It's all downhill from here as we enter the second half of the draw. Like a skier on the Canadian slopes, teams need to be aware of hidden rocks, trees and avalances. There’s plenty of action and it get’s the Prime Minister’s wink of approval. In the men’s draw the competition is wide open with only 2 teams really out of it. In the women’s draw, Norwood have booked a place in finals and I think Simon can pre-book a sickie for the Mad Monday after the GF. Still wide open there too. One team can plan for an 18th on GF night, and another 2 will need to win 100% of games, plus count on others to lose.....

North v Woodville
Women: North looking the goods this year. Woodies with a much needed win last round will be torched.
Men: Plenty of turmoil at Woodville United in recent weeks. A great comeback game against Mavs. to silence some critics. Last time they met Woodville sent a message to the Wockets and I expect another hard game from them. Woodies all over the Wockets

South v Forestville
Women: MOTR. South in fine form and with the T-Birds playing on the Sunday, I am hoping Carla might get 2 and a half minutes of court time. I’ll have to disagree with Rock on this one, I am leaning towards South in what will be tougher than Martin Hamilton-Smith’s hide at a Liberal convention. Expect every call to be challenged. Maybe an ejection or two…
Men: Both teams need a win to keep in touch and South needs a big one to get the split over the other. Forestville’s teamlist reads like a who’s who of local talent and they would be as disappointed as a Queenslander drinking warm XXXX through a straw in a Bondi pub if they didn’t win this origin clash.

Norwood v Sturt
Women: Oh, this week it’s Sturt team to be beaten. I’m always sad when Sturt loses.
Men: MOTR. Coops has done wonders and very little separates these teams as we saw in R1. Dexter Moore carving it up for Sturt but will need a bigger boat if he is to demolish Norwood and dump them in the Gulf. Will be a great game and like I said above, I’m always sad when Sturt loses.

Lions v Tigers
Women: Won’t be a pretty game with both teams desperate for a win, but Centrals shooting is their anchor. Tigeresses over Lionesses.
Men: Safari Cup on the table. Centrals in the top 5 is just a given these days. At least the Tigers boys will win the battle of the cars, although Bogan Hunters are making a special appearance to film the donut battle in the carpark after the basketball.

Mavs v Bearcats
Women: If there is an upset, it will be this game, but only if Westies GPS takes them to MB via the Northern Expressway. Westies all over this one like graffitti over a deserter’s office window.
Men: Bearcats setting the pace and their biggest risk is going into this game assuming the W in their backpocket by the Toll Gate. Mavs will be looking at improvement in the second half of the season and despite an inspired Woodville belting, I expect them to be out of the blocks early on a brisk evening. Perhaps they need to turn the air conditioning on in the stadium so the Bearcats can cool down after a nice drive from the Port with the heater on. No reason why the Bearcats should lose, and that is why it is such a danger game for them.

Great to see Jack Toft write again. I agree with him. South Women over Forestville as they now have even a stronger team suiting up 12

Your right, only making playoffs is a failure for the Eagles. I bet most clubs would like to fail so well..

South Women have won all their away games so far.

I was holding out to see what it would take to bring Jack back!!

Toft you either get paid handsomely to do nothing all day, or live a very lonely life... Because the week after week effort you always knocked up is hard to follow thats for sure! Apologies for the missed Round last week, but in the words of a high as the sky Ben Cousins, such is life.

My take.

Women's:

South v Forestville

South have gained a number of players returning from college and their depth now strengthens. In the first half of the season teams were waiting for the rest of their best players to strike. With the bolstering of their bench talent, the Panthers get harder to beat. The Eagles have not been convincing this year, and with too scoring left to their starters, their week to week consistency drops off.

South by 8.

Norwood v Sturt

In my eyes, this will be Norwoods biggest regular season contest this year. A new look Sabres outfit than Round 1, will see the Flames need to re-scout their opposition. Norwood looked their shakiest last Round against the Bearcats side, and if they can't contain Novosel, the run may come to an end. After all records and streaks are meant to be broken. However it is the Lady Flames we are talking about.

Norwood by 4.

Centrals v Southern

Anonymous # 584 "Southern remain the surprise, despite cannibalising themselves, they are competitive and the much maligned coach must take some credit."……. Southerns only wins this year have come against the Lions and the Mavericks, and that was with the now departed import. Following on from back to back 30 point losses to the Sabres and the Bearcats, shows me nothing that Southern are even close to being a 7th place surprise. The Lions have had a horrid season, but a look at their list and it was to be expected. Inexperience, youth and lack of ability all contributing factors. However they got within 11 points in Round 1, and without the Tigers import, I expect that to be turned around.

Lions by 7

North v Woodville

The Rockets have been flying, only dropping a game to the Flames, in what can be considered as expected. The Warriors have been close in a number of contests this year, but lack any real support for Reynolds, with Perkas doing her best, but the talent dropping off steadily after. Whilst the Warriors will be competitive, it is hard to believe that can stop the Hill and Peris show.

North by 18.

Eastern v West

The Mavs have been competitive in patches this year, however much like the Lions lack any significant experience, and depth to compete at this level. Hooley has been a monster on the glass, and I expect her to so again this week. Since Carbo has arrived for West, the Cats have looked a much better side, capable of competing with the 4 sides above them. I expect West to paste the Mavericks this week, gearing up for a late season run at finals.

West by 33.

Men's

South v Forestville

The Panthers seemed to have wound the clock back to 2012/13 in the last few rounds, being exposed on both ends of the floor, and being unable to do much to stem the flow. South will need to win some tough games down the stretch to be relevant come August, and it starts this Round against the also struggling Eagles. Forestville do have a who's who in their list, but they seem to be lacking chemistry on both ends of the floor. Volume scorer Rios has been putting up buckets, but at what expense has his stat line come at? Fildes showing glimpses of his early season form. Must win for the Eagles, and Andy will do whatever it takes.

Eagles by 11.

Norwood v Sturt

The Flames are up and about, and arguably the hottest team in the league with sides they have gone through in recent weeks. After a shaky first 5 rounds, the Flames now seem to be clicking, with Lycett back to his best, Matthews and Webber taking 7 years off the body, and bench spark Daniel Webber contributing efficiently. If O'Boyle can find his range, the Flames look lethal. The Sabres have been hit and miss, and fellow volume scorer Dexter Moore has been putting up numbers but 17 three ball attempts last Round surely can't be a good thing. Klaosen continues to shoulder a lot of the load at both ends, but the Sabres just don't seem deep enough to beat the best sides.

Norwood by 16.

Centrals v Southern

The Lions hold the leagues best win streak currently in the men's side, undefeated in the last 5 rounds. Everyone knew that Centrals are dangerous, but after their bad start to the year, the doubts were about. Clausen and Miller are unstoppable on their night, and the inclusion of Carlin will only strengthen their options. The Lions have found more contribution from their bench, which is what is setting them apart from the competition. The Tigers are on a 3 game slide, and now finding themselves out of sync and confidence, staring down the barrel of a 7th place finish. The Tigers have shown that at their best, they can stay competitive, but injuries to your two best players will take some time to recover from, but I don't think they will stay competitive.

Lions by 18.

North v Woodville

The Rockets have been this seasons surprise packet this year, finding themselves way out of contention, in unfamiliar territory, and without being in the locker room, I am sure there would be some finger pointing going on. Their veteran players are having forgettable seasons, as something is clearly amiss at Hillcrest. The Warriors on the other hand have had their share of off-court drama, but have seemed to play through it all, obliterating the Mavs last week, in a ridiculous showing of power. The Warriors have question marks over their leadership going into last round, but if anyone was doubting their willingness to compete, they were proved wrong. Warriors to roll on.

Woodville by 15.

Eastern v West

The Mavs have been competitive in most games, however last round they had a stinker. Facing the wrath of a fired up Warriors side clearly isn't a good things, and the Eastern boys will look to bounce back this week. However they face the uphill task of the Bearcats. At their best West have looked unbeatable, but last week missing big man Truslove really hurt them against the Flames, however only going by 7 points without your starting centre isn't all doom and gloom.
The Bearcats have proven experience and veteran talent in their side. If Dawson and Truslove keep up their productivity, they are a real chance come August.

West by 31.

Very good writeup NotJackToft. It is a pleasure to read both Jack and NotJack's opinions. Great Work.

Is it just me or is Not Jack Toft really good. I feel like he's actually been to a few matches. The previews on the abl website are okay, but they tend to just spout stats that dont give a true indication of the players for each team

Agree, both Jack and NotJack are really good!

Tough round for tipping based on previous form, but that is the nature of the State League, and why this year has been so good so far!

I'll admit my tips for Southern v Centrals women was off, but to pick Woodville over North was a bit upset. Sturt had the ability to beat Norwood as discussed but again with the Flames record it's hard to tip against.

I landed 3 from 4 in the men, with the Panthers upsetting the out of sorts Eagles.

So based on the 8 games on the webcasts I am 4/8 likely and perhaps improved to 6/10.

But thanks for reading anonymous!

Your not the same anon that quoted "Southern remain the surprise" earlier in this thread?

Time for Andy to bring in the recruits unless he has already given up on 2014!!!!

Yeah 1 game out of finals I am sure the Eagles have thrown in the towel...

To Not Jack Toft
Please disregard Anon tossers as per 890.
You do a great job and entertain hundreds each week.
Just check Friday's Advertiser and see where the "AFL Experts" are sitting with their tips- and many of these are paid very well to assess and report on each game.

Keep up the great work from yourself and your brother Jack Toft