After a couple of promising weeks, West Coast fell back to earth last week with a thumping loss to Carlton. On the other hand, Hawthorn returned to winning ways with a convincing victory over Adelaide. The stakes in this Round 18 AFL clash may be low in terms of ladder position, but both sides will be looking to finish the season with a flourish.
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Hawthorn vs West Coast Betting Tips
MCG, Sunday 17th July, 1.10pm (AEST)
Hawthorn
Injuries: Lachlan Bramble, Tyler Brockman, Connor Downie, Sam Frost, Seamus Mitchell, Chad Wingard, James Worpel
Chad Wingard will miss the rest of the season with a hamstring injury, a cruel blow to the young Hawks side. Most of the absentees are out for the medium-long term, so Hawthorn will have to make the most of their currently fit crop.
A season that started so promisingly for the baby Hawks has faded quickly, however last week’s win reminded the football public what they are capable of. Injuries have provided unwelcome hurdles throughout the campaign, however for the most part it has appeared as though Hawthorn are on the right track to rebuild their list. Josh Ward, Connor McDonald, Ned Reeves, Mitch Lewis and Jai Newcombe have all performed admirably as young players in positions of responsibility, while the more experienced heads have shown the leadership required to keep the ship steady. Sam Mitchell will be hoping that his chargers can score a couple more wins before seasons end, to generate some momentum heading into 2023.
West Coast
Injuries: Nic Naitanui (out), Jack Petruccelle (out), Oscar Allen, Campbell Chesser, Tom Cole, Hugh Dixon, Luke Edwards, Tom Joyce, Jeremy McGovern, Dom Sheed, Connor West, Elliot Yeo
West Coast’s injury list is long, as it has been for the duration of the campaign. The loss of Naitanui this week is a significant one, however dependable forward Jamie Cripps returns.
Three solid performances were followed by a stinker last week, as the Eagles lost to Carlton by 63 points. At this point, it appears likely that West Coast will avoid the wooden spoon, however this year will still go down as a dark one in Eagles history. Two wins are not enough for such a big club and undoubtedly there will be a lengthy post-mortem come summertime. As such, the last six weeks will be about saving face, and perhaps putting a couple of wins on the board. The fans are still turning up, though that luxury won’t be afforded to the Eagles this week as they set foot on foreign turf at the MCG.
Match Prediction
Hawthorn are heavy favourites for this encounter, despite their form line reading no better than West Coast’s.
The Eagles have shown marked improvement in the last month and have won their last two games against the Hawks.
Furthermore, the young Hawks are tiring, however the latter will enjoy playing in front of home fans.
As such, I’m wary of putting all my eggs in the Hawthorn basket.
Instead, a solid bet looks to be backing Hawthorn in the first quarter. They have started games strong all year, whereas West Coast failed to score in the first term against the Blues last week.
1st Quarter Line - Hawks -7.5
$1.88 (1 Unit)
Prop Bets
Moore has spent more time in the midfield over the last few weeks, attending 55% of centre bounces last week against the Crows as he racked up 29 touches for 129 fantasy points. I can see that trend continuing, and even if he plays forward Moore has hit 90+ seven times over the course of the season.
Dylan Moore 90+ Fantasy ($1.98 at Ladbrokes)
What a season this young key forward has had. Lewis has kicked 36 goals over a restricted campaign and starred with five last week. He has failed to kick three or more goals in just three games, and West Coast are known to struggle against opposition talls.
Mitchell Lewis 3+ Goals ($1.98 at Ladbrokes)
