Round 24 of the 2026 AFL Premiership Season rolls on this Friday night at the MCG with Collingwood hosting Brisbane in a game that means everything for both clubs’ finals ambitions. Draftstars are offering $50,000 in guaranteed prize money in their main daily fantasy tournament.
This is as high-stakes as the home-and-away season gets. Brisbane sit third on the ladder but are tied on 60 premiership points with fourth and fifth-placed sides, meaning a loss here could see them slide out of the top four entirely. For Collingwood the motivation is different but equally acute — they need the four points to lock up eighth spot and secure a home wildcard final. Both teams play this game like a September fixture and the contest should produce the kind of intensity that generates elite individual performances. Collingwood have welcomed back veterans Jeremy Howe and Steele Sidebottom to bolster their lineup for what is their final home-and-away game. Brisbane have dropped Daniel Annable and go in with their settled best 22 otherwise intact.
Draftstars are offering a number of different contests to suit your style, some of these include:
AFL $50,000+ Magpies vs Lions at Draftstars
AFL $5,000+ Magpies vs Lions High Roller ($150 Entry) at Draftstars
AFL $3,000+ Magpies vs Lions Mini ($2 Entry) at Draftstars
AFL $2,000+ Magpies vs Lions Micro (50c Entry) at Draftstars
Also this season the AFL Star is back for 2026 with a massive $1 million prize pool! Win your way into the Final by winning a Golden Ticket in a range of qualifiers running every weekend!
If you’re new to the Daily Fantasy Sports scene and want to join in on the fun, simply join Draftstars via this link!
AFL Daily Fantasy Lineup Tips: Round 24 Collingwood vs Brisbane
AFL Fantasy Round 24 Friday: Where to Attack?
Things are always tough at this point in the year when you get two of the better sides in the league going at it on a single game slate. Brisbane, who are well in the mix to defend their premiership, come in as arguably the hardest team in the league to score against. This is especially true in the backline where the Lions are holding general defenders to over 8 points below league average, and designated kickers to over 6 points below league average – both of which are close to the lowest in the league. The follow this up by holding inside midifelder to the third lowest mark in the league and both forward positions below league average.
On the flip side, the Magpies consistently give up points to backs. They are conceding above average scoring to all three back positions including wings/attacking half backs, general defenders and designated kickers. The beauty of this is the Lions love to build up play through their half backs and will surely take advantage of this area of the ground. The Magpies are also giving up above average scores to key forwards and general forwards, which makes for a perfect game script play as well with the Lions at over 20 point favourites to get this win in this game.
Game Script – Brisbane backs and forwards, mix the midfield (both teams are tight in this area – look for big game contested players)
BIG FADE: Collingwood defenders
AFL Fantasy Round 24 Friday – Our Value Fantasy Picks
Beau McCreery ($9,420) just posted a career-best 122 last week and at $9,420 that score has not been priced in yet. He has been finding more midfield time in recent weeks and his last six games have seen an average of 70 points per game, which would still be a solid return at this price point in a game between two of the tougher sides to score against.
Sam Swadling ($9,280)… another Magpies value play, the 19-year-old midfielder for the who was drafted with pick No. 37 in the 2025 AFL Draft came into the senior side after strong VFL form to play seven games so far this season. Last week was his absolute breakout in one of the most hotly contested contests of the year he earned a Round 23 Rising Star nomination following a 29-disposal game and 104 fantasy points. With an upside like that he has to be in consideration on this slate.
Ty Gallop ($6,580) at near the minimum he gives you salary relief in a positive matchup for a player who has average over 60 points over his last six games. I would pair him up with a premium Lions back to stack the play up and to be honest given his form this almost sits as lock for me.
AFL Fantasy Round 24 Friday – Our Mid Price Fantasy Picks
Ed Allan ($11,430) has really broken out this season after a slow star to the year. He has moved more permanently into the midfield often doing defensive jobs on the opposition. He has been attending over 55% of the Magpies centre bounces this season, a number that has spiked considerable over the second half of the season. This has contributed to an increased fantasy output posting just under 80 points per game over his last 6 outings, including a big 99 point game last week against the Hawks.
AFL Fantasy Round 24 Friday – Our Premium Fantasy Picks
Will Ashcroft ($16,990) is the Brisbane premium co-lock and the MCG is one of his best venues. He has posted 114, 122 and 106 in his last three for an average of 114 and his three most recent games against Collingwood have produced 127, 100 and 109 — three scores all between 100 and 127 in this exact fixture, extraordinary consistency. Collingwood being tight on inside midfielders is the matchup concern but 100 as the floor in this fixture is still elite output. At $16,990 he is the Brisbane premium lock to pair with Zorko up back.
Dayne Zorko ($15,670) is aging like a fine wine still in 2026 and his last three scores of 113, 97 and 130 average 113.3. Collingwood have been giving up above average to wings at and designated kickers and Zorko’s ability to drift into the wing and half-back corridor generates scoring from that concession. His three most recent games against the Magpies have produced 116, 131 and 80 — the 116 and 131 are outstanding ceiling references in this exact fixture.
Darcy Cameron ($14,750) is the Collingwood ruck premium play for mine despite going into a Brisbane where he has been giving up the biggest points this season to opponents. That said, he will have the ruck role to himself (while Draper and Fort will share duties down the other end) and he is arguably the form ruck of the competition, posting 6 straight games over 100 points for an average of 117 during this stretch.
Here is our Suggested Draftstars Lineup for AFL Fantasy Round 24 Friday
Weather Report for Friday 21st August
MCG (Melbourne) — 10 degrees, clear. Cold but dry conditions for a huge Friday night game at the MCG.
AFL Betting Markets Round 24 Friday
Odds: Collingwood ($3.30) vs Brisbane ($1.34)
Points: 184.5
Line: Brisbane -21.5
Also, be sure to check out our full AFL Friday Preview and Betting Tips. Our experts break down the game and highlight some key bets that you can follow!
