbane off a 5 day break.

That wouldn't mean a thing for Stinkley, we would still choke it. Good test for Carr to see if he has purged the Stink from the club.

 

[TazD]

Bigdog doesn't like Hawthorn's fixture.

 

[Lefti93]

Bigdog doesn't like Hawthorn's fixture.
View attachment 2476510

Man the Bigdog account kills me.

 

[Anyonebutken]

In the first Showdown, the Crows will be coming back from Brisbane off a 5 day break.

This is an example where they could miss Burgo

 

[jac147]

That’s pathetic given most of our home members miss out.

So with 4 Sunday games in the first 5 weeks, it's likely that the SANFL side is weakened with 1 or 2 emergencies being held back and missing games.

The SANFL starts about 2 weeks after the AFL so some of those earlier Magpies games could be trial games. However, I’m with you Ross that I hate it when the Magpies are weakened by supplying emergencies to the 1’s.

 

[chiwigi]

Stop talking nonsense. You aren’t entitled to your seat for a non-home game despite it being at Adelaide oval.

You also can’t sit in your seat at the Adelaide home showdown.

That's an actual away game. And something that is annoying as hell, but can't be helped as it is baked in.

This is just to make more money from the same seat, treated as a customer. Just buying a seat for a game = customer.

Footy as a member is about community, tradition and continuity, saying you were there and celebrating it with those you always do.

Unless you think membership is just about buying tickets and shutting up?

 

[Wargreymon90]

That's an actual away game. And something that is annoying as hell, but can't be helped as it is baked in.

This is just to make more money from the same seat, treated as a customer. Just buying a seat for a game = customer.

Footy as a member is about community, tradition and continuity, saying you were there and celebrating it with those you always do.

Unless you think membership is just about buying tickets and shutting up?

Gather round has nothing to do with your membership! You have to buy a ticket when they go on sale and take the whatever available seat you want.

Do you complain when you can’t sit in your H&A seat for finals? (You probably do)

It is astonishing that you are doubling down on your objectively incorrect take.

 

[El_Scorcho]

Do you complain when you can’t sit in your H&A seat for finals? (You probably do)

Yes, every time, and it's something that should be fixed. Home teams in finals should get the advantage of members with 11 game allocated seats getting their seats first.

I can live with gather round but we should get our own seats for finals.

 

[Sewer de Lance]

It should be considered an abject failure if we can’t make the Top 6 of that Fixture. Carr has literally been given Park Lane & Mayfair before he’s even rolled a dice.

 

[240volt]

It should be considered an abject failure if we can’t make the Top 6 of that Fixture. Carr has literally been given Park Lane & Mayfair before he’s even rolled a dice.

Definitely no excuses next year, it’s good in a way as it will show just where we sit in the mix and what’s needed to improve.

 

[RossFC]

Port and Crows members should get priority for their respective gather round games. It's very easy for a Collingwood fan to get a ticket to their 20 games in a 100k seat stadium. The Hawthorn game last year sold out for us and was reduced to single tickets very quickly.

 

[Expat power]

Port and Crows members should get priority for their respective gather round games. It's very easy for a Collingwood fan to get a ticket to their 20 games in a 100k seat stadium. The Hawthorn game last year sold out for us and was reduced to single tickets very quickly.

We do get priority - tickets go on sale earlier for us.

 

[Duckimus Prime]

We do get priority - tickets go on sale earlier for us.

Yes, members get priority.

But is it members get priority for their club's game (which means we don't get priority against St Kilda this year, hidden advatnage of playing a shit supported side) or do club members get priority for Gather Round (which means the same priority as 17 other sides)?