Head to head: Collingwood 100 wins, Western Bulldogs 41 wins, one draw
Last time: Collingwood 17.9 (111) d Western Bulldogs 16.14 (110), round 15, 2009, at Docklands
MISSING IN ACTION
Collingwood
Tristan Francis (groin) – indefinite
Western Bulldogs
Daniel Cross (ankle) – available
Ryan Griffen (hamstring) – test
Tom Williams (foot) – 2 weeks
FORM
Collingwood: WWWWW
Western Bulldogs: LWLWW
SUMMARY
It's been hard to fault the Magpies in recent times. They've won 12 of their past 13 matches, with their last loss coming against Hawthorn in round 16. Over the past five weeks, their scalps have included Carlton, the Brisbane Lions, Adelaide, Richmond and the Sydney Swans, with their average winning margin almost 50 points.
The rich vein of form has seen the Pies sew up a top-four spot and has them in third position, one game above the Dogs. They also have a percentage boost of 2.82 over Rodney Eade's men, who are also comfortably in the top four.
The Dogs have had an interesting five weeks. Just when it looked as though it was all going pear-shaped for the boys from the west, their injury list started to clear up and their form improved. The nadir of the season was undoubtedly the shock loss to West Coast, but since then the Dogs have recorded a brave away win against the Lions, before coming back to Melbourne and beating Geelong by 14 points last Friday night.
With Robert Murphy, Shaun Higgins and Daniel Giansiracusa now back in the side, Daniel Cross to play this week and Ryan Griffen remaining an outside chance, the Bulldogs are certainly starting to regain their ferocious bite.
PLAYER TO WATCH
Dayne Beams (Collingwood)
There are many reasons to watch this flashy kid, who is eye-catching even when standing still owing to his colourful sleeve of tattoos. Over the past three weeks, Beams has been playing with the composure and skill level of a player with much more experience than his 15 games. This week is the last chance for him to prove that the NAB Rising Star award does not necessarily belong around the neck of Brisbane Lion Daniel Rich.
Brian Lake (Western Bulldogs)
The out-of-contract full-back has been the topic of hot conversation lately. Will he stay or will he go? What makes him such a sought after prospect? Will he keep John Anthony goalless again this weekend? One thing is for sure – if Lake plays a bad game, his mid-game "chats" with Rodney Eade always make for fine viewing.
QUESTION MARKS
Can the Magpies continue their amazing charge to September and enter the finals series as the form team?
Can the Bulldogs replicate the sort of pressure they strangled the Cats with and shut down the Pies' ball-winners, as the Swans managed to do in the first half of Sunday's game?
Will either play with the apprehension of a side on the brink of a finals campaign and not wanting to risk injury to its players?
WHO WILL WIN AND WHY
Extended form suggests Collingwood is the winner, while the past two weeks have indicated the Bulldogs are the team that has made the most improvement at the right time of year. Both have had wins over the last fortnight, but the Magpies have been against two teams out of contention and the Dogs against sides in the top eight.
There is nothing to indicate the Magpies won't be a key player in September, and they rightly deserve a "strong contender" label, but this game might become a casualty on their way to a crack at the big one.
The Dogs are battle-ready after beating two good teams and are coming off an eight-day break compared to the Pies' six.
Expect another close one, but this time, the Dogs will get the points.
PREDICTION
Western Bulldogs by seven points.
The views in this article are those of the author and not necessarily those of the clubs or the AFL.
