Round 17 of the 2021 Australian Football League (AFL) takes place this weekend with another full nine match round on the cards. Catch our best betting picks for all games right here!
AFL Round 17 Betting Picks
Hawthorn Hawks vs Fremantle Dockers
UOTS, Friday 11:45pm ET
Hawthorn failed to show up with the required effort in the first half of their clash with Port Adelaide last weekend, despite it being club legend Shaun Burgoyne’s 400th game. As a result, the deficit was too large at the main break and the Hawks went onto lose for the 11th time this season in 15 games.
Fremantle were also slow starters last weekend when they faced the Blues, giving up a big deficit in the first half before making their surge in the third quarter; however, the damage was done and the Dockers finished up losers by 16 points. Despite the loss, they remain in the hunt for a finals berth if they can get some momentum going in the last few rounds of the season.
Neither team have been able to find consistent avenues to goal this season, which is a big reason as to why they’re in the bottom half of the table. Now at a notoriously low-scoring ground in UOTS this weekend, it’s fair to say we’re expecting a bit of a slugfest where scores at a premium.
GWS Giants vs Gold Coast Suns
Mars Stadium, Saturday 10:40pm ET
GWS put in arguably their best performance of the season when beating the then ladder-leading Demons last weekend. They led from wire-to-wire despite being the away team en route to their seventh win of the season, which saw them leapfrog the Tigers into eighth spot on the ladder for the time being.
Gold Coast also had their best win of the season last weekend when they upstaged the defending-champion Tigers in Melbourne by 10 points. It was a performance that coach Stewart Dew had been waiting for from his troops and you could see the elation on his face after they pulled it out. The Suns moved to five wins for the season, but are still way down in 14th spot on the ladder.
This is an intriguing matchup between the two newest AFL clubs who are both coming off fantastic wins in Round 16. It’s expected that this game will be played at the neutral venue in Ballarat, which obviously makes it an even playing field. Regardless, we have to give the edge to the far more consistent Giants who are well and truly in the race for a finals berth.
Western Bulldogs vs Sydney Swans
Marvel Stadium, Sunday 1:10am ET
Western Bulldogs showed once again that they’re the form team of the competition with an easy 29-point win over North Melbourne. It was the seventh time for the season that the Bulldogs have managed to kicked a score over 100, which leads the rest of the league. They’re now on top of the ladder where they certainly deserve to be on current form.
Sydney ‘hosted’ West Coast in Geelong last weekend due to Covid outbreaks in New South Wales. They certainly played as if they had some sort of advantage on their side as they absolutely obliterated the Eagles via a score of 118-26. It was yet another really strong performance from such a young side that now looks destined to feature in the finals.
The Swans were able to snap a two-game losing streak with their emphatic win last weekend, but they now face the toughest test in football at the moment when they travel to take on the Bulldogs. It’s just impossible to knock the Dogs at the moment regardless of the Swans form, so we’ll be taking the home side to cover the spread on this occasion.
All AFL R17 Picks
Port Adelaide Power vs Melbourne Demons (Thursday 5:40am ET)
Port Adelaide Power -4.5 (-110 at PointsBet)
Essendon Bombers vs Adelaide Crows (Friday 5:50am ET)
Over 161.5 Points (-110 at PointsBet)
Hawthorn Hawks vs Fremantle Dockers (Friday 11:45pm ET)
Under 155.5 Points (-110 at PointsBet)
Carlton Blues vs Geelong Cats (Saturday 2:35am ET)
Geelong Cats 1-39 (+110 at PointsBet)
Brisbane Lions vs St Kilda Saints (Saturday 5:25am ET)
Brisbane Lions -27.5 (-110 at PointsBet)
GWS Giants vs Gold Coast Suns (Saturday 10:40pm ET)
GWS Giants -16.5 (-110 at PointsBet)
Western Bulldogs vs Sydney Swans (Sunday 1:10am ET)
Western Bulldogs -20.5 (-110 at PointsBet)
Richmond Tigers vs Collingwood Magpies (Sunday 2:10am ET)
Under 147.5 Points (-110 at PointsBet)
West Coast Eagles vs North Melbourne (Monday 5:40am ET)
West Coast Eagles -26.5 (-110 at PointsBet)
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