GWS the team to beat in AFL 2017 as Hawks & Cats drift

GREATER Western Sydney are poised to enter the 2017 AFL Premiership season as the outright flag favourites.

Having stormed into the semi-finals last term, the emerging GWS Giants are paying +350 at Sportsbet.com.au to go all the way this time around.

For many months they shared the first line of betting with the Western Bulldogs, but the reigning premiers have edged out a fraction to +450.

Sydney Swans, last year’s beaten grand finalists, are tipped to be there or thereabouts once again, rounding out the top trio at +600.

Among the big movers are West Coast, whose pre-season form has seen them backed in from +1200 to join Adelaide on +800.

Punters pumped Hawthorn into +700 after a fruitful trade period back in October, but it would appear the optimism over new recruits such as Jaeger O’Meara and Tyrone Vickery was short-lived.

The Hawks have drifted back out to +1200, where they sit alongside arch-rivals Geelong – another moving in the wrong direction.

The Eagles are not the only serious improvers from the west, with Fremantle screaming into +1700 after opening at +3300 for the flag.

The bulk of that movement is down to the much-anticipated return of Dockers superstar Nat Fyfe, who is pegged as a +800 chance to win his second Brownlow.

Nobody knows quite what to expect from Essendon and Melbourne, who are each returning +2200 for the flag, but they should be right in the finals mix alongside +2500 St Kilda.

It is crunch time for Nathan Buckley and Collingwood, and +3300 Premiership odds – +700 to finish top four – suggest the Pies legend will do mighty well to hold onto his job this year.

Port Adelaide are in the same boat, while nothing much is expected of Gold Coast (+4000) or the league’s perennial self-anointed title contenders, Richmond (+5000).

With the Bombers back to full strength, the wooden spoon is shaping up as a dogfight between Carlton (+10000) and Brisbane Lions (+50000).

2017 AFL outright betting markets

All odds provided by Sportsbet.com.au

AFL Premiership winner

+350 – Greater Western Sydney
+450 – Western Bulldogs
+600 – Sydney Swans
+800 – Adelaide, West Coast
+1200 – Geelong, Hawthorn
+1700 – Fremantle
+2200 – Essendon, Melbourne
+2500 – St Kilda
+3300 – Collingwood, Port Adelaide
+4000 – Gold Coast
+5000 – Richmond
+6600 – North Melbourne
+10000 – Carlton
+50000 – Brisbane Lions

Top four

-181.82 – Greater Western Sydney
-149.25 – Sydney Swans
-111.11 – Geelong, Western Bulldogs
+110 – West Coast
+125 – Adelaide
+150 – Hawthorn
+450 – Essendon, Melbourne, Port Adelaide
+500 – St Kilda
+700 – Collingwood, Fremantle, North Melbourne
+1200 – Gold Coast, Richmond
+2500 – Carlton
+5000 – Brisbane Lions

Top eight

-625 – Greater Western Sydney
-500 – Western Bulldogs
-454.55 – Sydney Swans
-250 – West Coast
-222.22 – Adelaide, Geelong
-181.82 – Hawthorn
+110 – Melbourne
+140 – Port Adelaide, St Kilda
+150 – Collingwood, Essendon, Fremantle
+200 – North Melbourne
+275 – Richmond
+300 – Gold Coast
+600 – Carlton
+1400 – Brisbane Lions

Brownlow winner

+400 – Patrick Dangerfield
+600 – Marcus Bontempelli
+800 – Nat Fyfe
+900 – Dustin Martin, Rory Sloane
+1100 – Luke Parker
+1600 – Dan Hannebery, Sam Mitchell, Joel Selwood
+2000 – Robbie Gray, Josh P Kennedy, Jack Steven
+2200 – Gary Ablett, Matt Priddis, Adam Treloar, Callan Ward
+2500 – Trent Cotchin, Patrick Cripps, Scott Pendlebury, Dylan Shiel
+2800 – Stephen Coniglio, Lachie Neale, Luke Shuey
+3300 – Andrew Gaff, Todd Goldstein, Zach Merrett, Tom Rockliff
+4000 – Lance Franklin, Bryce Gibbs, Jaeger O’Meara, Jobe Watson

More quoted at Sportsbet