Power Rankings (round 2)

1. Geelong (2nd 2-0)
- The Cats weren't 100% convincing in their finishing of Port Adelaide last week, but they quelled any doubts with the thumping of Essendon yesterday. These Cats are far and away the best team in the competition, making the 01-04 Lions and 05-06 Eagles look like the 08 Demons.

2. Hawthorn (1st 2-0)
-Two games, two very convincing victories. The Melbourne win was impressive because of the significant names missing from action, the Fremantle win established Hawthorn as legitimate contenders. The Dockers played pretty good footy but the Hawks forward line depth and midfield attack was awesome. The Hawks have the best forward line in the league, and when Mitchell, Hodge, Crawford, Ladson and Osbourne line up the midfield won't be far behind.

3. St. Kilda (4th 2-0)
- Both of St. Kilda's victories have been unconvincing, but the 1st quarter against the Swans and 2nd and 3rd terms against Carlton showed glimpses of a premiership contender. The midfield trio of Hayes, Dal Santo and Montagna have made a great start to the season, and the defence can be labeled the best in the league. Big next two weeks (Bulldogs, Geelong).

4. Western Bulldogs (3rd 2-0)
- The 'other' unbeaten team, the Dogs would be the most confident team in the team right now. They run as well as any other team, but I'll be interested to see how they go against the better defensive teams in the league. The next three games are against St. Kilda, Essendon and Richmond. A win against St. Kilda this Friday night could easily set-up a 5-0 dream start to the season.

5. Adelaide (6th 1-1)
- One kick away from 3rd spot and a perfect start to the season. Instead they're sixth, but they're still looking good. The Crows have followed up a fantastic pre-season with a respectable loss to the Dogs and a super impressive win against nemesis West Coast. They seemed to have made the transition from lockdown defensive unit to fast-paced attacking team flawlessly. Jason Porplyzia and Simon Goodwin are playing terrific footy and the latter is leading by example. Next week's showdown with Port will be a telling game for both teams.

6. Collingwood (7th 1-1)
- The Pies looked OK against Brisbane, but they didn't look like the team that finished within a kick of the grand final last year. If not for a few Alan Didak brain-fades the Pies might be 2-0. The upcoming schedule for Collingwood features four games that they 'should' win against Richmond, Carlton, North Melbourne and Essendon. This early in the season I'd be expecting 3-1 from the Woods against those four, but 4-0 should be the goal.

7. Sydney (5th 1-1)
-Against St. Kilda the Swans were sloppy and looked slow and old. Against Port Adelaide they were precise and looked quick and fluid. Barry Hall, a joke against the Saints, was in fine form looking imposing and kicking a bag of five goals. What the Swans did well against the Saints was fight hard for the ball, and they did the same against Port Adelaide and to even greater effect. The Swans will be tested in the next three weeks with trips to Brisbane and Geelong sandwiching a home game against arch-nemesis West Coast.

8. Brisbane (10th 1-1)
- The Lions have the makings of a finals team, but they're going to have to address a few flaws. The main concern is with the backline, which lacks polish and proven players. The other problem is someone standing up to be Jonathan Brown's sidekick. The Lions need a second option up front, be it Jarrod Brennan, Daniel Bradshaw or Mitchell Clark when he returns. Brown seemed to have five guys on him whenever the ball came near him on Friday night. If the Lions want to play finals that can't continue to happen. On the brighter side the midfield looks fantastic - Black, Power, Johnstone, Adcock, Rischitelli on the ball and with Charman and Leuenberger in the ruck they are forming a formidable midfield.

9. Kangaroos (9th 1-1)
-It's still hard to believe the Roos almost played in a grand final last year. Few teams work as hard as the Kangas, but you've got to question how far work ethic can take you - talent's pretty important too. The Roos looked good against Richmond, and you sense that just like last year they'll be putting away the bad teams all year. North last year showed that they know how to beat bad teams, but they can't match it with the elite. This year it'll probably be the same deal.

10. Essendon (11th 1-1)
- I still haven't forgotten how good the Dons looked last week. It's no real surprise that they were thoroughly annihilated by Geelong. Essendon are light years away from Geelong but that doesn't mean they're a bad team. I suspect (in the first half of the season anyway) Essendon will still be able to run a number of teams off their feet. On the topic of providing Lloyd with some forward line support - Adam McPhee centre half forward?

11. West Coast (12th 1-1)
- Troubling signs for West Coast fans. There's no excuse for losing by 12 goals to a team that you probably should have beat. The Eagles looked sloppy against Adelaide and didn't play hard for the footy. You just get the sense that with all the turmoil surrounding West Coast, and the leadership void created by the absence of Chris Judd and to a greater degree Ben Cousins, this is a club lacking direction. The Eagles haven't had a legitimate forward since Peter Sumich. It's shocking that this hasn't been addressed. Quinten Lynch is not the answer. With no Judd or Cousins the Eagles midfield loses 40 goals a season, they can no longer rely on the midfielders to kick 10 goals between them per game. LeCras, Staker and Lynch are all good pieces, but none is a gun forward. Bring in Josh Kennedy.

12. Richmond (8th 1-1)
- Enjoy it while it lasts Tigers faithful, because this will be the last time this season Richmond will find themselves in the top 8. Forget about last week, Carlton aren't a barometer of quality, the Tigers will be bottom four again, and won't contend until 2010.

13. Fremantle (13th 0-2)
- Despite the loss at home the Dockers can take a number of positives out of Saturday night. The Dockers played harder, they rallied, and in general they made a good fist of it against a very good football team. Rhys Palmer looks to have the tools to become a bona fide superstar, something that Matthew Pavlich re-iterated Saturday that he already is. What will be most interesting is how the Dockers deal with Chris Tarrant. 6 kicks and no goals in two weeks is simply not good enough. It's becoming increasingly clear that Tarrant, someone of immense football talent, is not an AFL football player. This year is the last chance for Tarrant to salvage what has been to this date an absolute disgrace of a football career.

14. Port Adelaide (15th 0-2)
- Port need to get their act together and quick. Last year they were the worst team to appear in a grand final since Melbourne in 2000, and they were about 9 seconds away from not making the finals altogether. The Power have been soft since their AFL induction, and that needs to change. The Swans intimidated them into defeat with their toughness around the ball Sunday. The Showdown clash comes at a perfect time for Port Adelaide, it'll be a great way for them to potentially get there season back on track.

15. Carlton (14th 0-2)
- Judd is still obviously hindered by his groin, and the Blues are still clearly hindered by a lack of defence and basic skill errors. Those who tipped the Blues for a finals spot this year are sticking needles in their forearms, this Carlton outfit will not win 8 games.

16. Melbourne (16th 0-2)
- Melbourne are taking mediocrity to a whole new level. It's incredible that a team can lose by 95 points to a) a team they beat last year, b) a team that isn't all that good, and most incredibly c) in shocking wet weather. Geelong 241 Melbourne 40, you heard it here first.