AFL with Greg Oberscheidt

The Eagles kept rolling, the Magpies surged back into the top four, Richmond and St Kilda put September holiday plans on hold while fans of the Swans, Hawks and Dockers all took a swift punch to the stomach. A number of positions in the eight are now well and truly up for grabs – a far cry from much of the way that 2011 played out. Greg Oberscheidt and Cliff Bingham cast their eye over the Round 10 matchups and give their recommended bets.

Carlton and Geelong may have slipped as Hawthorn and Collingwood lifted a gear, but right now most of the buzz surrounds the 7-1 sides: West Coast, Adelaide and Essendon. Given that the latter two of these teams were being tipped to hover around the fringes of the eight by many preseason, the stage has now been set for these upstart ‘challengers’ to try and ward off the threat of looming preseason ‘champions’ such as the Magpies and Hawks. Meanwhile, the Making The Nut AFL offices were provided some respite when both Greg and Cliff ground out a small Round 8 profit. They return with their thoughts on Round 9 of the competition.

It’s amazing to think that after a preseason where the overarching verdict was ‘same old, same old’ we can be seven weeks into the 2012 competition and find the defending premier sitting in tenth, the losing grand finalist in seventh and the current flag favourite in ninth. Not only that, but GWS have thrown wooden spoon markets into disarray with their inaugural franchise win over the Gold Coast – those who took the $1.12 back in March about them trailing the field home are no doubt feeling pensive. Speaking of pensive, Making The Nut’s AFL betting offices have not exactly been dishing out high fives with must gusto or frequency of late. Greg Oberscheidt and Cliff Bingham are seeking to get things back on track as they assess the Round 8 lines.

The Eagles keep winning, the Swans tasted defeat for the first time and the Suns gave Fremantle an almighty scare on the Gold Coast. With six weeks of the 2012 competition now in the books, the haves and the have nots are becoming a little easier to identify; hopefully this will translate into some strong punting against the lines in the ensuing four and a half months. Greg Obsercheidt and Cliff Bingham look to bounce back this week as they assess the upcoming weekend of matches.

The Swans and Eagles keep rolling. The Blues get it back on track. The Magpies and Cats pick up a little momentum. The 4-1 Bombers may even be garnering more respect than they did last week at 4-0. The nuances of the 2012 have in part led to the Hawks and Bulldogs somehow both sitting on 2-3 records. It has been a topsy-turvy start to 2012, but the clouds are slowly lifting and the form lines becoming more exposed. Greg Oberscheidt and Cliff Bingham return to evaluate the form to date and the implications for Round 6.

The Eagles, the Swans and (improbably) the Bombers kept their unbeaten streaks alive; the Giants, Suns and Demons remained winless. Ross Lyon’s new side beat Ross Lyon’s old side, while the Cats and Magpies both failed to flatter but picked up the four competition points anyway. The form lines for 2012 are gradually becoming more exposed; the contenders distancing themselves from the pretenders. What does this mean for Round 5? Greg Oberscheidt and Cliff Bingham try to solve this mystery.

The Blues and Eagles sit atop the premiership ladder, both of last year’s finalists are currently outside the top eight with matching 1-2 records, while the Bulldogs, Demons, Suns and Giants can already start thinking about next year. It is the plight of the Magpies (and to a lesser extent the Cats) that has the attention of the footy world right now though. How will they respond this week? What of the other seven games? Greg Oberscheidt and Cliff Bingham take us through their thoughts on such matters.

After four matches were decided by over 15 goals, it was great to see the second round of the season conclude with an epic battle between Hawthorn and Geelong. In any other year, the current form of the Demons would see them early wooden spoon favourites – yet it is hard to envisage the 2012 vintage Suns and Giants getting the better of them. Not that this has worried those in the Making The Nut offices, with Greg Oberscheidt in particular making a flying start to the 2012 on the punt. He and Cliff Bingham are back to preview the third round of the season.

The season openers have played themselves out and for all of the new coaches bar Brenton Sanderson, it was a rocky introduction to the senior coaching role. The top five teams from 2011 all look likely to be there when the whips are cracking this season, while Ross Lyon and the Dockers announced themselves as legitimate challengers to that upper echelon. What can we read into those results and their likely bearing on the second round of matches? Greg Oberscheidt and Cliff Bingham return to put the puzzle together.

The season may have commenced last Saturday night (with the Swans becoming the first ever team to be criticised for winning by more than 10 goals), but things really reach full swing from this Thursday night. Who will get their season off to a flying start and who will stumble out of the blocks? Greg Oberscheidt and Cliff Bingham return for 2012 with their thoughts on the opening round.