Gold Coast vs Essendon Preview & Prediction | 2025 AFL | Regular Season | Round 24
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What was supposed to be a routine rescheduled game between Gold Coast and Essendon, has suddenly become the headline act of the final home-and-away weekend.
Kick-off date/time:
How to watch on TV: UK – TNT Sports / US – Some matches are televised on Fox Sports channels
How to watch online: UK – discovery+ & Watch AFL / US – Watch AFL
The prediction
Gold Coast (9th went down to a fired-up Port Adelaide Power side, saying farewell to one of their club greats and their longest-serving coach, riding an emotional wave—it had the ingredients. But still, based on the teams on paper, it was hard to imagine the Suns losing that one. And yet, they did.
Essendon (15th) are limping to the finish line—literally and figuratively. They were out of the contest early against Carlton last Thursday, going down by 34 points. While they may have given Blues fans a late scare by cutting it to 20 points in the last quarter, but the result was never really in doubt.
Originally, it looked like a chance for the Suns to maybe sneak into the top four during their first-ever finals campaign. Now, after the baffling loss to Port Adelaide last Friday, it’s simple: win, and they're in.
Now, here we are. Gold Coast not only holds their own fate, but their result could shuffle the deck for two or three other teams as well.
If the Suns win, they jump into the top eight and at the expense of the Western Bulldogs (currently 8th). If they win by less than four goals, we get an “Expansion Cup” Elimination Final against GWS in Sydney. If they win big, they’ll leap to 7th, which sends them west to face Fremantle and shifts Hawthorn back to eighth and a date with the Giants instead.
Can they pull off something wild here? Can the Bombers deliver the last unexpected twist in an AFL season that’s been relatively light on genuine surprises?
They made two late changes before the Carlton game and will be hoping Jayden Laverde and Sam Durham are ready for one last hit-out.
Meanwhile, the Suns might get a boost with three key players—Daniel Rioli, Bailey Humphrey, and Will Graham—all pushing to return for what’s arguably the biggest game in club history.
Gold Coast vs Essendon tip: Gold Coast to win by 40+ points
