Kicking off Round 8 tonight (Thursday, May 1) at 7:30pm is Essendon vs North Melbourne.
Essendon looks to bounce back after losing to Collingwood, whereas North Melbourne hopes to end a five-game losing skid.
The Bombers have made one change with veteran Dylan Shiel being managed and young midfielder Elijah Tsatas coming into the site, while the Roos will be without Paul Curtis (suspension) and key midfielder George Wardlaw (corked thigh).
Coming into the side for the Roos is Finnbar Maley, who will be making his debut, while Bailey Scott and Will Phillips have been recalled.
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Essendon vs. North Melbourne Predictions
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Best Bet
It has been one of those years again for Essendon, but it’s still early. The Bombers should expect to beat teams like North Melbourne, but the best value is with the 1-39 line, which pays a healthy $2.15 with bookmakers.
Essendon should be too good for the Kangaroos but beating them by 40 points could be too much of a stretch, especially after losing an emotional game to the Magpies 107-66 last week. It was a close game at the half, but Essendon’s lack of experience showed up in the second half.
North Melbourne pushed Port Adelaide close when losing 97-88, and although Essendon should win by more than nine points, we can’t see it pulling away by too much. Therefore, getting $2.15 for 1-39 is excellent value with AFL picks.
Same Game Multi
We predict Essendon winning outright and it being a high-scoring game. They scored 172 points in their most recent meeting, but that wasn’t helped by North Melbourne scoring just 66 points.
Its offence has improved since last year, and having scored 88 points last week against Port is a good sign. We’re happy to include over 184.5 and Essendon head-to-head in our same game multi, which boosts payouts.
Peter Wright and Nate Caddy scored two goals against Collingwood, and they should get much more scoring opportunities this week. Wright has eight goals from his last two games, having scored six goals against West Coast.
Caddy has scored two goals in three of his last four games, and although Wright is only $1.41, Caddy increases multi odds at $1.95, which is a juicy price.
Best Value Bet
We’re coming out of left field for this pick, but the $18 odds are too good to pass up. Luke Parker has five goals from his last four games, including doubles against Carlton and Sydney.
The midfielder could get forward throughout the game and put himself in a position to kick goals on the run. He won’t take many marks inside the 50, but he’s a good player in counterattack situations, and that’s where he could take advantage on Thursday.
His experience with the Swans last year is invaluable, and he could show his class with three goals at massive odds.
