The AFL is arriving in China with Gold Coast and Port Adelaide to play for premiership points in Shanghai this afternoon.
The big question mark over this game is how the circumstance will affect the play – both teams are entering some unknown territory here.
How will long flights and delays have affected the players’ preparation? Whichever club manages this aspect better may come out on top.
Both teams come into this one with some reason to feel good about themselves in recent weeks.
Gold Coast have pushed up to being a 3-4 team, a solid enough effort given that they are playing a decent amount of youth.
A win over Geelong last week was an enormous feather in their cap and they’ll be keen to keep pressing forward this week.
Port Adelaide are 4-3, copping a loss to West Coast at home last week, but that aside they have been a fairly good team this year.
Star players on both sides of this one are coming in under an injury cloud, with both Robbie Gray and Gary Ablett missing training during the week.
If one of them falls short of playing – or isn’t in their best form when they do – it’s a big advantage to the other side.
Both teams have made a few changes this week. Gold Coast are leaving David Swallow, Callum Ah Chee and Matt Rosa at home, all with injury of some kind.
Brayden Fiorini, Rory Thompson and Jack Bowes are their inclusions.
Port Adelaide have dropped Aaron Young and Dan Houston, with Karl Amon and Brendon Ah Chee coming into the team.
Port Adelaide should logically be favourites, they’re a more mature team and they’ve been more consistent so far across the year.
Still, Gold Coast at $3.80 to win offers pretty good value if they can get up, or perhaps the Suns to beat the +28.5 points line at $1.92.