Both sides have been average at best this year but West Coast can take some positives out the season.
Wins against Hawthorn, Essendon, Port Adelaide and two victories over the Bulldogs suggest they are on the right track.
They have some quality youngsters who just need more games under their belt to gain the consistency they need to be a finals team again.
The Tigers have continued to go on their woeful ways, which we are accustomed to these days.
The appointment of Damien Hardwick is a start, but unless he puts the broom right through the place and starts again some of the existing cancer will attach itself to the unaffected coming in and they will be back to square one.
As always, Cousins will play his heart out, rack up 25-30 touches … and the Tigers will lose by nine goals.
Western Bulldogs v Collingwood
This is a strange game given the winner can be a loser and the loser can be a winner.
At this stage it looks like the team that wins will finish third and go into next Friday night's final with only a five-day break.
The loser finishes fourth and might play St Kilda next Sunday, fresh from a seven-day break.
So the question is, do you want to go into the first final with your confidence high or do you want your players to have the extra two days to recover?
If I were coach, the option to win and have my players going into the finals confident and in form would appeal more.
Good players find another leg come September so the extra two days' break wouldn’t entice me. I reckon Mick Malthouse and Rodney Eade would be of the same mindset.
Both teams are in good form and when they met six weeks ago the Pies held on for a one-point victory.
It’s very important for the Bulldogs that they start well. In their round-15 clash they allowed Collingwood too much space and their pressure was poor early. The Pies got the jump and kicked seven goals in the first quarter to set up victory.
The Bulldogs' ability to apply consistent defensive pressure is a something I have questioned for a while but watching them last Friday night against the Cats made me change my mind.
They were relentless with their pressure for the whole game and they coupled it perfectly with their offence, having 30 scoring shots.
This week presents a new challenge. Collingwood is the form side of the competition but nine of its last 12 wins have been over teams in the bottom eight.
The other four have been against Carlton, Adelaide, the Brisbane Lions and the Bulldogs by one point.
The Magpies can only beat who is served up to them, but for me the jury is out until they knock off one of the powerhouses in Geelong or the Saints.
The midfield battle will be crucial. Leon Davis, Alan Didak and Dane Swan against Matthew Boyd, Adam Cooney and Daniel Cross will determine who wins.
Cooney has peaked at the right time of the year coming off his best game of the year last week while Boyd is as consistent as any player in the competition.
The inclusion of Cross – the heartbeat of the team – will give the whole side an injection of confidence.
I’m expecting the Dogs to scrape home in a close one.
Essendon v Hawthorn
For those who haven’t heard, Buddy Franklin isn’t playing this week.
Because of that the Hawks won’t win this week.
I don't say that with a lot of confidence as I still think the Bombers are still pretty average. A lot of people have been lured into thinking they are going better than they are.
They have won nine games and have racked up losses against four of the bottom five sides – Fremantle, Richmond, West Coast and North Melbourne.
Having said that, they come up against a depleted Hawthorn team, who I think can’t wait to end their season and reload for next year.
Jobe Watson is the key to the Bombers. When he plays well they play well.
Against the Saints he was outstanding with 37 hard and effective touches and he got his team over the line.
The week after, leading into the Freo game, he spent more time doing media interviews than he did on the training track and it showed.
Seven touches with zero influence on the game and his team loses by 54 points – a tough lesson to be learned by him and his club.
A little trip down media street isn’t too distracting but when you spend the whole week on media highway it will bite you where it hurts every time.
The Bombers' pace will trouble the Hawks' midfield and their defence – with Dustin Fletcher, Nathan Lovett-Murray, Adam McPhee and the ever-improving Tayte Pears – will control the Hawks' makeshift forward line.
Add the inclusions of Matthew Lloyd and Paddy Ryder and you have to think the Bombers should get over the line.
The views in this story are those of the author and not necessarily those of the AFL or the clubs.
