The Saints are probably close to the hottest team in the comp at the moment as no side unbeaten 3 from 4 other than the Lions. The Kookaburra's have lost the last 3 in row & 4 from 5 which isn't instilling huge confidence for this one. Gosnells went 2 from the last 8 last season & paid the price of an extra week of proving themselves so they know the risks within the final 1/3 of the season. The home side should be eyeing this one up from afar as a must win game with the potential of a score bump. The Saints have only lost 2 of their last 7 games so it will be difficult to go against the home side here. Ok for many home games the Saints have barely scraped over the line with the majority of wins within a dozen shots but they are still getting it done at home & a win here would surely see them back into a Final spot especially if Pam & Co keep putting good sides to the sword, surely her shoulders are hurting after 11 Rounds. Someone get Chalmers a Chiro voucher.

Yes coming into our predictor game we probably start to look backwards a little for trends & historical influences so yes this R12 may have many referencing to last season or previous seasons but we honestly believe in momentum & trends. Disclaimer aside, the Eagles were brilliant 1st half of last season & fell apart like a jigsaw in the 2nd half, winning only 1 from the last 8 but yet finished 5th overall (yes 2 heat rounds & 1 draw) but go figure. Yes they could easily win this but a lot depends on Carey & did win last Round but they're running 2 from 7 & if they are not tuned in the Lions will pounce given their form. Basso shrug off that duck egg from 7 starts which is kind of the opposite to last season as they finished the season 2 from the last 11 games. You would think that's absolutely automatic demotion but they survived by 1pt over Leeming who bungled their last home game. Last season Basso stayed up by winning 6 games in 6th but Gosnells barely got survival by 0.5pt in 8th but yet won 7 games. The 2 heat rounds last season seemed to have impacted final standings as those extra points for a struggling side who were due to play away boosted their final standing. Basso have been solid on the road & playing brilliantly the last few rounds so I wouldn't think this is a blowout but you'd think the 2 teams would have a great head to head with the home side very very marginally favs.

GAME OF THE ROUND: If the 2 unspellables go head to head, that's Vandersluys v Kranjancic (yes say that 5 times) then this game will be a blockbuster & certainly game of the round as 2 of the top 5 skippers go head to head. Let's make sure the score cards fall that way for entertainment value alone. Yes the Lions only lost 1 from the last 7 & the Titans are only 1 from the last 3 in wins so quite contrasting & needless to say as I'm only 2 lines in, I would like to point out that the Titans are playing AWAY from home so the requirement of me to keep typing is nonsensical. However, I keep typing due to an inability to shut up. Joking aside, this game was a draw in the corresponding fixture & notably 1 of only 2 draws for the entire season so far & for those statisticians were only had more than 2 draws in 1 season twice in the last decade so let's call it early, we will NOT see another draw for the season (god forbid if this is a draw I will hang my head in shame). Hard to go against the Lions & to be honest I think this is a super genuine game of the round. Yes Titans can be a bell weather team but I'm thinking that Cockburn win this & they'll be genuine top 2 with a look for top spot depending on some away win. Yet the home side would 'likely' make this a 2 horse race between them & the Dolphins, if they put the Titans to the sword. Honestly some people think it's about R18 results but for me, if the Lions win this I'm honestly heading to Bulls Creek & jumping on the Leeming train. I'm going with Leeming but honestly with that much on the line for both sides I would love to just grab a few beers & watch a legacy unfold, it's that big of a game & yes it's only R12.

The Dolphins are 2 from 5 & the champagne isn't just on ice its frozen solid. They won 5 of 6 to start the season & now there's only 3 wheels left on the wagon & wobbles are evident. Not saying the Reds running 1 from the last 4 are much different but I suppose it the level of expectation we expected from Joondalup & that's fading. Yes they are still within 3pts of top spot & let's be fair after R6 there was some movements since but the 2 top teams after R6 were Joondalup & Leeming, that has not changed to the start of R12. Yes the Reds beat the Eagles on the Road this season but little else. Could they head to Joondalup on the road & beat 1 of the form teams in the comp, maybe but it would solely depend on Wishy & Such & if the matchup doesn't go their way then it would be super difficult. Away its tough for the Reds as the weak rinks get exposed, on average for the whole season, by 15.7 shots per game. Yes Cockburn & North Beach were blowout games so apart from that its rough 12 shots per game, still quite a high average. If they can fix that blow-out rink, which to clarify if NOT the same every week, they are getting themselves close enough to challenge the Aggs.

Similar to the Cockburn comments above it might be just easier to say Mossies have this one & stop typing. Let's be honest the only reason the beach boys are sitting 5th is because they had R9 & R10 at home in a back to back. Now on the road for back to back things maybe different. Yes North Beach gave the Mossies a nice 30 shot touch up in the corresponding fixture but Mossies will be looking for revenge. Mossies are just within safety but know they needed to go unbeaten 9 from the last 10 games last season in a whirlwind dreamy run to get into Finals. Yes Mossies are 3 from the last 5 but need more & this a game they'll be putting away before half time if they have any ambition of Finals. Apart from expectations it's 5th playing 6th so it's a genuine double pointer, especially for Mossies. I do think Manning might win & if Mossies win here then North Beach are dropping to that dreaded 7th.