Round 13 PreviewSqueakeroos DTC vs. SpudsThis is a battle between two sides who were travelling nicely a few weeks ago but have hit something of a speed bump in recent weeks. Squeaky in particular has hit the wall in recent weeks despite having some excellent scorers in Mumford and Ffye. The Spuds were badly let down last week by their Carlton contingent with Simpson spudding it up and Murphy not even suiting up. I believe both players will contribute a lot more than last week against the old enemy Collingwood and this injection of points could swing this one Spuddley's way.
My tip - Spuds.
REBCats vs. cyrilanddayleshowCyril is a lot better than the score they posted last week and the REBCats are coming off their best score of the season even after 'enjoying' a poor Sunday along with many others. wycbloods has a good record against the REBCats but appears to have hung on to the likes of McDonald and in particular Langdon a week too long. Some shrewd trading is required to shore up that defence to take advantage of a REBCats outfit that is carrying a struggling Doherty. With trades at a premium the REBCats face a conundrum in the form of Ryan Griffen with Hawk Hallahan providing no bench cover. Best trade wins...REBCats...just.
My tip - REBCats.
Captain Who? vs. Cork in the OceanThe Captain has his groover back in recent weeks and has reignited his season with some improved form in recent weeks. However, when you are chasing the pack a single loss could have you spinning out of contention. The Captain needs to collect a big scalp to really get back in the hunt and the premiership table shows that there is no bigger scalp in Hogg Premier this year than Corky. Cork has the eight gun midfield and the six gun backline which a lot of teams will have trouble stopping. I reckon the Captain's winning run stops here.
My tip - Cork in the Ocean.
Richo Richo Man vs. Poon ArmyBoth of these sides need this win for different reasons but after looking at both lineups its safe to say that the ladder doesn't lie. My mate Hammo has a couple of trendy trades such as Stefan Martin and McGovern but even teams that are battling a bit wouldn't have to play both on the field. A few teams have Martin in but history shows that Stef bursts out of the blocks a bit then hits the wall and spuds it up. This week will be Martin's third game in the Ruck after a long layoff and he will be up against Goldstein of the Roos. This weekend has all the hallmarks of a Stefan shocker. Poon is also one of the few teams still carrying Laidler, not just as bench cover but as a starting defender. Richo has a few holes in his team but his side looks the better of the two and should win.
My tip - Richo Richo Man.Q Before You vs. UnderdogsQ put in a bit of a shocker last week after scoring 2400 the week before which makes him one of the toughest teams in Hogg Premier to predict. Even though his percentage took a hit percentage might not be much of an issue as Underdogs and REBCats have a draw and they are the teams fighting out with Q for spots in the lower part of the eight. Q has already lost to the REBCats (in Premier) and would not want to drop the match against the Underdogs as well. Underdogs were a little down as well as they got caught out by Langdon's concussion and if the Dogs keep the faith with the talented young Pie this could burn Q. Looking at the lineups I think Q has the higher ceiling and many normally reliable players let him down last week. It's Q Before Underdogs for mine.
My tip - Q Before You.The Ginger Ninjas vs. Longwood LionsThis season is looking a lot like last year for the Lions. The Lions had a slowish start but roared

home late to almost snaffle a spot in the eight. The Lions have a pretty good team but have been batting well but not making runs. This week they play a Ginger Ninjas outfit who have struggled to score runs all year so the Lions look good things to win their second in a row. The Ninjas are a genuine relegation chance after taking a mid-pricer approach that hasn't paid off. Laidler, Brodie Martin, Jack Grimes, Shuey, McIntosh and Taylor Walker are too many failed mid-pricers and I think Alaska can take advantage.
My tip - Longwood Lions.
Buddy Franklin vs. Hondo SCC MATCH OF THE ROUND
This is probably match of the season to date. Both sides look well prepared and both sides will go deep into this year's finals series. Hondo appears to have gone with the more 'traditional' type of midfield with players such as Selwood and Pendlebury joining the regulation Ablett and Beams while Buddy has really thought outside the box with players such as Boomer Harvey and Callum Ward really pumping out the scores. It is difficult to find a weakness in either side at the present and I'm pretty happy I've already played both of these blokes. I reckon both teams will score over 2300 and I'm liking Buddy to end Hondo's run but there won't be much in this.
My tip - Buddy Franklin.
Hawkeye vs. MILLER MOSQUITOESHawkeye might have won their last ever Premier League match. His team is full of too many hit and miss players, which even include Hanley and Bartel who have had a mostly successful season this year. The forward line has a couple of misfiring players as well and this team doesn't look like it could post 2200 on a regular basis. MILLERS has been fighting out of their weight division for weeks but he will see this clash as a winnable match. If Woggy's mid range players can hit a vein of form Hawkeye could salute though as there are a number of poor performers in the MOSQUITOES forward line. Fresh off his big win against the Darkside, I can't see MILLERS dropping this.
My tip - MILLER MOSQUITOES.Has Been vs. Darksiders SCEBoth sides had a poor week last week as they both share many of the missing and or underperforming players which brought their score down. At full strength both of these teams are genuine contenders but the loser of this match might struggle to make the top four. In this battle of almost mirror image teams I'm looking at the forward line and seeing one too many iffy players in the Has Been outfit, at least in comparison to the Darkside. When I'm tipping Premier League I have a simple rule and that is when in doubt, pick the Darksiders.
My tip - Darksiders SCE.
regards,
REB