Round 24 of the 2025 AFL season is in the books. So, it's time to react ... or overreact to the biggest talking points of the week.
Should Izak Rankine have left Australia following his suspension? Would the AFL hate a GWS-Gold Coast elimination final?
Let's get to this week's overreactions, where we judge a few major takeaways as legitimate or irrational.
Izak Rankine should not have left Australia following his suspension
Crows forward Izak Rankine was slapped with a four-game suspension for using an anti-gay slur during his side's Round 23 game against the Magpies. We then learned this past weekend that Rankine had boarded a flight overseas, his destination and duration out of Australia currently unknown.
Verdict: Not an overreaction
Rankine let many people down with his inappropriate comments. His club. The league. The LGBTQIA+ community. He also let his teammates down ... enormously. He owes, at the very least, to be there, supporting them as they prepare to embark on a finals series. He's not banned from being at the training facilities, nor venues on game day, so why shouldn't he be there?
READ: Messy, dragged-out Rankine saga only did more damage
Not only that, but the AFL going soft on Rankine means his season is still very much alive. Should the Crows lose their qualifying final to Collingwood and then rebound to play in the Grand Final, Rankine would be available for selection. He should be doing everything he possibly can to stay fit and match ready.
Some may argue having Rankine away from the club is the right move given the media firestorm he's caused, and he may well have a training program in place while he's away, but by the time finals roll around it will be old news. Everyone will be focusing on September, just as Rankine should be.
A Giants, Suns final would be an AFL nightmare
Should Gold Coast beat a depleted Essendon on Wednesday evening by 29 points or fewer, they would set up an elimination final showdown with fellow expansion club GWS. Now, that matchup might not be the most mouthwatering for the average footy fan, but is it one the league would be horrified by?
Verdict: Overreaction
Is it the best case scenario for the AFL in 2025? Obviously not. Care to take guesses on a crowd figure?!
But at the same time is it a dire situation? Also no. Not only does the league want these two clubs to enjoy success, they desperately need it. Momentum in both markets has stagnated of late and a deep finals run for one, particularly the Suns who have literally never featured in September, could do wonders for its growth.
Also, we're talking about an elimination final. One game of four next week. It's not as if it's the Grand Final fixture.
As a curious sidebar, it will be fascinating to see how the Suns play this game against the Bombers. If they were to win by 30 points or more, they would instead face Fremantle at Optus Stadium in an elimination final. Who would Gold Coast rather face in a final? Recent history isn't great against either team, the Suns losing twice to the Giants this year as well as at home to the Dockers in their only 2025 meeting.
Add in the extra travel, and the likelihood of having to stay in Perth on the Saturday night following the elimination final, and whoever has to face Freo will be up against more than just a footy team. Interesting...