Do I take the blame? Round 6 was the first week that I haven’t been able to watch live, or only a few hours delayed. And I haven’t been able to bring myself to watching it yet. The pain and suffering involved in a loss to St Kilda, and in such devastating fashion, is something that I’m just not about to put myself through.

Everybody knew all week that this was a danger game, the Saints coming off a strong performance against Essendon, and the Dogs triumphing in the best match in the observable universe. We all knew it, we all said it, it was almost inevitable. The good thing is that it seems like the players know that they’re better than St Kilda, we just couldn’t get over the line last week. Mental toughness starts with losses like this, and forming the – some might say arrogant – opinion that you are actually better than any opposition you come up against.

So this week will again be a huge test. It will either be another Sydney, or another Hawthorn match. We’ll either put in such a performance that us supporters won’t be able to help being proud, regardless of the result, or we’ll capitulate a little, believing that the hard work does itself. I sincerely hope it’s the former. And whichever way it goes, it goes without saying that next week against a much less formidable opponent in Melbourne will also be a huge test.

But that’s what I love about this season. I’m expecting so much from my boys, and actually bitterly disappointed if they don’t perform. And you can sense that they are too. It all bodes well for the future.

I may come back to doing my votes for round 6 (if I ever bring myself to watch the game), but for now I’ll move on to a round 7 preview!

The Thursday inclusions are MBoyd, Mitch Wallis, Lin Jong and Bailey Dale. The only out so far is poor Clay Smith. I expect Boyd, Wallis and Jong to make the team, so my predicted OUTS are Brett Goodes and Nathan Hrovat.

How good is this? The ins and outs are really hard to pick because everyone is performing pretty damn well. Fletcher Roberts will keep his spot until Dale Morris is ready to return, and Lukas Webb now looks like an automatic start in my eyes. Lachie Hunter should be given ample opportunity to cement his spot, and it has to be said that Jack Macrae is perhaps one of the players looking like being ‘rested’. Nobody would have predicted that when Libba went down in the NAB cup.

Again, a big talking point has been Ayce. I wasn’t a fan, but from all reports his game against St Kilda was solid, so I’m coming around to the Bevo plan – “Play Ayce until he either becomes good or really proves everyone otherwise”. It’s a good plan, and perhaps the biggest risk he has taken so far in his short senior coaching career. I still have no idea how it’s going to end, but I’m finding myself no hoping that Ayce does make it. If Bevo has instilled that much confidence in ME that Ayce is our man for the future, just imagine how much Ayce actually has!

So here it is, I’m tipping us to win by 7 points, in a slightly less nail-biting affair than the Sydney game. Slightly. Go Dogs!