AFL Wildcard Weekend Set: Bulldogs-Collingwood on Friday, Melbourne-Carlton on Saturday at the MCG
The AFL has locked in its first-ever wildcard weekend, with two elimination matches at the Melbourne Cricket Ground to decide the final two spots in September's finals series.
The Western Bulldogs (8th) will face Collingwood (9th) on Friday night, August 28, at 7:40pm AEST. Melbourne (7th) will play Carlton (10th) on Saturday night, August 29, at 7:35pm AEST. Both matches are at the MCG. The AFL confirmed the schedule on August 23, finalising a format it announced back in November 2025 as the biggest finals shake-up in 25 years (ABC News).
Under the wildcard system, the teams that finished seventh through tenth in the regular season play off for the last two berths in the eight-team finals bracket — the top six qualify automatically. The higher-ranked winner from the wildcard matches will travel to play Adelaide; the lower-ranked winner visits Geelong in the first week of finals.
Carlton arrive in the hottest form of the four sides. Under Josh Fraser, who took over from the sacked Michael Voss in May and later had the interim tag removed, Carlton have lost just once in 14 outings — 11 wins and a draw — and carry a five-match unbeaten streak into Saturday night. They backed that form up by beating ladder leaders Fremantle in round 24 on Saturday. The Blues also expect to welcome back Will Hayward and Nick Haynes from ankle injuries against Melbourne.
Melbourne are dealing with the opposite problem on the injury front. The club is monitoring fresh knee issues for Matt Jefferson and Dan Turner ahead of the wildcard match.
Friday night's fixture carries its own injury subplot. The Bulldogs could be without spearhead forward Aaron Naughton, who has an ankle issue. Ruckman Tim English — the big man who contests the ball-up at the centre bounce and around the ground — is an outside chance to return from a knee problem. Collingwood, meanwhile, have lost veteran Scott Pendlebury and Brayden Maynard to knee issues.
For fans, this weekend is a new door into September. A wildcard round means two extra knockout games before the traditional finals begin, and both carry immediate consequences — win or go home. The winners face a road trip to one of the competition's top two sides the following week.
The VFL, the AFL's second-tier competition, ran its own wildcard finals on Saturday, August 22, with matches starting at 11:05am AEST (AFL.com.au).
