We've spoken about it almost every weekend this season: tipping is an absurd activity that leaves all of us looking silly.
We once again saw the bottom-placed side come away with victory, as the Brisbane Lions stunned and overran Essendon Bombers after finding themselves down by 19 points after three quarters. On Friday night, the Swans -- led by Luke Parker -- continued their resurgence up the ladder by demolishing the Demons while the Eagles found their wings on the road in taking down the Dogs.
A colossal battle between two of the top three teams took place at Spotless Stadium, where Tom Hawkins again found himself in position to win the game for Geelong after the siren; unfortunately for Cats fans, he sprayed his kick left and we had the first draw of the 2017 season.
We also can't forget to mention the miracle man, Gary Ablett, who grabbed another 37 touches as he led his Suns to the win over a shell-shocked North Melbourne outfit in his 300th game.
Heroes
Swan Song
Their season was dead and gone, nigh-on every pundit had written them off, and the stories were piling in to point out what was proving to be their undoing. A little over two months later and the Swans find themselves only a game outside the Top Eight. The Swans have only lost once since Since Round 6, and, while they do have a few tough games to play, it's looking more and more likely that they will be marching into another finals series; teams now higher on the ladder will be hoping they don't end up against them.
Double Danger
Patrick Dangerfield stormed the league last season, when he made the move to Geelong and captured the Brownlow Medal with a whopping 35 votes. Former Adelaide Crows teammate Rory Sloane was the early front-runner this season, but Danger is back in a big way.
His disposals are on par with last season, but his work at the coal face has stood out most with his contested possessions and clearance numbers at all-time career highs. Against the Giants, he compiled a staggering 25 contested possessions and 13 clearances -- both game highs.
He is now the favourite for the Brownlow Medal, and all signs point to a Danger Double.
Alex Johnson
There aren't many things better than seeing players who are close to down and out come back and re-live their dream all over again. Just under five years ago, Alex Johnson played a role in securing the Sydney Swans the 2012 premiership over Hawthorn.
That would be his last senior game as knee problems became a major issue. Now, though, Johnson is not just on the road to recovery but he's back in the Swans NEAFL side and delivered on the weekend much to the delight of his teammates:
PURE JOY!
— NEAFL (@neaflofficial) July 1, 2017
A moment to savour for Alex Johnson and the @sydneyswans community. #NEAFL @aflnswact pic.twitter.com/Ny9HYeex2C
The Numbers Crunch
· 1,736 days since his last game of footy
· Five ACL reconstructions & 12 surgeries
Villains
Silly Bugg
Tomas Bugg had become the Demons' resident pest of late, targeting opponents on social media and bringing the niggle on the field. He took things a step too far against Callum Mills in the opening quarter on Friday night at the MCG.
With a bit of back and forth going on, Bugg turned and struck Mills with a left hand to the jaw that floored his rival instantly. Unable to take any further part in the game because of the blow, things don't look great for Bugg as he'll be referred directly to the tribunal and likely faces a six-week ban.
Downward facing Dogs
The tumultuous Western Bulldogs season took another turn for the worse in Round 15, when they fell to the West Coast Eagles -- a team not known for being tremendous travellers. Missing key personnel, the Eagles should have been mince-meat for the Doggies.
The Dogs have won only once since their Round 11 bye, and that was a one-point victory over the 17th-placed Kangaroos. Things clearly aren't working in the kennel right now, and Luke Beveridge and his troops have to sort them out sooner rather than later if they are to have a chance of going back-to-back.
Goal Kicking
Close games have been the norm so far this season, with an incredible amount of fixtures decided by less than a goal, and nothing makes coaches pull their hair more than inaccurate kicking.
In three separate games during Round 15, the losing team posted more scoring shots than their opponents while Sydney should have won by well over 50 points. As our own Alex Malcolm wrote earlier in this season, teams don't seem to be paying enough attention to goal kicking; it now is a serious cause for concern.