Round 7 of the 2022 AFL season saw Fremantle emerge as a genuine contender, and a 99-point swing on the pre-game line in a Perth blowout.
Here’s how it looked for punters:
Dockers are the real deal
Fremantle didn’t look like $3.56 outsiders against Geelong ($1.30) on Saturday afternoon. Instead, they looked like genuine Top 4 contenders. Prior to the clash at GMHBA Stadium, doubts had hung over the Justin Longmuir-coached side because — while they had been impressive in jumping to a 5-1 start — had yet to claim a real ‘scalp’ in 2022. But in claiming victory at one of the AFL’s toughest fortresses in the last 20 years, the competition has officially sat up and noticed. Longmuir’s men are a good mix of the young and experienced, are set up particularly well behind the ball, and still have a dual Brownlow Medalist to return. After starting the season as distant $26 AFL Premiership hopes, the Dockers are now in the conversation at $9.50 with Palmerbet.
The intercept and the shot from outside 50!
Blake Acres sheesh 👏#AFLCatsFreo pic.twitter.com/UpqYDyKCcl
— AFL (@AFL) April 30, 2022
Holy hell that was tense.
What an impressive win for @freodockers. Clinical, calm and tough, in a hostile environment – and @GeelongCats kept coming.
We knew Freo were real before today, but the ceiling keeps getting raised week by week. #AFLCatsFreo
— Ryan Daniels (@FootyRhino) April 30, 2022
Blowout in the west
Richmond started as marginal favourites in the west on Friday night, against an Eagles outfit expected to put up a fight back on home turf. Damien Hardwick’s men were at -9.5 in Palmerbet’s line pre-game. As it turned out, however, the home side gave up without a whimper. In winning by an incredible 109 points, Richmond swung the pre-game line by an incredible 99.5 points — one of the biggest in recent memory. Since defeating Collingwood in AFL Round 4, the Eagles have suffered three straight losses by a incredible combined total of 256 points. The 109-point loss is their sixth-highest losing margin ever, and has them even being talked about as wooden spoon chances.
“This is about as damning as it can get.” 😦
Grim ‘reality’ facing Eagles in comparisons to four past AFL battlers’ rock bottoms.
Fallout from #AFLEaglesTigers 📝: https://t.co/jTsniYonoI pic.twitter.com/OVeir8yDBb
— Fox Footy (@FOXFOOTY) April 30, 2022
Clear second seed emerges
Sunday night’s clash between Sydney and Brisbane pitted the clear number two and three seeds (behind Melbourne) this AFL season against each other. And by the end of it, a clear No.2 had emerged. Brisbane ($2.00 pre-game) were clinical in a highly professional win over the Swans ($1.80) who, despite Lance Franklin’s six-goal haul, were no match for the Lions on home turf. Reaching the semi-finals in 2019 and 2021, and a preliminary final in 2020, are Chris Fagan’s men ready to go one further in 2022? The Lions have shortened into $2.50 to make the Grand Final.
🦁 A significant win for the Lions!
They’ve snapped a six match losing streak at the SCG with an impressive win over the Swans. Despite 6 goals from Buddy, the Lions managed to get the points, 89 – 113 the final score.#AFLSwansLions pic.twitter.com/qw7fdMWtoj
— ABC SPORT (@abcsport) May 1, 2022
