Sydney take on the Western Bulldogs in what is set to be a cracking Friday night clash in Round 17 of the AFL! As always, we have you covered with a full preview and betting tips for the clash below.
Remember to head to our AFL Tips page for content on every game in Round 17 this weekend.
Sydney vs Western Bulldogs Betting Tips
SCG, Friday 8th July, 7.50pm (AEST)
Sydney
Injuries: Josh Kennedy, Sam Naismith (Out)
The Swans are in the best shape of probably any team in the AFL at the moment in terms of injuries. Josh Kennedy is just a few more weeks away, which will make them full strength outside of the season ending knee injury to ruckman Sam Naismith.
They might be travelling well on the injury front, but the Swans form as been extremely inconsistent over the past month or so. They recorded fantastic back to back wins over the Tigers and Demons in the lead up to their bye, but following that they have dropped games as favourites to the Power and Bombers.
The most common theme in their inconsistency is their form at home and away. They are 5-2 when playing at the SCG this season as opposed to just 4-4 when playing away.
Western Bulldogs
Injuries: Josh Bruce, Taylor Duryea, Charlie Parker, Bailey Smith, Laitham Vandermeer, Mitch Wallis (Out) Tim English, Stefan Martin, Ed Richards (Test)
The Doggies will likely be boosted by the return of star ruckman Tim English this week after serving a few weeks on the sidelines with concussion. It'll be a massive inclusion for the Dogs, who have had to run with Jordan Sweet in the ruck for the last few weeks.
The Dogs were dealt a bit of a lesson on Thursday night footy in Round 16, going down to the Lions at the Gabba by 41 points. Their midfield continues to dominate games but their defence has struggled mightily since the bye, allowing 98.6 points per game.
Match Prediction
The Swans were just average against a much improved Bombers side in Round 16 but they have to be respected returning to the SGC this week. They start as 8.5 point favourites at home, which is a line I really like in their favour.
The Dogs sit outside the top 10 in the league for points allowed per game and the Swans have been scoring in piles at the SCG this season, putting up 91 points per game at home. I think they win comfortably on Friday night.
Sydney -8.5
$2.00 (1.5 Units)
Prop Bets
Going back to the Sam Reid well this week after a successfull trip in Round 16. The key forward was good odds to kick 2+ and he didn't disappoint, booting two goals on the back of four scoring shots. In his last six games against the Bulldogs, he has booted 16 goals and has never failed to kick at least two.
Reid 2+ Goals ($2.55 at Ladbrokes)
It's a bit of a case of the unstoppable force vs the immovable object this week when it comes to high disposal games. The Dogs average by far the most 30+ disposal games/game this season while the Swans are the 2nd stingiest defence in the league when it comes to allowing possessions. I actually like ALL of the unders on the Western Bulldogs disposal lines this week. Take the unders Macrae, Treloar, Dunkley, Libba, Bontempelli, I'd be shocked if you go worse than 3/5 on these.
DOGS MIDS UNDERS
