Geelong v Melbourne, GMHBA Stadium Friday, April 4, 7.40pm AEDT

Last time: Melbourne 10.14 (74) d Geelong 9.12 (66), R8 2024

What it means

Geelong (1-2) has had a firm reminder of how tight the margins can be with a pair of narrow defeats that have knocked it out of the top eight and back into the chasing pack. The Cats will now appreciate returning to their home fortress and taking on a Demons outfit that they have lost to only three times in their past 25 meetings at the venue.

Melbourne (0-3) started the season hoping for a rapid bounce back into finals contention but instead finds itself out to prove that it is not facing up to the end of an era. The Demons have suffered a pair of humiliating defeats to sides that finished in the bottom six last year and will need to find a dramatic form reversal to avoid a 0-4 start to a season for the first time since 2012.

Game shapers

Patrick Dangerfield might be entering the twilight of his career but the former Brownlow medallist remains critical to Geelong's hopes of pushing towards yet another top-four finish. The 34-year-old is now spending significant time in the Cats' attacking half, with more familiar cameos in the midfield, and should be out to hit the scoreboard more after booting 4.4 in the opening three matches.

Harvey Langford led the fight in his first start for Melbourne as its star-studded midfield otherwise failed to match the pace and power of the Gold Coast onball brigade. The 19-year-old arrived at the Demons at pick No.6 with a reputation for enjoying the contest at the coalface and gave a glimmer of hope on an otherwise dark day with 26 disposals and six clearances to earn a Rising Star nomination.

We are up tonight at home v Melbourne @Undisciplined . @grayruby pies got the win last night

The Magpies will reign supreme causing misery amongst AFL fans the world over!

Who is @Undisciplined’s adopted AFL team?

Collingwood v Carlton, MCG Thursday, April 3, 7.30pm AEDT

Last time: Collingwood 12.12 (84) d Carlton 11.15 (81), R21 2024

What it means

Collingwood (2-1) has had an up and down start to the season but was able to head into a bye ahead on the win-loss ledger after holding off the Western Bulldogs in a thriller before its break. The Magpies can put themselves in a strong position while also knocking the Blues back on the ropes with another victory after beating their traditional rivals 10 times in their past 12 clashes.

Carlton (0-3) is at real risk of falling out of finals contention before its season even gets going ahead of a crunch clash with arch-rival Collingwood. The Blues have been outscored by a combined 89 points after the main break in their three matches so far and will need to run out the game much better if they are to avoid a horror 0-4 start after being 4-0 at the same stage last year.

Game shapers

Nick Daicos has set the bar so high for himself that even while averaging 23.5 disposals in Collingwood's opening two matches it felt like the star midfielder had much more to give. The 22-year-old took a big leap towards hitting his standards when gathering 39 touches in the win over the Bulldogs and has shown in the past that he likes to save something resembling his best for the Blues.

Patrick Cripps has become all too familiar with having to shoulder the burden of an underperforming Carlton side across more than 11 seasons with the club. Last year's Brownlow medallist has been unable to carry the Blues across the line even while having his typical influence with 27.3 disposals and 8.7 clearances a game but can be expected to find another gear with his side quickly running out of chances.