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AFL Round 2 Preview & Betting Tips
Sydney vs Hawthorn
Sunday 1:10pm AEDT, March 26th, SCG
Expectations for Hawthorn were low coming into this season, yet they still found a way to disappoint after copping a 59 point smashing from Essendon in Round One. The Hawks produced zero fight against an Essendon outfit that many expect to be finishing in the bottom four.
Sydney showed no signs of being affected by the 2022 Grand Final, leading from start to finish in a comfortable 49 point victory over the Suns on the Gold Coast. The Swans were rampant with their pressure, and were dangerous forward of centre in difficult conditions.
Both teams have had forced changes with Lance Franklin (suspension), and Chad Wingard (Calf) out this week. Joel Amartey comes in for the Swans, while the Hawks have upgraded Connor Nash who was the sub last week, to the starting 22.
Pressure was a highlight of Sydney’s game last week, recording 24 more tackles than Gold Coast, despite having 51 more disposals than the Suns. The manic pressure led to the Swans registering 30 scoring shots in conditions that didn’t assist high scoring football.
Hawthorn conceded nine straight goals across the second and third quarters, as Essendon continuously walked out of centre clearances and dominated the territory battle. Against a seasoned midfield stacked full of proven talent, things could get ugly for Hawthorn.
Whilst the Swans kicked sixteen goals last week, the Hawks forward line did not fire a shot. Hawthorn could only muster nine majors, with two of those coming as late consolation goals when Essendon had put the cue in the rack.
The Hawks didn’t give their forwards many opportunities, however the Hawthorn forward line were nowhere structurally, and don’t look capable of kicking winning scores, especially without Mitch Lewis.
Sydney have won three of their last four encounters against Hawthorn, including a 41 point victory the last time these two teams met. The Swans will dominate the midfield battle against a young hawks midfield, which is going to see the territory battle going against the Hawks for the second week in a row.
The Hawks couldn’t move the ball against Essendon, and now they come up against one of the best sides in the competition on their home deck. Sydney were the third highest scoring team in the AFL last season, averaging 93 points per game and after putting up 110 points last week, it looks like the Swans attacking game will be just as strong in 2023.
This is going to be a one sided affair, with a genuine premiership contender taking on the worst team in the competition. The line is quite large in this fixture, but after seeing what the Bombers did to the Hawks last week, Sydney won’t have any issues covering the line.
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Errol Gulden 20+ Disposals: Errol Gulden caught plenty of eyes in the preseason with a dominant 45 disposal, 3 goal performance against Carlton. Gulden backed up the hype in Round One, with 24 disposals, 10 inside 50’s and a goal. Gulden is set to go to the next level in 2023, and it’s on the back of an increased role. Gulden attended 50% of centre bounces against the Suns, a major increase from 2022 where he averaged 10%.
Chad Warner 25+ Disposals: Chad Warner picked up from where he left off last season, racking up 30 disposals in the Swans season opener. Warner had more score involvements than any other player in Round One, and had 24 disposals the last time he played the Hawks.
Jai Newcombe 25+ Disposals: Jai Newcombe had a quiet outing by his standards against the Bombers, only managing 19 disposals. Newcombe averaged 25 disposals across his last seven games in 2022, and will be desperate to bounce back after a quiet week.
Same Game Multi odds - $4.75
