The numbers that matter
The big winners of Round 4
Hawthorn Hawks moved to sixth place, boasting a 3-1 record, with another thrilling chapter in the Hawthorn-Geelong rivalry of the 21st century.
For all of the turbulence the world appears to be going through in 2026, it's always reassuring to see sport deliver a little bit of normality, and whilst we didn't get too many classics between these two in the first half of the 2020s, it has now delivered twice in the last 12 months, this time with the men in brown and gold ending a five-game H2H losing streak.
Some of the free-flowing football that Hawthorn produced with chains of accurate handballs, especially in the second quarter before Geelong coach Chris Scott made some tactical changes to attempt to choke them up, was amongst the best we had seen all year.
34-year-old Jack Gunston, who it should be reminded almost gave the game away before being convinced to take on a one-year deal via the Rookie Draft, continued his late career resurgence with three goals and four behinds - the last of which sealed a famous victory for the Hawks.
Tight wins against Sydney and Geelong, two teams who are in the hunt for higher honours in 2025, should have the team high on confidence ahead of a crunch meeting with the unbeaten Bulldogs next weekend.
The big losers of Round 4
The bottom nine clubs of the competition all suffered defeat in their most recent matches and perhaps none were a bigger wake-up call or reality check than that for Craig McRae's Collingwood Magpies, who are now 2-2 having been humbled by both Adelaide and Brisbane in their last three games.
McRae couldn't assure reporters that Nick Daicos' late withdrawal didn't cause a major shakeup to the playing group or his potential plans for Gather Round next week, for which they'll be sweating on the condition of Daicos' calf.
Brisbane outnumbered the Magpies by 39 in the contested disposal count, Collingwood's third-worst differential of the McRae era according to Fox Sports.
Collingwood's first month has exposed a deep inability to score heavily, particularly with a dearth of tall forward options and an unhealthy reliance on Dan McStay for goals.
Next weekend's game against Fremantle could be an interesting test, for they have soft kills against both Carlton and Essendon to follow and could steer themselves back to a 5-2 record.
Who kicked bags this round?
The league's top shooters made only minimal moves this week, with Ben King kicking three to stay atop the leaderboard.
The biggest haul this round was four goals, shared by seven players: Dan McStay, Kai Lohmann, Jye Amiss, Isaac Heeney, Charlie Curnow, Jake Melksham and Shannon Neale.
The naughty boys
Will Hayward was the only player to not accept his sanction from the Match Review Officer.
Will Hayward (Carlton) - Striking - attending tribunal Tuesday 5:00pm AEST
Samson Ryan (Richmond) - Striking - 1 match ban
Samson Ryan (Richmond) - Engaging in a melee - $1000 fine
Angus Sheldrick (Sydney) - Striking - 1 match ban
Cooper Duff-Tyler (West Coast) - Striking - $2000 fine
Jake Waterman (West Coast) - Striking - $1500 fine
Jordon Dawson (Adelaide) - Careless contact with an umpire - $1000 fine
Luke Jackson (Fremantle) - Careless contact with an umpire - $1000 fine
Dion Prestia (Richmond) - Engaging in a melee - $1000 fine
Steely Green (Richmond) - Engaging in a melee - $1000 fine
Mitch Georgiades (Port Adelaide) - Engaging in a melee - $1000 fine
Jordon Sweet (Port Adelaide) - Engaging in a melee - $1000 fine
As an aside, the AFL Tribunal will also be sitting at 1:00pm AEST on Thursday afternoon to determine the sanction for Lance Collard, the St Kilda forward who was charged with using a homophobic slur in a VFL game against Frankston. He served a six-game ban in 2024 for a similar offence.
Goal of the Week
Mark of the Week
Gather Round fixtures
