Another week and another set of winners and losers.

Although the road to the last Saturday in September has narrowed ever so slightly, each of the competition's 18 teams still hold their destinies in their own hands.

Whether your side is undefeated, breaking even or without a win to start 2021, there are questions, both new and historic, that must be answered to secure a win this long weekend.

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West Coast

How does Simpson coax a four-quarter effort?

The damning stat that faces Adam Simpson and his 1-1 Eagles is that of the eight quarters of football they have played in 2021, they have only won two of them.

West Coast do average 88-points per game, but after being shot off the park late by the Bulldog's their mean concession is now up to 79 PPG.

Holding a percentage of 111.4 and the seventh rung on the ladder, the powerhouse Perth club has led their pair of fixtured contests against Gold Coast and the Western Bulldogs for a combined 120.6 minutes โ€“ or 50.25% of the total playing time

With a ledger that is squared, a points differential close enough to touch, a percentage at a near broke even and a grand average of just 36 seconds spent leading over their opponents, Adam Simpson's side is as much yin as they are yang.

The 2018 Premiership coach is commandeering a classy list, and the vast majority of teams in the league would have lost that shootout to the Dogs at Marvel on Sunday, so a 1-1 start is no reason for tears.

However, if his side doesn't start stamping their authority on games and icing them early, the return to full-quarters and the commencement of capped rotations could have a detrimental effect on the third oldest team by average in the competition.

With four matches against four finalists from last season - Port Adelaide, St. Kilda, Collingwood and Geelong โ€“ over the next month, the task ahead is not easy.

If this early trend is anything to go by, tip them to go 2-2.

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