GREATER Western Sydney hosts West Coast to open Sunday's round 23 action, while the Western Bulldogs and Carlton meet in a clash that could have huge ramifications for the wildcard spots.
GWS continued its rollercoaster season as Gold Coast snapped its own 10-match losing streak when the two sides played out a cliffhanger last week.
The Giants look destined to end the season wondering what could have been with their finals destiny now out of their own hands with even back-to-back wins against the Eagles and Crows not certain to be enough to snatch a wildcard spot.
GIANTS v EAGLES Follow it LIVE
West Coast went some way to bouncing back from a disappointing defeat to Richmond with an improved performance against Collingwood even if it failed to snap its own nine-match losing streak.
The Eagles need one more victory to match their best record in the past five seasons in 2024 with the game against the Giants looking most likely for a win before facing the Hawks in the last round.
Andrew McQualter has made just one change wth Hamish Davis coming in for the managed Bo Allan, while the Giants have recalled Cody Angove and Toby McMullin for injured pair Jayden Laverde and Xavier O'Halloran.
The Bulldogs locked in a wildcard spot even as it suffered a shock defeat to North Melbourne before other results fell its way but continues to show all the hallmarks of a middle-of-the-road team.
The Dogs dropped to ninth spot with back-to-back losses to the Roos and Dockers but will be eager to avoid sliding further and below the red-hot Blues in a matchup that could shape the finals.
BULLDOGS v BLUES Follow it LIVE
Carlton took a huge step towards securing a wildcard spot with a clinical victory in a crunch clash against St Kilda but still has little margin for error with a pair of challenging games to come.
The Blues need at least one more win from their remaining games against the Bulldogs and Dockers to lock in a finals place but could leapfrog Luke Beveridge’s side into ninth spot this week.
Jacob Weitering is a big inclusion for the Blues, while Lewis Young has been dropped, while the Dogs have rested captain Marcus Bontempelli and lost Tim English to a knee injury while Nick Coffield is dropped. Into the side come Lachie Carmichael, Louis Emmett and Luke Kennedy.
Essendon looked like a side that has little to play for this season as it quickly conceded the first 10 goals of the match against Geelong before being more competitive from there.
The Bombers have shown this season that they can stay in games for longer when they bring their better pressure and intensity but will need to be switched on from the start to avoid being blown away by the Swans.
BOMBERS v SWANS Follow it LIVE
Sydney moved to within one win of a top-two finish and the guarantee of a pair of home finals as it demolished Port Adelaide for its third victory by more than 90 points this season.
The Swans could add to that competition-leading record of dishing out regular thumpings as they fine-tune for the finals with a clash against the bottom-placed Bombers before facing the Kangaroos.
Big guns Dane Rampe and Brodie Grundy return for the Swans in place of Lewis Melican and Hayden McLean, while the Bombers will be without Sam Durham, Zak Johnson and Hussien El Achkar, with Angus Clarke, Harrison Jones and Nick Bryan included.