Round 17 of the 2020 AFL Season kicks off on a Thursday Night, and we have an intriguing encounter between the St Kilda Saints and the West Coast Eagles.
The Eagles have been forced to make a stack of changes for this clash because of injury, and the Saints welcome back their two key forwards just in time for a crucial clash.
The Brisbane Lions continued their excellent form in a Wednesday Night Football clash in which they smashed their cross-town rivals, the Gold Coast Suns by 45 Points.
Be sure to check back before each AFL Round, for AFL Footy Tips, AFL Previews and AFL Predictions for each round of the 2020 AFL Season.
Tipping Results So Far
Season Tips – 96/135 = 71.11%
Season Player Props – 49/90 = 54.44%
St Kilda Saints vs West Coast Eagles
Last Meeting
Round 8 2019, St Kilda 10.10 70 – West Coast 12.16 88
(West Coast by 18 Points)
Last 5 Meetings
St Kilda – 1 Win
West Coast – 4 Wins
Last Round
Both sides are on a four-day break for this clash, and the Saints are just coming off a 14 Point win over the Hawks.
The Eagles were pretty good in their clash against the Bulldogs, after consistent short breaks, but they fell short and lost the match by 2 Points.
Team Changes
Three changes at the Saints for this clash with Ryan Abbott, Jonathon Marsh and Ed Phillips all getting dropped. They welcome back their two key forwards in Max King and Tim Membrey, Nick Hind also gets another crack at senior football.
The Eagles have made six changes for this clash. Five of those are injuries including, Brendon Ah Chee, Mark Hutchings, Lewis Jetta, Jack Redden and Dom Sheed. Tom Hickey is out of the team, and Nic Naitanui is a huge return. Other players the Eagles welcome back include Shannon Hurn, Jarrod Brander, Jack Petruccelli, Will Schofield and Hamish Brayshaw will make his AFL Debut.
Current Head to Head Odds
St Kilda – $1.65
West Coast – $2.25
Prediction
These two sides have played in some close matches over the past few seasons with the average winning margin over the last four games being 14.5 points.
The Saints will fancy themselves in the clash with the Eagles decimated with injury in their midfield. The Eagles are without, Yeo, Shuey, Redden, Sheed and Hutchings, which put a lot of pressure on Tim Kelly and Andrew Gaff. Nic Nat is back, but will have his hands full against the Ruck combo of Marshall and Paddy Ryder.
The Saints should win this match, based on the outs for the Eagles, and if they can win the midfield battle, which is now likely, they should get the win. Rain is also expected, which usually plays into the hands of the more experienced midfielders. The Eagles will have some rookies running through the middle of the ground in this clash, and it won’t be easy.
Our Pick – St Kilda (Win)
Player Prop – Zak Jones + 76.5 Fantasy Points
Jones is averaging 86 Fantasy Points over his last four matches and with rain expected and the Eagles midfield depleted, he should get plenty of chances for contested possessions and tackles in this clash.
Player Prop – Jack Billings + 74.5 Fantasy Points
Billings will spend time in the middle in this game and will be coming up against rookies in the middle. This number has come down by five compared to his fantasy number of last week. Is not in the best form, but this match is a chance to regain some form against an injury-depleted West Coast midfield.