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Important update on 1476AMWho wins & why? Tips & predictions for Round 6, 2026
SEN • April 16th, 2026 1:26 pm
Round 6 is here as we enter a big weekend of footy.
In the wake of Gather Round, things kick off with perhaps the biggest rivalry in footy, with the Blues and Magpies meeting in Nick Daicos' 100th game.
Friday has an intriguing double-header as four strong sides take to the field, while the loser of Crows v Saints on Saturday night will also be a huge talking point.
We also celebrate superstar Lachie Neale and Cats great Mark Blicavs who reach 300 AFL games this weekend.
Check out our tips and predictions for each game below.
CARLTON v COLLINGWOOD
Thursday - 7:30pm AEST - MCG
Carlton’s start to the year could hardly have been worse for Michael Voss. 1-4 through their first five, the Blues could easily have started without a win if not for a desperate four-point win over the lowly Tigers.
In a wet weather clash against Adelaide, the Blues once again started fast, however were beaten rather easily by the Crows in Gather Round.
Returning key stocks in Jacob Weitering and Harry Dean will play a major role.
Collingwood’s start hasn’t been ideal, following up a smashing at the hands of the Lions with a heartbreaking six-point loss against Fremantle.
The story of the season for the Magpies has been their inability to score, breaching the 80-point mark just once in 2026.
With absences behind the ball including the continued absence of Darcy Moore, the Pies are far from full strength, with Steele Sidebottom and Jordan De Goey also set to miss.
Superstar Nick Daicos celebrates his 100th game.
An absolute blockbuster of a matchup between two of the game’s oldest rivals, this is a clash where ladder positions mean very little.
Despite both sides struggling for form, the iconic clash between the Blues and the Pies will always bring out the best of what football has to offer.
Carlton will enjoy the returns of Jacob Weitering and Harry Dean, while the Pies’ injury list isn’t as pretty. However, the weight of Daicos’ 100th game will mean much more than any regular home and away battle.
No better time for the Blues to beat the old enemy, but can they hold on late?
Prediction: Carlton by 8 points.
Jaiden Sciberras
GEELONG v WESTERN BULLDOGS
Friday - 7:20pm AEST - GMHBA Stadium
What a game we have on our hands here.
Geelong bounced back from their Easter Monday heartbreak against Hawthorn with a strong Gather Round win against West Coast. Bailey Smith, Tom Atkins and Max Holmes dominated that game for the Cats, and they’ll need to be on their game against a strong Bulldogs midfield.
While the Cats haven’t jumped out of the blocks perfectly in 2026, the signs are still there when they put the foot down. They’ll hope to use this game as a real contender to stamp themselves this season.
While the Bulldogs don’t have many players out long-term, several of their key stars head into this round under injury clouds. That was a concern for them in their Gather Round loss to Hawthorn, which was their first for 2026 after starting 4-0. The Dogs were dominated around the ball against the Hawks without Tim English, which was quite a surprise given that’s typically a strength.
The Dogs were the hottest team in the first month, but things are set to get harder from here.
At a neutral venue, the Bulldogs would be the pick for most. But given this game is at GMHBA Stadium, Geelong rightly enter as favourites. The Cats have already dealt with contenders Fremantle and Adelaide at home this year, and they’ll expect to do the same here, even if the Dogs have won two of the last three between the sides at the venue.
The key for the Dogs will be to dominate on-ball, if they don’t, the Cats will be too strong at home.
Prediction: Geelong by 10 points.
Lachlan Geleit
SYDNEY V GWS
Friday - 7:50pm AEST - SCG
Not quite premiership favourites, but the Swans are certainly making their presence felt in 2026. They top the ladder after a 32-point statement win over the Suns at Gather Round.
Isaac Heeney is the form player of the competition right now, Brodie Grundy is in the top two ruckmen (alongside Max Gawn), captain Callum Mills is back to his best and Justin McInerney is putting together a career year. It’s all looking rosy for the Bloods in this moment.
After three straight defeats, the Giants roared back to life with a 56-point smacking of Richmond at Gather Round. Finn Callaghan is flying, Clayton Oliver is in great touch in orange and charcoal, Lachie Ash continues to star and Toby Greene is back to his best. But just as things were starting to look better they lose both Aaron Cadman and Stephen Coniglio to concussion. They can’t take a trick on the injury front but remain in the hunt at 2-3.
This edition of ‘Battle of the Bridge’ should probably be afforded a standalone timeslot given it’s scheduled on a Friday night. Swans coach Dean Cox and injured Giants star Tom Green both suggested this week that it’s a bit “strange” and “disrespectful”.
Nevertheless, the SCG hosts the Sydney rivals in the first contest since GWS kicked 12 goals to one after half-time in round 20, on the back of a well-publicised Adam Kingsley rant. Sydney is the best team in it right at this point, however, and should see this out.
Prediction: Sydney by 20 points.
Andrew Slevison
GOLD COAST v ESSENDON
Saturday - 1:15pm AEST - People First Stadium
The return of Christian Petracca and Bailey Humphrey is a much-needed boost after two losses in a row. Add to that another week of recovery for Matt Rowell under the belt and it will make for quite the handful in the forward-midfield for Essendon.
It’s not quite panic stations yet for Damien Hardwick but lose this and it very much will be. Returning home for the first time in a month where they have a 2-0 record this year - both by 50+ points - will be a deciding factor.
Last week’s win against Melbourne will do wonders for the belief of Brad Scott’s men, but a much larger challenge awaits here. For the first time in 2026, the Dons managed to keep their opposition below 400 disposals, 100 uncontested marks and 10 marks inside 50.
The return of Jordan Ridley clearly has a lot to do with this, and they appeared a whole lot more structured with him there. Peter Wright should play ruck again, but Scott will be wary of Mac Andrew’s agility if he takes more time in the middle off Jarrod Witts.
Despite more positive signs for Essendon, the Suns will be fired up to ensure three losses in a row is avoided. The depth of Gold Coast talent is just too much to conceive this Bombers side can cause an upset in the Sunshine state and expect the Suns to bounce back and get their season rolling again ahead of some steeper challenges in the coming weeks.
The Bombers may find something coming off a win, but I will be shocked if it gets them within 10 goals of the Hardwick's men.
Prediction: Gold Coast by 65 points.
Ethan Clark
HAWTHORN v PORT ADELAIDE
Saturday - 4:15pm AEST - Marvel Stadium
This fixture has become highly-anticipated in recent times.
Last year’s Gather Round contest reached fever pitch on the back of Kenny’s mocking airplane gesture directed at Ginni after the 2024 Semi Final.
There is definitely a bit of feeling between these two teams. Let’s hope it continues at Marvel Stadium.
Sam Mitchell’s Hawthorn enters this as one of the form teams of the competition after four straight wins since their disappointing opener against GWS.
That man Jack Ginnivan was excellent in the big win over the Western Bulldogs in Adelaide last weekend, as was co-captain Jai Newcombe and defensive pairing Josh Battle and Tom Barrass.
The Power have been in the news all week in the midst of the Zak Butters-Nick Foot saga. They’ll be keen to get back to playing footy, especially after their slow start against St Kilda which resulted in a 14-point defeat.
Josh Carr’s Port holds a 2-3 record after games against North Melbourne, Essendon, West Coast, Richmond and the Saints. Things get significantly harder from now on with Geelong, Adelaide, the Dogs and Gold Coast after the Hawks.
It’s hard to see the Power starting that perilous five-week run with a win over a side that is in complete control of its game right now.
The Hawks have not been beaten in their past six Marvel outings while Port have lost their last three at the venue.
There might be stages of the match where the Power come at the Hawks, but Mitchell’s men really should keep them at arm’s length and then some.
Prediction: Hawthorn by 34 points.
Andrew Slevison
ADELAIDE v ST KILDA
Saturday - 7:35pm AEST - Adelaide Oval
While both the Crows and St Kilda have started the season 2-3, there is still a huge gap in quality between the two sides.
Adelaide’s three losses have all come by under eight points against the Dogs, Cats and Dockers – three teams who should definitely make finals. The 2025 minor premiers are clearly among the top-end teams in the competition and will be gunning for a spot in the top 6 come season's end.
The Saints, however, aren’t in the market for a premiership yet. While they have brought in quite a few players on big-money contracts and re-signed gun Nasiah Wanganeen-Milera, the squad still hasn’t fully clicked together. St Kilda will continue to find their feet this season before hopefully making a launch at the flag in 2027 and beyond.
Ross Lyon’s men tend to play a defensive brand a football, meaning that they are never fully out of games, but the lack of scoring prowess at times allow the opposition to slowly chip away at the Saints. Expect the Crows to take advantage of this trend at the Adelaide Oval with their ultra-offensive attack and systematically pile a hefty score on the still-developing Saints.
Prediction: Adelaide by 37 points.
Connor Scanlon
NORTH MELBOURNE v RICHMOND
Sunday - 1:10pm AEST - Marvel Stadium
We'll see how far North have really improve in 2026 in this one.
Coming into the year, many had the Roos as a cellar-dweller alongside a Richmond side that is at the bottom of its rebuild and without a 2026 win to their name.
But so far this campaign, North have shown that they may be ready to take the next step, winning three of their five games while performing solidly in last week's loss to the Lions.
If they really are to be considered a fringe Wildcard team, they have to easily account for the Tigers.
Richmond are desperate for some experience in key positions, and with Tom Lynch and Toby Nankervis still out, it's hard to see them competing well aerially. North will be annoyed that Tristan Xerri is still suspended, as the ruck and on-ball would have been an obvious area of dominance given the matchup.
North also bat far deeper in the middle, with the Tigers still trying to play their senior heads, despite their lack of production around the ball, to try and protect some of their younger brigade who will no doubt play in the centre in years to come.
The Roos should really be a year or two ahead of the Tigers given how much longer they've been rebuilding, and this should be shown here with a comfortable win.
They won this matchup by 48 points last year in Hobart, and while this game is at Marvel Stadium, a similar margin is a likely outcome.
Prediction: North Melbourne by 36 points.
Lachlan Geleit
MELBOURNE v BRISBANE
Sunday - 3:15pm AEST - MCG
It’s a big weekend for the Lions who play their first game at the MCG since their scintillating Grand Final win against the Cats and celebrate the milestones of much-loved clubmen Josh Dunkley and Lachie Neale who reach 250 and 300 games respectively.
The Lions have started to get their mojo back in the last few weeks having bounced back from two losses to start the season with three strong wins. It wasn’t all smooth sailing at Gather Round with North Melbourne taking the challenge right up to the Lions but ultimately the cream rose to the top and the reigning premiers now find themselves sixth on the ladder.
Melbourne coach Steven King will be expecting his side to have a strong response following a humiliating loss to Essendon who outworked the Dees in every aspect of the game. There have been calls that King’s young side got ahead of themselves after their shock win against the Suns and undoubtedly, the side will want to put in a much stronger showing this weekend.
Melbourne has enjoyed the Sunday 3:15pm slot at the MCG so far this season with 3 wins and no losses but with the injury list growing following the announcement that Christian Salem, Jake Melksham and Trent Rivers would all be unavailable for a period, it seems that streak could come to an end.
The Dees did manage a shock win at the Gabba last year and there have been some tight contests in recent history but with two significant milestones and a premiership side starting to find its form, the Lions will be tough opposition.
Prediction: Brisbane by 23 points.
Harry Cumming
WEST COAST v FREMANTLE
Sunday - 5:10pm AEST - Optus Stadium
It’s the match that stops the state when the Western Derby takes place with Fremantle holding bragging rights for much of the last few years and that should continue when they face the Eagles on Sunday evening. Make no mistake, these teams do not like each other and will desperately want to win.
West Coast was much more competitive against the Cats last weekend having been humiliated by the Swans the week before in front of a home crowd. However, they couldn’t match Geelong for all four quarters as Andrew McQualter’s young side fell short against the Cats’ superstars.
For the Dockers, coach Justin Longmuir will have to make some changes to his side with Mason Cox pushing for selection as Sean Darcy is out with concussion. There have been suggestions during the week however, that Luke Jackson should be prioritised in the ruck position given his ability to dominate in the centre and around the ground.
Fremantle have started the season strongly with a 4-1 record and sit 2nd on the ladder, appearing to be an early contender for a deep finals run that the club has yet to deliver under Longmuir’s tenure.
It will be the first derby for many of the Eagles’ young draftees including Willem Duursma who will look to rise to the big occasion playing in front of a packed Optus Stadium.
Fremantle should be too polished for an Eagles upset here but West Coast won’t want to be blown away with the whole of WA watching.
Prediction: Fremantle by 47 points.
Harry Cumming
