THERE are just four rounds remaining in the 2021 NAB AFLW season, meaning teams are desperate to lock up a top-six spot.

Collingwood v Western Bulldogs looks to be the pick of the games this round, while AFLW returns to Canberra for the first time since round seven, 2019.

Friday, March 5

Richmond v North Melbourne at the Swinburne Centre, 5.10pm AEDT

• It's an early first bounce ahead of Richmond's AFL AAMI Community Series match at Marvel Stadium. The Tigers will be flying high after their breakthrough win against Geelong, but North Melbourne looms as a tougher challenge. Four of Courtney Wakefield's seven goals have come in first quarters this year.
• When North Melbourne flexes its midfield muscle, it's a scary prospect indeed. Jasmine Garner, Emma Kearney, Ash Riddell and Jenna Bruton combined seamlessly against Carlton, wearing down the inexperienced engine room and piling on the pain late.
• Tip: This should be a much closer affair than the last time these sides met in 2020 (56 points), but the Roos are still a bridge too far for the developing Tigers. 22 points.

WATCH IT LIVE Tigers v Kangaroos

Saturday, March 6

Greater Western Sydney v Brisbane at Manuka Oval, 3.10pm AEDT

• Coach Alan McConnell called out the forward line structure in last week's loss to the Western Bulldogs, and it'll be something the Giants will have to straighten up quickly coming up against a hardened, experienced Brisbane backline of Kate Lutkins, Shannon Campbell, Bree Koenen, Emma Zielke and Nat Grider. 
• The Lions were happy to grit their teeth and win ugly against Fremantle last week, having previously piled on the goals against weaker sides. Emily Bates has tapped into a rich vein of form, recording a season-high 26 disposals against Fremantle. Her previous high this year was 19.
• Tip: The Giants generally perform well at their home away from home in Canberra, but Brisbane has just knocked off the might of Fremantle. Lions by 17 points. 

WATCH IT LIVE Giants v Lions

Adelaide v Gold Coast at Norwood Oval, 4.40pm ACDT

• Aside from one (fairly big) hiccup against Fremantle, it's been smooth sailing for Adelaide so far this season. Coach Matthew Clarke would have been thrilled with their full-ground defence against St Kilda, and ability to then capitalise after turning the ball over, more often than not inside 50.
• Life just got more difficult for the Suns, faced with a fifth straight road trip (Metricon Stadium is unavailable this weekend due to a caravan show) and talismanic forward Sarah Perkins ruled out for the season with a knee injury. However, they did record a season-high 13 scoring shots against West Coast last week.
• Tip: Unfortunately for the winless Suns, this looms as another tough challenge with the Crows intent on keeping hold of their top-six spot. Adelaide by 29 points.

WATCH IT LIVE Crows v Suns

Melbourne v St Kilda at Casey Fields, 7.10pm AEDT

• After scoring a cumulative 25.10 over its first three games, Melbourne's inaccuracy woes have returned with a bang (or whimper), kicking 3.20 across the past two weeks. They've been getting plenty of opportunities, but whether they're from viable scoring positions is another question.
• It's been a tough and inconsistent second season from St Kilda, which is understandable from an expansion side. The Saints were stagnant and well corralled by a disciplined Adelaide full-ground press, and will be hoping to rediscover their run this week.
• Tip: Melbourne has to win this game to remain in touch with the top six - and it have the firepower to do it. Dees by 13 points.

WATCH IT LIVE Demons v Saints

Sunday, March 7

Carlton v Geelong at Ikon Park, 12.40pm AEDT

• A game against a team with a percentage of 27.5 was conveniently just what the doctor ordered for the flaky Blues, who will be boosted by the return of AFLW best and fairest Maddy Prespakis from suspension. Carlton has percentage woes of its own, sitting one game and 59 per cent out of the top six.
• A nightmare scenario for Geelong would be to have its best two midfielders, Nina Morrison and Liv Purcell, sidelined with ACLs, and that's exactly what's happened. The Cats rank last for goals, third-last for disposals and fourth-last for tackling.
• Tip: The tide has to turn eventually for Geelong, but it won't be this week. Carlton by 34 points.

WATCH IT LIVE Blues v Cats

Collingwood v Western Bulldogs at Victoria Park, 2.40pm AEDT

• Five wins on the trot, already a club record, and a sixth tantalisingly looming on the horizon. The Pies will go two games clear on top if they get the four points on Sunday. Collingwood ranks first for average disposals, second for handballs, but tellingly, eighth for kicks.
• The Dogs are also on the march this season, recording four straight victories. The last time the AFLW side achieved this was at the tail end of 2018 and start of 2019. One area of concern would be the spread of goalkickers, particularly against a strong Magpie defence, with just five players kicking majors this year.
• Tip: This could be where the Bulldog bandwagon shudders to a halt. The Magpies have a year or two on the Dogs' rebuild and are slightly deeper all around the field. Pies by 15 points. 

WATCH IT LIVE Magpies v Bulldogs

West Coast v Fremantle at Optus Stadium, 1.40pm AWST

• West Coast will be hoping to continue its winning momentum into this week, but it could be a tough ask in the return fixture against Fremantle. Just over a third of the list are on this week's injury list, with seven players facing fitness tests in order to play.
• We may well look back to the round five result as "the loss Fremantle had to have", should the Dockers rebound in style and storm their way to a flag. They just shaded the Lions in the midfield, but goalkicking accuracy (1.8) was a big issue last week.
• Tip: If there was a week not to get Fremantle, it was after losing its first game since the 2019 preliminary final. The first part of the RAC Derby could be a very one-sided affair. Dockers by 35 points.

WATCH IT LIVE Eagles v Dockers

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THE WESTERN Bulldogs' four-game winning streak has come to an end, losing to a rampaging Collingwood by 36 points at Victoria Park.

A seven-goal second half means the Pies have now won six on the trot, extending their current club record and reclaiming top spot as a consequence of the 7.9 (51) to 2.3 (15) result.

PIES v DOGS Full match coverage and stats

It was a grim opening two quarters, with just one goal kicked (by Bulldog Elisabeth Georgostathis) as inaccuracy plagued the Pies (0.7) and defensive pressure stifled the Bulldogs.

Collingwood was very late coming out onto the ground after the main break, managing just one hurried run-through before the first bounce of the third, but it didn't seem to matter.

They won the opening clearance, locking the ball inside 50 before the Magpies finally kicked their first through Chloe Molloy and their second through debutant Abbi Moloney just a minute later.

The Pies were much more organised in the third term, spreading the play well and were consequently more effective with their ball use.

The floodgates opened, the young Dogs panicked under pressure and lost their structure coming out of defence.

The Dogs rung the changes in the last quarter, swinging Hannah Scott to full-forward and Gabby Newton and debutant Isabelle Pritchard into the middle, but it was to no avail.

The usual suspects of Brianna Davey (28 disposals, one goal) and Britt Bonnici (22 touches) drove the Pies out of the middle, Lauren Butler and Stacey Livingstone kept twin towers Izzy Huntington and Bonnie Toogood quiet, while Molloy (two goals) sparkled up forward.

For the Dogs, Kirsty Lamb (16, seven tackles) tried her heart out, Ellie Blackburn (18, three clearances) attempted to kickstart the team and Ash Guest stood tall in defence.

Huntington v Molloy
Two NAB AFLW Rising Star winners. Two forwards-turned defenders-turned forwards. And at the start of the round, Izzy Huntington and Chloe Molloy were equal-leading goalkickers in the competition (along with Erin Phillips). Molloy had Eleanor Brown for company, while the impressive Lauren Butler kept a close eye on the Bulldog. Molloy took the chocolates (partly on the back of greater supply), kicking two goals, while unusually for Huntington, she was out-marked on a few occasions by Butler.

All in the family
It was an exciting day for the Moloney family, with draftee Pie key forward Abbi making her debut against the side her father Troy played 36 games for between 1987 and 1992. The Dogs had the option of drafting Abbi under the father-daughter rule, but opted not to, opening the door for the Pies to snaffle her with pick No.31. She didn't find too much of the footy in her debut but did plenty with it, booting two goals from her two disposals.

The ladder now
Collingwood has maintained its four-point buffer at the top of the ladder, and with Fremantle still to play, has conceded the third-fewest number of points. The big loss has seen the Western Bulldogs slip out of the top six into seventh position, with the Dogs now 20 per cent behind Melbourne. And it’s a tough road ahead for Nathan Burke's team, with games against North Melbourne and Adelaide.

Say what?
"The first half, things just weren't happening for us. We were doing a lot of things right, but we were just a bit fumbly and made the wrong decisions at the wrong time. Kicking eight points before we kicked our first goal builds scoreboard pressure as well … Fortunately, once they kicked that first goal, things started to flow and got their game going, which was really pleasing. Last year, we might have panicked a bit." – Collingwood coach Steve Symonds

"It was a bit of a tale of two halves. The first half was good, the things we really wanted to do in the game – make sure it was a pressured, contested game and not let them use their feet too much – that was going well for us. Second half, they probably lifted, and just where we're at, at the moment, we just struggled to go with that. They picked it up, and that was the difference." – Western Bulldogs coach Nathan Burke

Up next
Collingwood has a mouthwatering clash against fellow flag fancy Brisbane at Hickey Park on Sunday, while the Western Bulldogs will make the trip south to North Hobart Oval to face the powerful Kangaroos.

COLLINGWOOD    0.5   0.7   4.8   7.9   (51)                  
WESTERN BULLDOGS    0.2   1.3   1.3   2.3   (15)          

GOALS
Collingwood: Molloy 2, Moloney 2, Layton, Davey, Brown
Western Bulldogs: Georgostathis, Fitzgerald

BEST 
Collingwood: Davey, Bonnici, Molloy, Butler, Livingstone, Brown
Western Bulldogs: Lamb, Blackburn, Guest, Ferres, Lochland

INJURIES 
Collingwood: Nil
Western Bulldogs: Rennie (lower leg)

Reports: Nil

Crowd: TBC at Victoria Park

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