Clash ... Geelong take on Sydney at Simonds Stadium in Round 22. Source: Paul Kane / Getty Images
WE'VE had more Super Supplements days than Super Saturdays this season, but surely the Essendon drugs scandal cannot detract from the significance, and anticipation, of Round 22.
Round 21 was about the assertion of dominance by Hawthorn, Geelong, Sydney and Fremantle as they put daylight between themselves and the bottom four of the top eight.
Their winning margins were 35, 66, 59 and 95 points.
Talk about gearing themselves towards their September campaigns.
The top four is 10 points clear of stumbling Collingwood and Richmond, a free-falling Essendon, and a Port Adelaide team that is in a battle royale with Carlton for the eighth spot.
Port plays Fremantle (away) and then Carlton (home) in what will be a last-man standing affair, the kind of game Ken Hinkley's boys have thrived upon.
After disposing of the Tigers, Carlton can fairly argue its resolve isn't shot, either.
It was said that after the loss to the Western Bulldogs, Carlton coach Mick Malthouse told his players it was one of the worst defeats in which he had been involved in 29 years as a coach.
The win against the Tigers wasn't one of the best in the same period, but it was one in which the Blues regained respect.
But first things first - Super Saturday.
The results of four of the five games on Saturday will have a massive influence on ladder positions - North Melbourne versus Hawthorn at Etihad, 2.10pm; Geelong versus Sydney at Simonds Stadium, 4.40pm; Carlton versus Essendon at the MCG, 7.40pm; and Fremantle versus Port Adelaide at Patersons Stadium, 7.40pm.
The permutations are many and clearly the team with the most difficult assignment is the Swans.
They meet Geelong and Hawthorn in the final two rounds and would need to win both to be assured of a top two-finish. A one-one split would probably not be enough.
The Dockers have Port and then St Kilda (Etihad), so second is not beyond them.
If the Hawks lose to North Melbourne and then the Swans, they would almost certainly lose top spot, and perhaps a top-two position.
Clearly, the Kangas at Etihad isn't a walk in the park. Equally, playing the Hawks isn't a pleasant walk anywhere.
On Friday night, the Hawks reminded Collingwood just who are the men and who are the boys.
As Round 22 approaches, predicting the result of a single match will be difficult, so forecasting how the top four will settle is close to impossible.
The Bombers-Blues game at the 'G shapes, for Essendon, as the fifth instalment of the bloody blockbuster franchise, Halloween.
The Bombers have lost their past four matches in horror results. They have been sliced and diced and are mentally scarred as September looms.
Malthouse has been kicking the club to death in recent weeks and he will want to do the same on Saturday.
In turn, the Bombers are non-too impressed with Malthouse opening his mouth about their issues. If anything, it's a scene setter.
And then there's Geelong.
It was a systematic kill of West Coast. The Cats had 27 shots at goal to 11, they won the inside 50s 58-36, had close to 100 more possessions and skipper Joel Selwood might have helped himself to another three Brownlow Medal votes.
He, Travis Boak at Port Adelaide and Kieren Jack at Sydney have led their clubs superbly this season, and although Gary Ablett is the favourite to be the All Australian captain, that trio all have solid claims to the position.
Boak, in his first season as skipper, has been nothing short of sensational for a team that deserves the same accolade.
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