Saturday,
27 April 2024
AFL locks in rest of round 19 fixture

THE remaining pieces of the AFL's round 19 fixture puzzle are in place, with a double-header locked in for Gold Coast's Metricon Stadium on Sunday.

The Essendon-GWS meeting has been confirmed for a 6.10pm bounce following the Sydney-Fremantle match, which starts at 12.30pm.

The heavyweight Geelong-Richmond clash will be played at the MCG at 3.20pm after the Cats' bid to have their home match switched to GMHBA Stadium was rejected by the AFL earlier this week.

Essendon are temporarily based at Noosa, having been relocated from Melbourne to Queensland last week.

They are likely to spend at least three weeks on the road, with upcoming opponents GWS and Sydney also in Queensland.

"Our prep's been as good as it can be," Bombers coach Ben Rutten said on Wednesday ahead of the Giants clash, which will have a big say in determining both sides' finals prospects.

"We had a few bigger days last week with travel and all that, so it's been a bit of a lighter start to this week."

The Swans and Giants had a win this week when the families of players and staff were approved to join them in their Queensland hub.

But the travelling group of about 100 will be largely restricted to their rooms during their 14-day quarantine period, under tightened Queensland government restrictions.

The Crows' disappointment of seeing their home match against Hawthorn moved from Adelaide Oval to Marvel Stadium was offset slightly on Wednesday when they were given permission to train at the MCG.

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Adelaide and Port Adelaide were forced to flee South Australia on Tuesday after the state went into a seven-day lockdown.

The Power will now host Collingwood at Marvel Stadium on Friday night, with the Crows to face off against Hawthorn at the same venue the following day.

Adelaide haven't played at the MCG since 2019, with some of their players never even having set foot in the venue.

Crows assistant coach James Rahilly said it would be an invaluable experience for his group to train at the venue.

"They're really excited about running around out there," Rahilly said.

"It's a different sized ground to Adelaide Oval, so it will be great to get the whole squad out there."

The Crows are set to remain in Melbourne next week ahead of their clash with the Western Bulldogs, but are hoping to return to Adelaide after that for a Showdown against Port Adelaide. - AAP