AFL fixture: Richmond, Collingwood big winners while St Kilda the big loser in 2021 season draw

St Kilda’s hopes of improving on last year’s fairytale finals run have been dealt a blow with a savage 2021 fixture. The Saints jumped from 14th to sixth last season, knocking out the Western Bulldogs in a thrilling elimination final before falling to eventual premier Richmond. But Brett Ratten’s job just got harder. In the newly released 2021 fixture St Kilda plays the Tigers twice and also has double-ups against top-four sides Geelong and Port Adelaide. The Saints’ also face West Coast (fifth) and Sydney (16th) twice. MORE FIXTURE NEWS Collingwood, meantime, is one of the big winners of the 2021 draw. The Magpies, desperate for success after a turbulent “firesale” trade period, will leave Melbourne just once after June 5 — to travel to Adelaide. The Pies will play six of their last nine games at their MCG home — while two of those “away” games will be down the road at Marvel Stadium. In fact, Collingwood will leave Victoria just five times for the entire 2021 season. Like the Pies, Richmond plays five of its last seven games at the MCG including blockbuster match-ups against Geelong, Brisbane and Collingwood, finishing with a home game against Hawthorn. The Tigers’ two matches against beaten 2020 Grand Finalist Geelong are both scheduled for the MCG. The Eagles, meanwhile, have a tough start to the year but avoided double-ups against any top-four teams from this year. The Western Bulldogs will have to make two separate trips to Perth in the space of four rounds, as will the Gold Coast Suns and North Melbourne — who both get a bigger gap in between cross-country trips. When do we see a rematch of the Grand Final sides? Not until Round 8. The Tigers will unfurl their 2019 and 2020 premiership flags at the MCG for the season opener against Carlton. They will then host just two more home games across the opening six rounds at the MCG before taking on the Cats on their famous turf. What early grudge matches can we sink our teeth into? The league has tried to schedule at least one clash between arch enemies in the opening six rounds, including Essendon v Hawthorn (Round 1), Carlton v Collingwood (Round 2), Geelong v Hawthorn (Round 3), Sydney v GWS Giants (Round 5), GWS Giants v Western Bulldogs (Round 6) and Collingwood v Essendon (Round 7) What are the key selling points of the draw? Football is becoming a four-day weekend across March and April, with five Thursday night matches in the first five weeks. Stretching the weekend will equate to great exposure for clubs as 14 of the 18 teams will feature in marquee Thursday and/or Friday timeslots across the opening six weeks. Are there any AFL-AFLW double headers on the program? Two across the first two weeks. In Round 1, the Brisbane-Sydney clash at The Gabba on Saturday night (March 20) will follow Brisbane-Collingwood in the AFLW. In Round Two, it will be a true doubleheader — Gold Coast v North Melbourne at Metricon Stadium in the men’s and women’s competitions. What is happening on Anzac Day? Because it falls on a Sunday, the league has scheduled three matches: the Hawks will host the Crows at Launceston, Collingwood will tackle Essendon at the MCG in the traditional Anzac Day blockbuster, while Port Adelaide and St Kilda will round out the day at Adelaide Oval in a 4.20pm kick-off. See who your club has to play twice in 2021: ADELAIDE Play twice: North Melbourne, Hawthorn, Port Adelaide, West Coast, Melbourne BRISBANE LIONS Play twice: Collingwood, Fremantle, Geelong, Gold Coast, Richmond CARLTON Play twice: Collingwood, Fremantle, Gold Coast, GWS Giants, Port Adelaide COLLINGWOOD Play twice: Brisbane Lions, Carlton, Essendon, Port Adelaide, West Coast ESSENDON Play twice: Collingwood, GWS Giants, Hawthorn, North Melbourne, Sydney FREMANTLE Play twice: Brisbane Lions, Carlton, Hawthorn, Sydney, West Coast GEELONG Play twice: Brisbane Lions, Melbourne, North Melbourne, Richmond, St Kilda GOLD COAST Play twice: Brisbane Lions, Carlton, North Melbourne, Sydney, Western Bulldogs GWS GIANTS Play twice: Carlton, Essendon, Melbourne, Richmond, Sydney HAWTHORN Play twice: Adelaide, Essendon, Fremantle, Melbourne, Richmond MELBOURNE Play twice: Adelaide, Carlton, GWS Giants, Hawthorn, Western Bulldogs NORTH MELBOURNE Play twice: Gold Coast, Western Bulldogs, Adelaide, Essendon, Geelong PORT ADELAIDE Play twice: St Kilda, Collingwood, Western Bulldogs, Carlton and Adelaide RICHMOND Play twice: Hawthorn, St Kilda, Geelong, GWS, Brisbane ST KILDA Play twice: West Coast, Richmond, Port Adelaide, Geelong, Sydney SYDNEY Play twice: Essendon, GWS, Gold Coast, Fremantle, St Kilda WEST COAST Play twice: Western Bulldogs, St Kilda, Collingwood, Fremantle, Adelaide WESTERN BULLDOGS Play twice: North Melbourne, Melbourne, Gold Coast, West Coast, Port Adelaide