• After the siren: Next time, Clarko, take the bus
• Fantasy form watch: This week's pig and Presti
• How did your team's players fare in this weekend's state leagues?

1. The next generation is queuing up at Collingwood

The voting for Saturday's Anzac Medal showed regeneration under coach Nathan Buckley is on track. Four of the five Magpies who polled in this year's edition of the annual blockbuster have played 40 games or fewer and are aged 23 or younger. Defender Paul Seedsman was unanimously named best on ground after slicing the Bombers apart with 31 possessions, 14 inside 50s and a long bouncing goal.

Former Brisbane Lion Jack Crisp again showed he was not just a set of free steak knives in the Dayne Beams trade, restricting Essendon skipper Jobe Watson's influence before moving on to the dangerous Dyson Heppell later in the game.

Former Giant Taylor Adams (29 possessions and four clearances) was also a driving force in the midfield and key defender Jack Frost kept Joe Daniher to two goals and bravely left his man to make intercept spoils at key moments. – Nick Bowen

2. The Roos have the key defender they badly need
One query on North Melbourne is its ability to contain the opposition's 'gorilla' forwards. With Nathan Grima and Lachie Hansen sidelined by injury, it has been left to the undersized Scott Thompson and Michael Firrito to battle it out in defence. That's why Brad Scott took so much heart from Robbie Tarrant's performance against Geelong on Sunday. Standing at 196cm, Tarrant held his own against Tom Hawkins in one-on-one battles and then used his athleticism to provide support to his fellow defenders. Tarrant was one of the most influential players on the ground with 23 disposals, nine marks and five rebound 50s. If Tarrant can stay on the park, then he becomes increasingly important against the likes of Jarryd Roughead, Matthew Pavlich and Lance Franklin. ­– Ben Guthrie

3. When the going gets tough, Marc Murphy gets going
While St Kilda badly wanted to celebrate the club's third Wellington fixture with a maiden win, Carlton desperately wanted to shelve the prospect of a 0-4 start to the season and ease the heat on the club and its people. Murphy couldn't have done more in the Blues' 40-point win; he broke free from Jack Newnes to lead for possessions and set such a standard in contested ball it inspired sixth-gamer Patrick Cripps to join him in digging the ball out from under the packs and driving the team to victory. After what he described on Friday as an 'interesting' few weeks where it was hard to avoid outside talk surrounding Mick Malthouse's future, the club's rebuilding position and potential player trades, it was a brave performance from a captain desperate to see his club restored as a feared contender.  – Jennifer Phelan

4. Isaac Heeney has some Rising Star competition across town
Cam McCarthy only got his chance to start in the GWS forward line because Jon Patton is out of action, but if the West Aussie continues his form, ’The General' may be spending more than a game or two in the NEAFL. McCarthy has kicked 13 goals in 2015, including a bag of five against the Suns, and has multiple majors in all four games this season. He’s raw, exciting, and with a booming kick and with a bit of swagger, 'Sunshine' looks to be the perfect foil for All Australian Jeremy Cameron. - Adam Curley

 

5. They might be 2-2, but the Hawks remain premiership favourites
As magical as Port Adelaide's blistering start to Saturday night's game was, equal if not greater credit should be handed to Hawthorn for wrestling their way back into the contest. The Power appeared home and hosed early – extending their lead to 58 points in the second quarter – but the Hawks showed astonishing self-belief to draw within eight points, and really should have stolen victory. The reigning premiers are far too skillful a side to miss the opportunities they did regularly on Saturday night. They dropped their second game of the year but, if anything, the loss to the Power should have only improved the Hawks' confidence in winning a third straight flag. – Harry Thring

6. The Demons have the leaders that the Tigers crave
Richmond was supposed to be primed to strike this season. Instead, the Tigers themselves have been struck – and they're reeling. When the game was up for grabs in the third quarter against a Demons side they were meant to brush aside – especially when the Dees were down to just two men on the bench – the Tigers barely gave a yelp thereafter, conceding eight of the next nine goals. Why didn't Richmond have anyone to will themselves into the contest to stop the rot? How the Tigers would love to have ferocious types such as Nathan Jones, Aaron vandenBerg and youngsters Jesse Hogan and Angus Brayshaw – each of whom do the hard things automatically, as opposed to selectively. - Ben Collins

 

7. Sam Reid may be the Swans' new Adam Goodes
Many have wondered where Sam Reid fits in the Swans' line-up. The acquisition of Kurt Tippett and Lance Franklin squeezed Reid out of the forward line and he has been trialled in defence this year. Against Fremantle he played everywhere from half-back to half-forward and spent a lot of time on the wing, where he had a huge impact in the Swans' third term revival to come from 48 points down at half-time to get within a kick of the Dockers in the last quarter. Reid was everywhere with 22 disposals and 11 marks. He even had three hit-outs as the third man up. Adam Goodes may spend a lot more time in the NEAFL this season if Reid can keep that kind of form going in his new role.  - Alex Malcolm

8. The Lions have a dose of the second-year blues
Usually this phenomenon is linked with an individual after a breakout debut season, but for the Lions, it's a disease that has infiltrated the entire team in Justin Leppitsch's second year as coach. With so many young players, it was bound to happen, but whether it's confidence, skills or attitude – or a combination - Sunday's loss to the Eagles was another sign of a slight regression from the exciting second half of 2014. Leppitsch wants to continue with youth, and rightfully so, but with James Aish, Lewy Taylor, Nick Robertson, Darcy Gardiner, Tom Cutler and Dan McStay all showing patchy form to start their second seasons, the rollercoaster ride may be a bumpy for a little while yet. - Michael Whiting

9. The barking Bulldogs are sparking Rob Murphy
Maybe it's Robert Murphy's football smarts that make him look so quick and so capable of finding space. Or maybe the 32-year-old is just refusing to follow the script for players in their 30s. Whatever the reason, the new skipper is playing like a footballer in his prime, dashing off half-back and breaking away from players 10 years younger than him. Murphy had a game-high 10 handball receives in the first half of Sunday's win against Adelaide and provided the run that set up a match-winning break in the third quarter. If the young Bulldogs are building to something in the next few years, there are no indications Murphy won't be there with them. – Nathan Schmook