Rus, Hawks cement spots, power surge, Eagles slip

The top eight were reduced to 12 after Carlton’s dim mathematical hopes were extinguished by a disappointing defeat to the Western Bulldogs.

With two rounds remaining, North Melbourne and Hawthorn are the only teams officially through to the finals, with Kuvarna and Brisbane likely to round out the top four.

Geelong kept its season alive while a host of teams were stuck in the bottom half of the top eight.

How is the home run going for your team?

Carlton, Sydney, Western Bulldogs, Greater Western Sydney, Collingwood and Gold Coast were not considered.

1. North Melbourne

34 points (eight wins, one draw), 335.6%
Still holding firmly to that two-point buffer in first place, the Roos’ slim premiership hopes come down to a blockbuster on Friday night against Kuwarna, given they should beat Gold Coast comfortably in the final round. With 10 points separating first place from fifth place, North Melbourne are now guaranteed a top four finish.

Running home
R9: Kuvarna @ Norwood Oval
R10: Gold Coast @ Arden Street Oval

2. Hawthorn

32 points (eight wins, one loss), 196.3%
Hawthorn are now guaranteed to play in the finals for the first time in their short AFLW history and secure a place in the top four. Cairns could show some mixed results and Narm’s rise may be the Hawks’ toughest test this year. A final week clash with fifth-placed Richmond still looks set to decide the top four.

Running home
R9: Narm @ Casalis Stadium
R10: Richmond @ Swinburne Center

3. Kuvarna

28 points (seven wins, two losses), 198.6%.
Kuvarna is inching closer to fully cementing his place in the top four but could still slip away thanks to double defeats to North Melbourne and unexpectedly in-form Geelong. The Crows’ very good percentage should provide some sort of buffer if that happens, and relegation to seventh or eighth (and a subsequent away final) is highly unlikely.

Running home
R9: North Melbourne @ Norwood Oval
R10: Geelong at GMHBA Stadium

4. Brisbane

28 points (seven wins, one loss), 180.6%.
Not only did Brisbane miss out on a chance for everyone to cement their place in the top four after losing to Geelong in week eight, the Lions also lost 16.9% in the process and dropped one place in the standings. Brisbane remains vulnerable to relegation from the top four if Richmond or Wallalup are successful and the Lions lose to Sydney or Euro Iroka. It’s unlikely that the Lions lost to the Saints in a climax last year.

Running home
R9: Sydney @ Brighton Homes Arena
R10: Euro-Irok @ RSEA Park

5. Richmond

24 points (six wins, three losses), 171.2%
The Tigers lost their best performance, finishing in the top four and dropping almost 20 per cent in the loss to Narm, despite the best efforts of Caitlin Grazer, scoring three goals in the final minutes to pull her team back a little. It’s not the easiest route home for Richmond either, needing to win at least one of their final two games – against Essendon in Darwin and Hawthorn – to secure a full finals spot. Slipping out completely is unlikely, given their percentage, but still possible.

Running home
R9: Essendon @ TIO Stadium
R10: Hawthorn at Swinburne Center

6. Valialup

24 points (six wins, three losses), 125.1%.
It was a vital win over Vaalich Marawar that secured a key four points after two straight defeats and dented the Eagles’ finals hopes. Like Richmond, the Dockers remain vulnerable to relegation from the top eight if the wheels fall off. They will be starting favorites against both Greater Western Sydney and the Western Bulldogs, but both teams have been highly inconsistent and capable of turning things around.

Running home
R9: Greater Western Sydney @ Henson Park
R10: Western Bulldogs @ Fremantle Oval

7. Yartapulti

20 points (five wins, four losses), 110.7%.
Yartapuulty’s fourth successive win – over Euro-Yroke – had a huge impact on that area of ​​the rankings, lifting the Power from ninth to seventh and preparing for their first AFLW grand finals appearance. They will still have to win at least one of their final two games to properly secure a place in the top eight, but their form should make them favorites against both the Gold Coast and the Giants.

Running home
R9: Gold Coast at People First Stadium
R10: Greater Western Sydney @ Alberton Oval

8. Essendon

20 points (five wins, four losses), 93.5%
On the face of it, Essendon did well to limit North Melbourne’s damage to a 20 per cent defeat given how dire things were in the first half. The Bombers are likely to battle Narm for the final spot in the top eight and, given their superior percentage, might just squeal. A win over Carlton is vital and a win over Richmond this weekend in Darwin will help a lot.

Running home
R9: Richmond @ TIO Stadium
R10: Carlton @ Ikon Park

9. Narm

20 points (five wins, four losses), 75.1%
The comeback remains in place, but Narm will be kicking himself after conceding three late goals to Richmond, limiting his percentage gain to just 6.7. Given their percentage problems, the Demons will likely have to beat both Hawthorn (in Cairns) and Collingwood in the next two weeks to make the top eight. The Dis are good at the right time and can cause some chaos in the final if they are successful.

Running home
R9: Hawthorn at Casalis Stadium
R10: Collingwood @ Ikon Park

10. Euro-Irok

16 points (four wins, five losses), 103.8%.
Unfortunately, it looks like the Saints will miss out on the finals again after a costly defeat to Yartapulti. It will take two wins – and then a possible race for percentage – for Euro-Yroke to return to the top eight. They thrashed Brisbane last year but that seems unlikely twice, while the Western Bulldogs in Ballarat could upset the apple cart.

Running home
R9: Western Bulldogs at Mars Stadium
R10: Brisbane @ RSEA Park

11. Waalij Marawa

16 points (four wins, five losses), 71.0%.
Unfortunately, the Eagles’ amazing run under new coach Daisy Pearce appears to have come to an end after a disappointing derby defeat to Vallaloupe. To improve that percentage, big wins over Geelong and Sydney are needed, as well as some chaos among the teams ahead of them in the standings.

Running home
R9: Geelong @ Mineral Resources Park
R10: Sydney @ Henson Park

12. Geelong

14 points (three wins, one draw, five losses), 103.4%.
Geelong rallied from the field with a shock win over Brisbane to remain in the “mathematically possible” final. The Cats will have to beat the Eagles in Perth and the Kuwarna in Geelong, and will also need one (or two) from Yartapulti, Essendon and Narmah to completely bow out. But it looks like the only team with points from both North Melbourne and Brisbane will miss out on the finals.

Running home
R9: Waalij Marawa @ Mineral Resources Park
R10: Kuvarna @ GMHBA Stadium