AFL Round 4 Tips & Preview - Best bets for the Round 4 of the AFL home and away season

By Adam Cusworth

01 Apr 2025

Adam Cusworth 01 Apr 2025

Share this article

Collingwood to improve against winless Carlton.
Geelong likely to dominate struggling Melbourne.
Exciting clash expected between unbeaten Gold Coast and Adelaide.
Brisbane expected to maintain dominance over Richmond.
Close game anticipated between North Melbourne and Sydney.
GWS to bounce back against winless West Coast.
Port Adelaide likely to edge out St Kilda at home.
Fremantle set to challenge the Western Bulldogs.

MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA - AUG 03: Adam Saad of the Blues and Will Hoskin-Elliott of the Magpies compete for the ball during the 2024 AFL Round 21 match between the Collingwood Magpies and the Carlton Blues at The Melbourne Cricket Ground on August 03, 2024 in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Dylan Burns/AFL Photos via Getty Images)

Round 4 of the 2025 AFL season takes place from April 3. Adam Cusworth provides his best bets for the eight games taking place.

Collingwood vs Carlton, MCG, 7:30PM
Geelong vs Melbourne, GMHBA Stadium, 7:40PM
Gold Coast Suns vs Adelaide Crows, People First Stadium, 1:20PM
Richmond vs Brisbane Lions, MCG, 4:15PM
North Melbourne vs Sydney Swans, Marvel Stadium, 7:35PM
GWS Giants vs West Coast Eagles, ENGIE Stadium, 1:10PM
Port Adelaide vs St Kilda, Adelaide Oval, 3:20PM
Fremantle Dockers vs Western Bulldogs, Optus Stadium, 5:10PM

Thursday April 3

Collingwood vs Carlton, MCG, 7:30PM

Collingwood (2-1) has had an inconsistent start to the season but entered the bye on a positive note after narrowly defeating the Western Bulldogs at their last outing. The Magpies can improve their record against a Blues outfit that they've beaten in 10 of the past 12 encounters between the two sides. Carlton (0-3), are one of three sides that are yet to win, with second half fadeouts being a problem. Hard to see them turning things around for this one.

Friday April 4

Geelong vs Melbourne, GMHBA Stadium, 7:40PM

Geelong opened up with a big win over Fremantle but have dropped their past two. They return to their home deck where they have lost to Melbourne only three times in their last 25 encounters. Melbourne (0-3) have suffered heavy defeats in their past two rounds and look to be a shadow of the side that claimed premiership glory as recently as 2021. Things may just go from bad to worse here and the Cats can cruise to an easy win.

Saturday April 5

Gold Coast Suns vs Adelaide Crows, People First Stadium, 1:20PM

Gold Coast are unbeaten in two matches and face one of its biggest games yet, hosting Adelaide in what could be a solid measure of how far they have come since last year. The Suns will be out to go 3-0 for just the second time in their history. Adelaide have also been the early season risers, winning their three matches by an average of 53 points. This shapes as one of the matches of the round and in front of their home fans, the Suns can continue to rise in what should be a close one.

Richmond vs Brisbane Lions, MCG, 4:15PM

This could get ugly with the likely wooden spooners, Richmond, taking on the premiers, Brisbane. Richmond have struggled after pulling off an upset in Round 1 over Carlton, suffering two big losses since then. Brisbane are 3-0 and have dominated recent encounters against Richmond, winning by an average of 100 points in their past two. They could go very close to maintaining that in this match.

North Melbourne vs Sydney Swans, Marvel Stadium, 7:35PM

North Melbourne are 1-2 and were solid against unbeaten Adelaide last week but couldnt match motors in the second half. They now return to their home ground for a winnable but tough match against a side they’ve beaten just once since 2015. Sydney are also 1-2 and secured a narrow victory over Fremantle in their second close finish in as many weeks, after falling just short against Brisbane. They come off a bye since then and will enter as favourites. They can escape with a narrow win in what is a real danger game.

Sunday April 6

GWS Giants vs West Coast Eagles, ENGIE Stadium, 1:10PM

GWS lost their first match of 2025 when going down to Hawthorn in blustery conditions at Launceston last weekend by 12 points. They enjoy a golden opportunity to bounce back against the winless West Coast outfit. The Eagles have shown some encouraging signs and led Brisbane at the GABBA a fortnight ago in the third term but are struggling to stick it out for four quarters. Their new coach, Andrew McQualter, will have to wait at least another week for his first win since taking over.

Port Adelaide vs St Kilda, Adelaide Oval, 3:20PM

This shapes as an interesting game. Port Adelaide head in as favourites but have just one win to their credit from three matches, with that coming over lowly Richmond. They went down by two goals to Essendon last weekend and take on a St Kilda side that they have beaten 14 times in their last 15 meetings. The Saints might be on the improve, however, and come in with confidence after a couple of recent wins, including one over Geelong a fortnight ago. They will need to overcome their poor record at Adelaide Oval. Expect the home side to get the job done here.

Fremantle Dockers vs Western Bulldogs, Optus Stadium, 5:10PM

Fremantle (1-2) bounced back from a couple of early losses with a dominant win over West Coast last weekend and will be encouraged by their high-scoring performance. The Western Bulldogs (2-1) have surged into the top eight with back-to-back victories, despite missing key players, including their captain Marcus Bontempelli. The battle in the midfield will be interesting in this match and the Dockers might just have enough depth with their available players. Unless Sam Darcy can pull off another big performance for the Dogs, it is the home side that can salute in the final game of Round 4.

* All times are in AEDT