After a heap of action in Round 6, there has only been some major slides down the Zero Hangerโs Power Rankings.
1. Richmond (-)
They did what they had to do. They now retain top spot on the rankings for the third consecutive week after dismantling Fremantle in the last quarter in typical Richmond fashion. 13 consecutive wins at the G' and they almost look unbeatable there now.
Kane Lambert was impressive, while Dustin Martin was solid and stood up in key moments. David Astbury is an underrated member of the Tigers' backline while Jack Graham keeps building his form every week.
2. Adelaide (-)
The Crows did what they had to do against an undermanned and inexperienced Carlton side. They were missing Taylor Walker, Rory Sloane and a host of other stars but still ended up getting across the line by 55 points. Young gun Mitch McGovern starred for the Crows, while Richard Douglas and Matt Crouch just got the job done.
3. West Coast (+2)
The Eagles were far too good for the Power all day, despite losing Luke Shuey in the opening minutes. The Jack Darling/Josh Kennedy partnership looks formidable as they continue to pile on goals. Jack Redden and Andrew Gaff were once again dominant, while Willie Rioli was lively once again in attack.
After beating Port, West Coast still face GWS, Richmond and Hawthorn in successive weeks. Time will tell if they are the real deal or not.
4. Sydney (-1)
The Swans have now lost three of their last four games at the SCG, which was once a fortress and a nightmare for the opposition to visit. The game went down to the wire, with the Swans blowing multiple opportunities in front of goal in the dying moments.
Josh Kennedy looks back to his best, while Callum Sinclair looks in spectacular form. They have a massive clash against arch enemies Hawthorn at the MCG, with the hope of the return of Lance Franklin and Dan Hannebery.
5. Hawthorn (-)
It was an arm wrestle in the first half, however a six goal third quarter basically sealed the win for the Hawks. James Sicily was impressive kicking a goal and registering 29 disposals off half back while Jarryd Roughead was superb as a target inside 50. Tom Mitchell was again very good with 29 disposals, eight clearances and 10 tackles.
The Hawks were very unlucky not to jump up into the top four on the rankings, but with a massive showdown against the Swans on Friday night, a win will certainly propel them up there.
6. Geelong (+2)
The Giants were atrocious, but the Cats put together a great four quarter performance. Their young backline was impressive while Mitch Duncan and Tim Kelly were very strong in the midfield. Tom Hawkins kicked a bag a four, while Patrick Dangerfield and Joel Selwood were good but not at their brilliant best. They are boosted by the return of Gary Ablett next week.
7. GWS (-3)
A horrendous performance from the Giants as they butchered the ball going forward at almost every occasion. They produced their second lowest score in their short history while it was very hard to pick out four or five good players.
Stephen Coniglio and Dylan Shiel tried hard as well as Nick Haynes but that's about it.
8. Collingwood (+1)
After playing their third game in 12 days, the Pies managed to put a tough stretch of games behind them and win gallantly against an impressive Lions side. The Pies won the ball at the source, winning the contested ball by +17 as well and the clearances by +11. Jordan De Goey starred with five goals, while Steele Sidebottom and Sam Murray were both electric.
9. Melbourne (+1)
Max Gawn was once again instrumental in the ruck as Melbourne easily put aside the Saints. Gawn had 34 hit-outs, 20 disposals and a goal in probably a best on ground performance. Those honours will be challenged however by Angus Brayshaw (33 touches and a goal), Clayton Oliver (36 touches) and Jesse Hogan (three goals and 25 touches).
They are pushing for a top eight spot but it's hard to see of the teams above them falling out of the eight just as yet.
10. Port Adelaide (-3)
Just when we thought the Power were building form, they let us down once again. Unreliable is the only word that can describe the Power after a heavy loss against the Eagles.
Their bottom tier players again continue to let them down, while Robbie Gray, Travis Boak, Darcy Byrne Jones and Dan Houston were Port's standouts nonetheless.
11. North Melbourne (+2)
They stunned the Swans in greasy conditions, but the Kangaroos still managed the biggest upset of the round. Young forward Mason Wood was instrumental with four goals while Shaun Higgins (31 touches) and Ben Jacobs (29 touches and nine tackles) dominated the engine room.
At 11th we may be seriously undervaluing North, but their run of games coming into the bye will give us a true indication of where they truly sit. It all begins with the reigning premiers at Etihad Stadium on Sunday.
12. Western Bulldogs (-)
They fought hard and got the win after dominating the clearances and providing a heap of forward line pressure. Jack Macrae was awesome with 1.1 from 40 disposals, 23 contested possessions, 12 clearances, 10 score involvements, seven tackles and six inside 50s while Lachie Hunter, Toby Mclean and Luke Dahlhaus were also impressive.
13. Fremantle (-2)
Freo started bad and ended even worse in a very inconsistent showing from the Dockers. They only laid four tackles in the first quarter and despite putting up a fight in the third quarter, Richmond simply just ran over the top of them. But to lose by 77 points after only being down by 26 points at three quarter time is not acceptable.
Nat Fyfe was perhaps best on ground in a losing side, while Lachie Neale and Aaron Sandilands were also dominant.
14. Essendon (-1)
Although their start was impressive, the Bombers faded out in the third quarter to once again lose this season. The Hawks piled on six unanswered goals in the third to run away with the game.
Dyson Heppell battled hardly with 28 disposals and a goal while Tom Bellchambers took six contested marks in a dominate display. It's going to be tough from here for the Dons to play finals you'd say.
15. Gold Coast (-)
Probably should have won against the Bulldogs, but the class of the Dogs shone through. They were without their two co-captains and considering the amount of travel they have endured, it was a gutsy effort from the Suns. Jack Martin and Aaron Young were among the best payers while Ben Ainsworth also impressed.
16. Brisbane (-)
Probably on par with their match against Port Adelaide a couple of weeks ago as their best performance to date, however the Lions are still winless and unable to execute under pressure in the final moments. Dayne Zorko was the shining light for the Lions with four goals and 31 disposals while experienced heads Dayne Beams (two goals, 31 disposals) and Luke Hodge (21 disposals, 13 marks) also impressed.
17. St. Kilda (-)
If the Saints could kick, they might have won this game. They controlled periods of the game but both their field and goal kicking let them down. This isn't a new problem with the Saints struggling all year in this department.
You feel sorry for the likes of Jack Steven and Seb Ross who try to lower their eyes and hit targets inside 50.
18. Carlton (-)
We knew it was going to be tough, especially without a host of star that included Marc Murphy and Charlie Curnow, however the Blues battled and only lost by the 10 goals which is considerably better than the margin many experts tipped. Dale Thomas looks revitalised whilst Ed Curnow was impressive once again.
