IT IS ironic that at the end of a week in which a radical overhaul of the home and away season and the introduction of wildcards was placed on the footy agenda, that a team that started the season with six straight losses is being warily watched by the rest of the competition over their shoulders.

That would be Sydney, which stifled and smothered St Kilda into submission at Etihad Stadium on Saturday for a third straight win. 

No team has ever made the finals from a 0-6 start, but who would bet against the Swans becoming the first to do so?

They got to work quickly on Saturday, suffocating St Kilda's run off half-back and it led to a series of shambolic turnovers from the Saints, which the Swans took full advantage of. There was one minute of footy in the third term, by which time the Swans were totally dominant, in which the Swans harassed and corralled the Saints from the midfield until deep in their forward 50 with tackles, smothers and other one percenters. Neither side had a clear possession, but the Saints were in deep retreat and couldn't find an outlet.

Reasons behind Sydney's turnaround can probably best be explained by personnel. Then Swans were forced to play a rash of youngsters after an injury-plagued start to the season and some of them can play – Will Hayward, Nic Newman and Lewis Melican are settled in the team for now – but the line-up now resembles that which had many tipping them for the top four at the start of the season with Dane Rampe back in defence, Sam Reid and Kurt Tippett providing height and scoring power and the lively Tom Papley playing at their feet. 

The Swans are getting more from Dan Hannebery and Luke Parker after their tardy starts to the season and Jake Lloyd is in the frame as the most improved player for the year.

Five talking points: St Kilda v Sydney

Champion Data figures suggest they are more efficient up forward. From rounds one to six they ranked second-last in the AFL for points from possessions gained in the forward half. The last three weeks they have been first. They have gone from 15th to fourth in points from stoppages in the forward half, and 17th to second in contested possession differential. In general, they are winning the ball more and using it better.

So can they make their way through the pack? The Friday night clash with Hawthorn looks more appealing than it did three weeks ago, although the Swans should start warm favourites. Then come the Bulldogs, Richmond, Essendon and Melbourne. Their margin for error is slim, but if they can win four of their next five they remain firmly in the hunt.

It will add another twist to an already ripping season if the Swans stage the greatest finals surge in League history. 

Pies look back to go forward 

It was fitting that, on the night Collingwood formally said farewell to the great Lou Richards, the club pulled off a win over Hawthorn that was very much from the Richards era.

The great man used to say that when he played against Hawthorn, bearing in mind the Pies were a VFL powerhouse and the Hawks anything but, they always felt they were going to win the game no matter how far behind they were.

WATCH: Pies' tribute to Lou Richards

At the MCG on Saturday night, Collingwood spotted the Hawks a seven-goal lead, yet won by 18 points.

The takeaway from this game is that as he fights desperately to keep his job, Nathan Buckley can still point to the fact that his players would appear to be in his corner. An old-fashioned quarter-time spray, not unlike one Richards and his men would have received from legendary coach Jock McHale back in the day, got things started and paved the way for Buckley's first win over Hawthorn in 10 attempts.

Given the calamitous state of their club's injury list and with two more players withdrawing before the game, most Hawthorn fans would have settled for a three-goal loss. But not, obviously, in the manner in which it happened.

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The other takeaway from the game is the 50-touch game from Hawthorn midfielder Tom Mitchell and the sharply divided views of the respective coaches on how important he was.

There is a fair argument to be made that in the context of the game, Scott Pendlebury, who finished with 36 touches and was a key driver of Collingwood's comeback, was the most influential midfielder on the ground, so we wait with interest Monday afternoon's release of the AFLCA votes. 

As for Mitchell, it is hard to remember a Hawthorn player being so clearly the team's best player this far into the season. The Hawks have been pilloried for their draft and trade strategy and there are elements that deserve scrutiny. But not Mitchell. Pick No.14 was a steal.

No mercy after MCG malaise follows Eagles across town

It says much about the respect generally held for rich and powerful West Coast that the football commentariat often holds back before giving the club a whack.

But there was no holding back on Sunday afternoon and the word 'pathetic' was being freely and correctly thrown around to describe a 61-point loss to Essendon that was West Coast's most feeble effort of the year.

The Eagles brought their MCG game across town to the Docklands and much of the good work (and goodwill) that followed the wins over Port Adelaide and the Western Bulldogs has now been undone. It was pretty clear early that they were in for a dirty day as evidenced by Sam Mitchell not once, but twice, being run down and tackled. But this wasn't just on Mitchell; all the West Coast leaders were ordinary.

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It was a great day for the Bombers. Joe Daniher kicked five goals, but the forwards generally ran amok and did as they pleased. Essendon also had winners through the midfield, while Michael Hurley was outstanding in defence. John Worsfold loved the physicality and if that becomes the norm for the Bombers then the rest of the season holds out great promise. 

It was the most complete Essendon performance of the year and sets up a monster 'Dreamtime' clash at the MCG on Saturday night.

The other noteworthy aspect of the day was the wonderful debut in green and gray of Eleni Glouftsis. The respect and warmth afforded her by everybody at Etihad Stadium – players, officials, commentators and supporters – was another tick for the AFL in what has been a pretty good, although not entirely blemish-free year on the inclusivity and progression front.

Eleni happy to have debut out of the way

Other observations

1. Unfair as it was, that was the sound of Bronx cheering you heard directed towards Paddy McCartin on Saturday afternoon. The delivery to the Saints forward wasn't always first class but he did grass a few marks he should have taken. He also looked a bit gassed by the final quarter. Key forwards can take time but what he needs is a good run at AFL level and the hope is the St Kilda match committee gives him that.

2. The nicest story of the weekend came at the Gabba on Saturday night where Hugh Greenwood kicked three goals on debut for Adelaide against the Brisbane Lions. The one-time basketball standout at both the AIS and the University of New Mexico turned to footy on a whim less than two years ago, but what tugs at the heartstrings is that his mother Andree is terminally ill and given her health it wasn't easy for her to get to the game. Greenwood's father Michael gave a heartfelt interview to the ABC on Saturday afternoon and it is worth a listen if you have the time.

3. We can add Saturday evening's bizarre three-point loss to Greater Western Sydney to the ever-growing list of Richmond defeats that defy logic and fit that description. It didn't appear immediately obvious that Shai Bolton's apparent match-sealing goal was touched and we have seen similar instances in the past when the initial decision was allowed to stand. But the point was paid, the Giants swept the ball down the other end in an instant and Jeremy Cameron kicked one of the great match-winning goals. Damien Hardwick took a positive spin when speaking after the match, but you wonder whether he threw the toys out of the cot behind closed doors. Once again, the Tigers lost their nerve in a tight finish and it is likely going to bite them on the bum come the end of the year.

WATCH: Bolton's disallowed goal in the thrilling final minutes

4. The Giants were rightly whacked for turning up their toes a fortnight ago against the Saints, but their two weeks since have been marked by steel and resolve. There isn't much left in the selection cupboard for Leon Cameron to choose from, but the Giants coach will be comforted that unlike sides such as, say, Richmond, they keep finding ways to win. All the Giants can do is keep eking out the wins until the quality reinforcements – Devon Smith, Stephen Coniglio, Brett Deledio and Ryan Griffen – return later in the year. The story for the Giants this year really starts come preliminary final weekend.

5. One thing that gets overlooked when assessing Geelong's first eight games was that they were all on the road. The Cats, of course, are used to playing games in Melbourne and interstate and for two or three weeks at a time. But eight is a stretch and they looked invigorated from the get-go when playing on their home deck against the Western Bulldogs on Friday night. Their tackling numbers were great after the embarrassment the week before and Patrick Dangerfield and Joel Selwood were both great. That's all the Cats need to get started. 

6. Nine weeks into the season and it would ordinarily be a concern that the reigning premiers are 5-4 and out of the eight. But this is such an even season that nobody will be discounting the Bulldogs just yet and they're a bit like Greg Chappell all those years ago when he said he wasn't batting badly, he just kept getting out. The Dogs aren't playing particularly poorly, they're just not winning. They have three even money games to come – St Kilda, Sydney and Melbourne – but they need to win at least two to stay in touch.

7. Melbourne has played with fire all year, but there would be no Harry Houdini-type comeback this time around against North Melbourne. The Kangas jumped to a 26-point lead in the first term at the MCG on Sunday and despite a few hairy moments, held on for a much-deserved win. It was an even team performance, but a shout-out goes to midfielder Ben Cunnington who finished with 26 touches despite a gimpy knee. As for the Demons, Sunday was Exhibit No.347 that they absolutely cannot handle any sort of prosperity. Thrash Adelaide away, lose to North at home. Go figure. 

8. Fifth on the ladder with a percentage of 90.7. Fremantle was always tipped to rebound and has put a stuttering start to the season behind it. But that percentage figure is a millstone and at some stage this year, Ross Lyon's men will need to put some teams to the sword as the jockeying for finals berths gets serious.