Essendon v Collingwood betting tips and prediction
Welcome to our Essendon v Collingwood betting tips and winner prediction for their AFL round 7 clash at the MCG on Saturday afternoon.
The Magpies are heavy favourites at 1.41 to win this traditional ANZAC Day fixture, with the Bombers (2.92) rank outsiders, despite their spike in form, with Australian betting sites.
The Magpies-Bombers line has been set 16.5 points, while the over/under mark is at 179.5.
MORE: AFL betting tips
Collingwood is at 3-3 and in the mix for another finals campaign, despite their obvious shortfalls being papered over by the individual brilliance of Nick Daicos.
The Magpies have recalled Jordan De Goey and Steele Sidebottom in a major boost to their chances, with Ed Allan and Ned Long dropped.
The Bombers have called up Jaxon Prior and Dyson Sharp in place of experienced pair Jordan Ridley (calf) and Jade Gresham (omitted).
They will be in a buoyant mood after defeating Melbourne, who went on to beat Brisbane, and narrowly losing to the Gold Coast in a pulsating clash last weekend.
The challenge for Brad Scott’s team will be to avoid a dip in intensity, with this a constant worry for young teams, especially coming up against a hardened outfit like the Magpies.
Essendon v Collingwood betting tips
Our AFL betting expert has assessed the odds and found some value Essendon v Collingwood tips:
Jordan De Goey 2+ goals
The Magpies bull has not set the world on fire to begin 2026, but they would just be happy their star man has not suffered any soft tissue injuries. De Goey, if he can get going, could be the difference between the Magpies bombing out or pushing deep into September. He loves the big stage, is likely to play closer to goal with the emergence of Angus Anderson, and is offering nice value at 2.70 to kick 2+ goals with BetRight. Jamie Elliott also has an outstanding ANZAC Day record, but is shorter in price than his teammate.
Darcy Parish 25+ possessions
The Magpies generally will let players like Parish accumulate at will, and he’s offering nice value at 1.50 to reach 25+ possessions. Archie Roberts, Zach Merrett and Elijah Tsatas have all won a mountain of pill in recent weeks and can be considered for same game multis.
ANZAC Medal tip
Brownlow Medal fancy Nick Daicos is a 2.75 favourite to win the ANZAC Medal, which is no surprise given his outstanding form and the way he put Carlton to the sword in game 100 last week. But for us this price is just too short. We think Collingwood will win this, so we’re going to go a bit longer and channel the ghosts of Mark McGough and run with Angus Anderson at 67.00. He’s had a massive impact in a few games this year and should get more midfield minutes with Long dropped.
Bombers’ fans will be hoping Merrett (8.00) can fire, but their young gun Archie Roberts (15.00) if they happen to win is eye-catching and looms as great value. Bombers captain Andrew McGrath (26.00) is fresh off a career-best game and is enjoying more exposure through the midfield.
Essendon v Collingwood prediction
Collingwood looks to have too much experience for the young Bombers outfit, although as we have seen in the past anything can happen on ANZAC Day, and both teams will crack in. The Magpies swashbuckling last quarter against the Blues showed they still have a switch to flick, when it’s needed, but the query is whether they can go with the top teams. But for now they can just beat who is put in front of them. Our final Essendon v Collingwood prediction? Magpies by 19 points.
