Round 15 will be headlined with blockbuster clashes between some of the AFL’s biggest rivals, the biggest of which is set to feature at the unusual timeslot of 7.40 pm Sunday night, between arch-rivals Collingwood and Carlton at the MCG.

Carlton will be bolstered by news on Tuesday that former number one draft pick Bryce Gibbs has re-signed for the club for a further five years, trumping suggestions that he was considering a move elsewhere. Gibbs of course was eligible to consider offers by other clubs as a restricted free-agent come season’s end, with reports suggesting that he was being pursued by the Adelaide Crows for a move back to his native city.

Collingwood will be looking to end its two-game losing streak with a win against Carlton, and get its season back on track. Young gun Patrick Karnezis will make his return to Collingwood’s VFL side against Richmond this afternoon, following time out with a hamstring injury.

In other games, the Greater Western Sydney Giants will be looking to set a club record third win on the trot, when it is hosted by cross-town rival Sydney on Saturday. The Giants of course shocked the AFL world when they beat the Swans in their round one clash at Spotless Stadium, but have only chalked up a further three wins since then. The Swans are coming into the clash on a nine-game winning streak, and have welcomed back power forward Kurt Tippett and Ben McGlynn, but will be without defender Rhyce Shaw who is expected to miss two to three weeks with an ankle injury, suffered in last week’s win over Richmond.

The Brisbane Lions will line up against North Melbourne for the first time in their post-Jonathan Brown era. The champion centre-half-forward retired earlier this week on the advice of medical staff, following yet another sickening head injury. Brown, one of the toughest players to ever play the game, was advised that any further knocks to his head could pose serious ramifications to his health.

Brown told a packed out media conference at the Gabba that it was not worth the risk, with his third child on the way.

“There was strong medical advice that it wasn’t worth the risk of playing and potentially getting another head knock.

“It was a risk that they certainly didn’t want me to take and eventually I got my head around it, and it wasn’t a risk I was willing to take either,” he said.
Brown said that he would like to move into a media role, but remain with the Lions in some capacity.

Other big games to feature this weekend will see cross-town rivals Fremantle take on West Coast in their 40th ‘Western Derby’ and Adelaide taking on Port Adelaide in Showdown XXXVII.