AFL GameDay Squad Round 9 Preview | Best Matchups, PODs & Key Trends
- The Goal Practitioner
- May 9
- 6 min read
AFL GameDay Squad Round 9 Preview
The AFL GameDay Squad Round 9 Preview is here, bringing you the latest insights to help you dominate this week’s matchups. Join us for Round 9 as we break down the best positional matchups, highlight the top PODs, analyse key AFL trends, and keep an eye on noteworthy venues and weather conditions.
Plus, we’ll check in on BOBS team results and reveal our early starter squad for the round. If you haven’t signed up for AFL GameDay Squad yet, now’s the time!
Use our exclusive code BOBAFL at sign-up to unlock free packs and kickstart your squad. Let’s get into the AFL GameDay Squad Round 9 Preview and identify the must-have players for the week!
WEST COAST
In recent rounds, we have dedicated a section purely to the team coming up against West Coast. Whilst they have let some big scores against them, I think we still need to be careful about loading up too hard on the matchup. Defenders basically get to take the night off against them, so we need to be cautious of over-valuing that part of the matchup. Rucks, midfielders, and forwards have been better than average against them but not enough to go crazy with selections. For this reason, I will take them off the weekly segment for now but will monitor to see if they start leaking again… look out for late-season blowouts.
DEFENDERS
I really love defenders. Just when you think they might struggle for a good score, they participate in some useless last quarter stat padding and all of a sudden go from a letdown to a great score (Zorko 6 marks, 8 kicks in the last quarter).
Richmond and Melbourne have been conceding points against defenders. This week West Coast come up against Richmond. There are no West Coast defenders I would consider. I was going to mention Liam Duggan (well, now I have), but seriously do not do it – his single highest score of the season 105 GDS is still 6 points below the top 10 average.
Hawthorn come up against Melbourne. After missing last week with concussion, I think Karl Amon (108 GDS AV) will be a great pick this week. Similarly, James Sicily (103 GDS AV) should also be great and has been gradually returning to form.
MIDFIELDERS
There have been plenty of great midfielders so far this season, but every round it feels like there are a couple of premiums that stink it up. We have already got this out of the way for Round 9 with Nick Daicos with a poor 82 GDS last night.
Essendon have been a softer midfield matchup of late. Sydney come up against them this week at Marvel. Chad Warner (105 GDS AV) has been spending more time in the midfield lately and I expect he will be a safe pick this week. Isaac Heeney (100 GDS AV) hasn’t had too many low scores this year but also hasn’t popped. A value option this week.
RUCKS
A lot of the top rucks are coming up against each other this week or have difficult matchups. One of the only friendly matchups is Toby Nankervis (100 GDS AV) who takes on West Coast this week at the MCG. He has been OK so far this season but has an amazing matchup. I am expecting a 130+ from him this week and could be a great unique pick.
Tim English (120 GDS AV) has been great lately but plays Jarrod Witts this week who is very difficult to score against. Tristan Xerri (112 GDS AV) is in a similar situation against the Big O (Oscar McInerney) for those who aren’t Brisbane nuffies. For these reasons, I would be backing in Max Gawn (126 GDS) this week against Lloyd Meek and hoping for a safe score.
FORWARDS
Forwards have been hard to nail so far this season. Outside of the top 4 averages, it has been a bit of a lottery for the remaining spots. As a unique, Ryan Maric (94 GDS) has been playing down back and with Jeremy McGovern out this week should be a great score.
There are no other matchups that are outlier friendly for the best forwards. Luke Parker (99 GDS) has been very consistent and is a safe option for when you are unsure of who to finish your forward line with.
POD Picks – Round 9
Karl Amon
Isaac Heeney
Toby Nankervis
Ryan Maric
Luke Parker
POD Review – Round 8 Picks
Christian Petracca – 134 GDS – Big Tick, was a safe pick against West Coast
Caleb Serong – 73 GDS – Failed pick, Freo were shocking and Serong still struggling to be a premium scorer
Jordan Clark – 72 GDS – Failed pick, blaming Justin Longmuir
Luke Parker – 94 GDS – I will give it just a pass as an OK pick, not enough to make or break your round
Jai Newcombe – 118 GDS – Small tick, good enough but the bar is set quite high for midfielders
AFL Trends Noticed by BOBS
Sweet dropped – With Sweet dropped, one of the hardest matchups (not for English) ruck scoring-wise goes out. If Dante stays in the team, we have to fully rethink this matchup and may be a huge option in coming weeks.
When McGovern is out, Maric goes massive – This is a big watch.
Scoring changes – We have seen some big changes in the ways teams score points in 2025. The most notable has been St Kilda’s massive drop in transition points, which has hugely affected Rowan Marshall and his marks around the ground, hence some of his below-par scores.
Weather & Venue Watch – Key Conditions for Round 9
Before locking in your squad, consider these weather and venue factors that could impact fantasy scoring:
AFL Round 9 2025 Weather Forecast – Focus on Rain
Thursday, May 8
Fremantle vs. Collingwood
Venue: Optus Stadium, Perth (Whadjuk)
Weather: Clear skies with no rain expected.
Temperature: Around 18°C at game time.
Friday, May 9
St Kilda vs. Carlton
Venue: MCG, Melbourne (Wurundjeri)
Weather: Cloudy with a medium chance of showers in the southeast suburbs. Slight chance of rain over the ground.
Temperature: 17°C during the evening.
Saturday, May 10
Melbourne vs. Hawthorn
Venue: MCG, Melbourne (Wurundjeri)
Weather: Overcast with a medium chance of showers, especially in the southeastern suburbs.
Temperature: 16°C during the afternoon.
Essendon vs. Sydney Swans
Venue: Marvel Stadium, Melbourne (Wurundjeri)
Weather: Cloudy but no rain impact expected due to the retractable roof.
Temperature: 16°C outside.
Gold Coast Suns vs. Western Bulldogs
Venue: TIO Stadium, Darwin (Larrakia)
Weather: Dry with clear skies. No rain expected.
Temperature: Around 30°C, high humidity.
Port Adelaide vs. Adelaide Crows
Venue: Adelaide Oval, Adelaide (Kaurna)
Weather: Clear skies, no rain expected.
Temperature: 18°C during the evening.
Sunday, May 11
Richmond vs. West Coast Eagles
Venue: MCG, Melbourne (Wurundjeri)
Weather: Partly cloudy with a slight chance of light showers.
Temperature: 18°C during the afternoon.
Geelong Cats vs. GWS Giants
Venue: GMHBA Stadium, Geelong (Wadawurrung)
Weather: Partly cloudy with a slight chance of light showers.
Temperature: 17°C.
North Melbourne vs. Brisbane Lions
Venue: Ninja Stadium, Hobart (Palawa)
Weather: Cloudy with a low chance of showers.
Temperature: 15°C, cool and windy.
Teams and Their Taggers
This will be an evolving area as we see trends develop:
Toby Bedford – Not playing, confirmed by the coach that he won’t travel.
James Jordan – Expected to go to Zach Merrett. It’s a must-win game for Sydney, and he is simply their best player. Merrett has shown he can blitz a tag, so this is more of a watch than a hard fade. However, it could be a great POD to fade him against a tag.
Various players vs. Nick Daicos – In the last two weeks, we have seen teams return to super-hard tags on Daicos, using players we wouldn't usually expect. Anyone who fades him is both brave and smart. Given he is the best player in the competition, he is heavily tagged, but his ability to go huge is always present. He might be a player we have to consider more closely to fade against certain matchups.
Starter Team
Final Thoughts
Round 9 presents some juicy matchups, high-upside PODs, and key trends to watch. Keep an eye on final team selections and late changes before locking in your squad. Stay tuned for more insights from Blokes on the Ball, and good luck in GameDay Squad Round 9!
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