Fixture 2026 Fixture

[Commando]

What am I missing here?

There are 6 guaranteed finalists and 4 teams play for 2 wildcard spots

It's not 10 finalists!
And wild card wins shouldn't be considered finals wins, they are merely qualifiers

 

[Commando]

Also read that the weighted fixture has changed and teams can now face up to four in their allotted 6 twice instead of three.

So we'll probably get 4 double ups against top 6 teams.

 

[cats_09]

What am I missing here?

There are 6 guaranteed finalists and 4 teams play for 2 wildcard spots

It's not 10 finalists!
And wild card wins shouldn't be considered finals wins, they are merely qualifiers

The AFL have confirmed that the wildcard matches will count as finals matches meaning that it's 10 finalists with finals now spread across 5 weeks

 

[Commando]

The AFL have confirmed that the wildcard matches will count as finals matches meaning that it's 10 finalists with finals now spread across 5 weeks

And that is wrong
There are not 10 finalists
They don't even know what they are doing at AFL House

Dillions regime in a nutshell

 

[Seeds]

Also read that the weighted fixture has changed and teams can now face up to four in their allotted 6 twice instead of three.

So we'll probably get 4 double ups against top 6 teams.

This handicap is terible. Its unjust.

 

[Cataholic]

And that is wrong
There are not 10 finalists
They don't even know what they are doing at AFL House

Dillions regime in a nutshell

Finals will run for 5 weeks.

Week 1 there'll be 10 teams competing in a finals campaign.

 

[Commando]

Finals will run for 5 weeks.

Week 1 there'll be 10 teams competing in a finals campaign.

By definition then that is not a wild card

 

[Son_Of_God29]

And how does this serve our members if they did? Last year, Geelong had over 92,000 club members (the 5th largest in the AFL); there are probably thousands more who have AFL memberships with Geelong as their designated club. Our Stadium, as good as it is, only holds around 40,000 at capacity. The MCG can give all members a chance to attend, plus it gives us valuable game time under finals pressure on the ground where the GF is played.

Its not about Serving members it is about giving the GFC what they earn.

West Coast Have 100k members but only a ground that holds 61,266 is that serving the members or giving WCE and Freo the best chance to proceed deeper into finals

 

[bombersboy]

This is the ideal time to play GCS away. Coming off a solid preseason is a better prospect than playing them off a six day break or similar.

Disagree. In my view playing early games in Qld gives the Qld side a 3-4 goal advantage. The humidity kills us and we are gassed at half time.

 

[Ross]

Also read that the weighted fixture has changed and teams can now face up to four in their allotted 6 twice instead of three.

So we'll probably get 4 double ups against top 6 teams.

Maybe, but all the quirks and nonsense and balancing acts that the AFL requires the fixture to have will actually make it pretty challenging to pull off given the other five teams in the top six are three non-Vic teams and two are MCG teams who we're basically not allowed to play at home*.

As far as I can tell, there's three feasible ways it could happen.

1. The AFL steals back our tenth home game that we just got and we then play Hawthorn and Collingwood twice at the MCG
2. The AFL isn't completely spineless and sends Hawthorn to play in Geelong and we then play Collingwood twice at the MCG (we know the AFL are too cowardly to have the Pies play in Geelong)
3. We play one of the WA or NSW teams in Gather Round as our only H&A game. This would pretty much have to be us playing Sydney at Adelaide Oval as the early double header on the Saturday.

I don't think the first two options are likely to happen. Third could happen but I suspect it won't and we'll end up doubling up with Brisbane, Hawthorn (with our one MCG home game) and Gold Coast, then play Adelaide at home in Geelong and Collingwood away at the MCG.

*I know Hawthorn finally played at Kardinia Park last year but that was after they'd finished 16th, had missed finals five years in a row and gone eight years without winning a final. They're up again and we just played them in the biggest non-GF crowd in over 50 years.

 

[cats_09]

 

[D BRIDGE]

Copping WC for gather round is a thing of beauty... We were due.

 

[kickazz]

Ahh geez wasn't gonna go this time but a chance to watch the Cats at and old school ground is very tempting.

Why all the repeat matches though from previous GRs. Surely the Adelaide and Port opponents should be rotated. Unfair on Carlton. I mean, **** 'em and all that, but it's unfair.

 

[Ross]

Well, I was wrong about it being Sydney but it being West Coast pretty much means we’ll double up against four of the top six. Interesting choice to have the two grand finalists playing on the tiny regional grounds.

 

[Hamingja]

Well, I was wrong about it being Sydney but it being West Coast pretty much means we’ll double up against four of the top six. Interesting choice to have the two grand finalists playing on the tiny regional grounds.

Norwood's not a big ground but hardly a tiny regional ground. It would be the equivalent of playing at Punt Road.

 

[goyoucatters]

View attachment 2475280

As my family is moving to Adelaide in January, this will be the first Gather Round that I'm able to attend. Have been keen to go every year until now. But I seriously believe that would have to be just about the most underwhelming set of fixtures you could have ever cobbled together. Struggling to think how you could have made the entirety of the match-ups less appealing.

#marqueeround
#mediocrefixtures
#yawntacular
#thanksafl

 

[kickazz]

Also read that the weighted fixture has changed and teams can now face up to four in their allotted 6 twice instead of three.

So we'll probably get 4 double ups against top 6 teams.

So basically we will play all of Adelaide, Brisbane, Collingwood, Hawthorn and Gold Coast twice, except for one of them.

Bet we only get Hawks once.

 

[Tony Barber]

Copping WC for gather round is a thing of beauty... We were due.

You know why it's a thing of beauty?
It's a Geelong home game. Which means we get to play a different club at Kardinia Park.

We could beat West coast in Broome. They dont matter.

 

[cats_09]

 

[small 4wards]

this just made me miss him

 

[fpm84]

We’re playing Port away on ANZAC Day.

 

[fpm84]

 

[cats_09]

We’re playing Port away on ANZAC Day.

Any chance we can play Adelaide in the week between Gather Round & that, and just spend 3 weeks in SA rather than multiple weeks of travel to the same location within 3 rounds

 

[fpm84]

Here’s what’s been reported so far - at least three interstate games, plus Gather Round, in the first 10 rounds.

Presumably we’ll get a couple of games at KP from rounds 1-3.

Opening round - Suns (away)
Round 4 - Hawks (MCG)
Round 5 - WCE (Norwood)
Round 6 - Dogs (KP) - Friday night
Round 7 - Port (away)
Round 10 - Lions (away)

EDIT: round 6 v Dogs on a Friday night at KP just announced by Jay Clark.

 

[Kobe Gryant]

Disagree. In my view playing early games in Qld gives the Qld side a 3-4 goal advantage. The humidity kills us and we are gassed at half time

I've banked that as a loss already. It's not even a reflection of us, it's like playing on a different planet at that time of year. Same with Darwin.

Can see it already. Tight tussle to half time followed by a 6 goal Suns win.

If it's any consolation, we should be getting a home game the next week against a team who hasn't had a run yet, so that'll be a plus.