Round 2 in the AFL season continues on Friday night as two premiership contenders square off from 7.50pm. Geelong and Brisbane both got off to slow starts in the 2021 season, losing their Round 1 games and they will be desperate to bounce back this week.
Check out our full preview and betting tips for the clash below and remember, you can view our preview and tips for every game in Round 2 and beyond of the AFL season, just be sure to head to our AFL Betting Tips page for regular updates.
AFL Geelong vs Brisbane Betting Tips
GMHBA Stadium, Friday 26th March 7.50pm (AEDT)
Both the Cats and Lions were slated to be premiership contenders at the start of the season and both suffered massive upsets in Round 1. The Lions went down at home to the Swans while the Cats were beaten by the 2020 wooden spooners in the Adelaide Crows.
Match Prediction
122 premierships have been awarded in the history of the VFL/AFL, just four of them have been won by teams that have started the season with an 0-2 record. That’s how much is on the line for these two teams heading into what should be a blockbuster Friday night clash in Geelong.
The Cats were extremely slow out of the blocks in Round 1, allowing 11 goals to the Crow sin the first half to go into the main break 37 points down. They fought back in the second half, but ultimately couldn’t recover the deficit, going down by 12 points in one of the bigger upsets in recent memory.
The Lions were also strong favourites in Round 1 against a Swans side that was predicted to be in the bottom half of the ladder. At home, they got out to a fast start but were absolutely ran over by the Swans, led by their young stars who were super exciting in the 31 point win.
On the injury front, the Cats will still be without star recruit Jeremy Cameron and veteran Mitch Duncan. Of course they will also be without Patrick Dangerfield, who copped a three match ban for his hit on Jake Kelly in Round 1. The Lions have a solid looking injury list with only Cam Rayner and Dan McStay missing from their potential best 22.
It becomes a little bit harder to really love the Cats without Duncan, Dangerfield and Cameron but they are at home, where they have been almost unbeatable for the better part of five years now. In thie last 40 games in Geelong dating back to 2015, the Cats have lost just five of them and against the Lions at GMHBA Stadium, they have won their last 11 straight dating all the way back to 2003.
The Cats start as 8.5 point favourites at home and I like them to cover that line. Over the course of those 11 straight wins over the Lions at home, the average winning margin has been a massive 51.5 points per game.
Geelong -8.5 (1.5 Units)
$1.90
Cats Prop
Isaac Smith looked super damaging in Round 1 against the Crows. He had 21 touches and booted two goals to get his career in blue and white off to a fantastic start. He is great value to snag another two this week, which I think is a strong possibility given his running power and his tendency to drift forward on the counter attack.
Lions Prop
By his lofty standards, Lachie Neale had a slow start to the season with just 24 touches in Round 1 against the Swans. Across 11 games against the Lions in his career, Neale averages 24.27 touches, which is the fourth lowest average against a specific opponent, with only Collingwood, St Kilda and Sydney coming in lower. Should have a tough matchup, probably against Cam Guthrie, back him to go under here.
Neale Under 27.5 Disposals
$1.88
