If we beat Brisbane on Saturday and if other results go according to the betting market we will be 11th or 12th and only outside the top 8 on percentage. That surprises me but it shows that if we finish the season strongly we are a real chance at sneaking into the top 8.
The problem is we would almost certainly need 12 wins, maybe even 13. That means winning six games out of our remaining 10 and we have a hard run home. I could see us having a good chance against North and Brisbane (at the Gabba) so the other 4 wins would have to come against other top 8 contenders, the likes of Essendon, Carlton, Richmond, Freo, Hawthorn, etc. Not impossible but certainly would need us to be playing at a higher level than we did in rounds 1-12.
Should we be aiming for it? Of course we should ... as long as there's a realistic chance.
However if we get to the end of Round 18 and have got only 7 wins (or less) we would be in a dire position, needing to win every remaining game against the following 5 sides - North (E), Richmond (MCG), Sydney (E), Geelong (SS) and Brisbane (Gabba). If that's the case we should start blooding younger players like Roberts, Talia, Johannisen, Campbell, Panos and Hill and sending players needing post-season surgery off to the operating theatre so they can get as full a 2013 pre-season as possible.