Game of the Week
Diamond Valley (9-5) vs Bendigo (7-7)
Saturday 7:30pm at Diamond Valley
The shortest round of the season for the YL1 competition with just five games, four of those featuring match-ups between top four sides and teams from the bottom part of the latter. The theory should be that the top teams consolidate their positions, but there are actually a number of games that could be classified as danger games, with the chance to reshape the ladder.

This is one of those. The Braves are seventh and Diamond Valley third. Any loss for DV would see them tumble a little, especially if Nunawading win as expected. With the Braves senior side playing later in the evening, it must be tempting for Bendigo to send a couple of their young guns to DV to start this affair. They have some firepower missing, which might make that decision all the easier.

Werribee (1-12) vs Dandenong (11-3)
Saturday 5:30pm at Werribee
The ladder says it all about this with first playing last as a big season tails off. Dandenong were brilliant against Frankston, and much the same can be expected here.

Nunawading (8-5) vs Ballarat (5-9)
Saturday 6:30pm at Nunawading
The Spectres copped an unexpected 16 point loss to Ballarat earlier in the season at Ballarat and it will be firmly entrenched in the minds of the Nunawading group - that will make it most unlikely to happen again.

Frankston (6-8) vs Knox (9-5)
Saturday 8:00pm at Frankston
Knox are right now probably rated the best side in this competition after the Rangers but their grasp on second position is held only on percentage. The Blues are very capable of doing some damage to their hopes - especially at Frankston.

Sandringham (7-7) vs Kilsyth (5-8)
Saturday 8:00pm at Sandringham
A couple of weeks ago we had virtually dismissed the Sabres as a chance but slowly things seem to be coming together for them. They are equal with fifth placed Eltham with seven losses but can only afford to drop one or maybe two games on the run home - this looms as a big game then, with the Cobras capable of what the ladder would tell us is an upset.

Youth League Women

Game of the Week
Eltham (10-3) vs Kilsyth (8-4)
Sunday 2:00pm at Eltham
Kilsyth did their part in killing off Ballarat's season last weekend with a ten point win at home, a win that secured them in the five ahead of Hume City, who dropped 15 points against the Rangers. But that security might be briefly lived with another big game ahead of the Cobras here.

Julie Blackbourn's Eltham side have looked like a championship contender all year. They have not attracted as much attention as teams like Dandenong and Knox, but they sit pretty in second with just five rounds remaining. Both of these sides have plenty of games to come, more than the teams around them. Right now, Eltham could take a hit, but Kilsyth cannot really afford to.

Sandringham (3-12) vs Kilsyth (8-4)
Saturday 6:00pm at Sandringham
The Cobras start to catch up on the games played column with two games this weekend and this one is the easier. The Sabres are better, but don't look on paper that they can match Kilsyth.

Frankston (3-10) vs Dandenong (14-1)
Saturday 6:00pm at Frankston
The Blues got within eight points of the Rangers in round 6 of this competition, and that game was at Dandenong. They'll be looking for a little bit extra at home but have the disadvantage of facing this side after they copped their first loss of 2006.

Bulleen (7-7) vs Eltham (10-3)
Saturday 6:00pm at Templestowe
Bulleen have a really tough weekend ahead of them facing the Wildcats then the Broncos. They still have the slimmest of chances of making the five, but would need to cause two upsets this weekend to keep that alive.

Nunawading (10-4) vs Waverley (2-12)
Sunday 12:30pm at Nunawading
While the Falcons are a much better side than the one which started 2006, they face a side that bounced back into form after the June break. The Spectres will not let this slip at home.

Hume City (10-5) vs Bulleen (7-7)
Sunday 1:00pm at Broadmeadows
The Bronco's have just a single game for the weekend and they need the home win to continue to mount the pressure. After this affair, they face two games against sides entrenched in the five.

Knox (11-4) vs Ballarat (6-8)
Sunday 1:00pm at Knox
The Nuggets had a calamitous weekend last up losing to both Kilsyth and Sandringham, their finals chances appear completely gone but having shown so much character throughout the season, few would be surprised if they continued to shape the five.

Coburg (0-14) vs Frankston (3-10)
Sunday 2:00pm at Darebin
This might be 12th vs 9th but the gap between Coburg and all other sides this year has been big. Look for the Blues to at least go 1-1 this weekend with a big win here.

Youth League 2 Men

Game of the Week
Ringwood (8-5) vs Melbourne (9-3)
Sunday 12:00pm at Maroondah
The Hawks come into this with everything in their favour. Their form is terrific, they come in on the back of a great win last week against the highly rated Sherbrooke, and they encounter Melbourne who will have played the night before.

In the last few weeks Ringwood have firmed as a hot favourite for this title. Beating the Cats and the Suns has set that expectation alight. Melbourne of course were everyone's pre-season tip and they remain both potent and capable of taking out this championship. Winning this matters a lot, because it would virtually finish any chance they might have of a top two finish and home court advantage early in the finals. We view this as one of the biggest games of the year - time will tell if the two teams deliver to that sort of affair.

Geelong (11-1) vs Bulleen (2-9)
Saturday 5:45pm at the Arena
The Cats were brutal last weekend in their treatment of Hume City, and, in a rare Saturday night game at the Arena, could be similarly effective this round. The Boomers will need to do something special to take the points away here.

Melbourne (9-3) vs Latrobe City (2-10)
Saturday 7:30pm at Oakleigh
The Tigers have made a habit of wreaking some havoc with the teams at the bottom of the table, showing all year they are capable of burying sides - with some luck, the Energy might avoid that fate here.

Coburg (7-6) vs Waverley (7-6)
Sunday 12:00pm at Darebin
These teams might share an identical win-loss record but the Falcon's form is much the better at the moment, as they ride a great run and still have a slim chance of making the finals. Coburg will be plenty combative at home, but the odds seem to be in Waverley's favour.

Whittlesea (4-9) vs Sherbrooke (9-3)
Sunday 2:00pm at Mill Park
The Pacers split last weekend's home/away double to give them a small confidence boost but they run into a chastened Suns squad here who will not want to give up any more losses.

Hume City (3-10) vs Latrobe City (2-9)
Sunday 11:00am at Broadmeadowns
The Bronco's get an early jump on the Energy with this game brought forward to allow for a bunch of Hume City players to hop a plane to a tournament in Hawaii, the Latrobe City lads will be hoping their oppositions minds area already on the plane.