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Fremantle Dockers vs Melbourne Demons AFL Round 2 Tips - Demons Have Value as Underdog

Ryan Tucker

Editor

Last updated: Thu 19 Mar 2026 14:36

Ryan Tucker 19 Mar 2026

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Experts favor Melbourne as the underdogs to cover +22.5 in AFL Round 2.
Fremantle's average game margin at home is +27 but shows inconsistency.
Melbourne's new attacking playstyle under Steven King is a game-changer.
The game will be played at Optus Stadium on Saturday, 21st March, with the bounce at 7:35 PM (AEDT)

Fremantle Dockers vs Melbourne Demons

Fremantle Dockers vs Melbourne Demons, Round 2 2026 - Expert Prediction

The Dockers are large favourites in this matchup which creates value with some uncertain numbers across multiple books.

Fremantle Dockers vs Melbourne Demons, Round 2 2026 - Expert Prediction
Head to Head Stats
Fremantle Dockers Form Analysis & Team News
Melbourne Demons Form Analysis
Fremantle Dockers Team News
Melbourne Demons Team News
Fremantle Dockers v Melbourne Demons Team List
Fremantle Dockers vs Melbourne Demons AFL 2026 Round 2 FAQ’s

Our predictive model has the edge with Melbourne and we have scoured the top AFL bookmakers in Australia to find the best line and price to pass on the value to our punters.

Melbourne were a different team out on the park in Round 1. Many pundits had them bottom 4 to finish this season with a small rebuild under new coach Steven King. But the Dees surprised everyone with their attacking style of footy and the ever young Max Gawn continuing to dominate on the ball.

Fremantle had completely dismantled the Cats in the first half of their Round 1 matchup but capitulated in the second half to allow their opponent to steal the game from under their nose. It’s not likely they allow that two weeks in a row but Freo games rarely end in blow outs and their absolute margin across the past two seasons is 27 pts with exactly half of all their home games over the past 2 years ending up finishing under this number.

The best play is to side with the Dees while the bookies are still underestimating them while still staying within the trends of the Dockers numbers

Take Melbourne to cover +22.5 as the road Underdog, Murphy Reid to go Under his disposals number of 20.5 and Kysaiah Pickett to have 2+ majors.

Away Underdogs covered at a 51.5% rate last season while Freo covered in just 3 of 8 games as 20+ pt favourites.
Fremantle’s average game margin at home over the past 2 seasons is 27 pts.
Murphy Reid has exceeded 20 disposals just once in his 25 game career.
Kozzie Pickett had 5 goals in his most recent game vs Freo and went on to kick 2+ in 11 of the 17 games he scored in last season.

Head to Head Stats

Melbourne won the lone matchup last season 107-97 at the MCG but Fremantle had won 5 of the 8 matches prior to that dating back to the start of the 2019 season.

The Game Total has gone Over in 3 straight and 5 of the last 9 games while the winner of each game has covered the line in all 9 matches during this span.

Fremantle Dockers Form Analysis & Team News

The Dockers controlled the majority of the game and even led their season opener against Geelong by 35 pts at one stage late in the 2nd quarter. But it all came crashing down in the 2nd half with Freo allowing their opponent 18 scoring shots for 8 majors to take over the game.

The Dockers leaders went missing late with the major players having little impact on the ball in the 2nd half. Caleb Serong finished with 30 disposals and 8 clearances while Luke Jackson had a positive impact roving around the ground.

The defence kept Geelong to a 56% efficiency Inside 50.

Melbourne Demons Form Analysis

The Dees opened their account with a 120-107 win last weekend against St Kilda in a see-sawing battle. There was a distinct difference in Melbourne’s playing style under their new coach Steven King with fast ball movement and exciting play.

Former St Kilda captain Jack Steele had 21 touches against his old club but it was Max Gawn with 22 disposals, 36 hitouts, 5 clearances and a goal that got fans out of their seat. The Dees also unearthed another young star with Jacob van Rooyen kicking 6 goals.

Fremantle Dockers Team News

Luke Ryan has overcome illness which kept him out of Round 1 but has still missed selection with no match fitness under his belt. Hayden Young is out injured, replaced by debutant Chris Scerri. Still no sign of Mason Cox.

Melbourne Demons Team News

No major changes are expected for the Demons.

Fremantle Dockers v Melbourne Demons Team List

Fremantle	POS	Melbourne
O. McDonald, A. Pearce, H. Chapman	B	D. Turner, J. Lever, C. Jiath
J. Clark, B. Walker, J. McVee	HB	B. Howes, X. Lindsay, C. Salem
N. Erasmus, A. Brayshaw, M. Johnson	C	T. Sparrow, J. Steele, H. Sharp
J. Amiss, P. Voss, S. Switkowski	HF	K. Pickett, J. van Rooyen, E. Langdon
S. Bolton, J. Treacy, M. Reid	F	B. Fritsch, B. Mihocek, L. Pickett
S. Darcy, L. Jackson, C. Serong	FOLL	M. Gawn, C. Windsor, T. Rivers
C. Scerri, I. Dudley, N. O’Driscoll, K. Worner, C. Wagner	I/C	H. Langford, K. Tholstrup, J. Culley, H. Petty, K. Chandler

Fremantle Dockers vs Melbourne Demons AFL 2026 Round 2 FAQ’s

How to watch Fremantle Dockers vs Melbourne Demons AFL 2026 Round 2?

You can watch the Fremantle Dockers vs Melbourne Demons AFL 2026 Round 2 game via Fox Sports or Kayo Sports. If you are watching from outside of Australia the WatchAFL app is the perfect solution.

How to buy tickets to Fremantle Dockers vs Melbourne Demons AFL 2026 Round 2?

To buy tickets to the Fremantle Dockers vs Melbourne Demons AFL 2026 Round 2 game check the AFL website or the official Fremantle Dockers site.

Verdict

Fremantle Dockers v Melbourne Demons

Take Melbourne to cover +22.5 as the road Underdog, Murphy Reid to go Under his disposals number of 20.5 and Kysaiah Pickett to have 2+ majors.

Melbourne +22.5

Line

$1.88 - 3 Units

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