The AFL grudge matches for 2027 have been revealed, with prized Hawthorn recruit Zach Merrett to face the Bombers in round three and Zak Butters to face his former Port Adelaide teammates in round four.
Sydney, three-peat premiers Brisbane, beaten grand finalists Fremantle and flag hopefuls Hawthorn and Adelaide will all feature heavily in the prime-time slots next year.
Nine of Sydney's first 15 matches are scheduled for either a Thursday or Friday night. There could be more prime-time love for the Swans after that, with the AFL yet to release the exact dates of matches beyond round 16.
Sydney will open the season on Wednesday, March 17, against Geelong at the SCG.
But their most tantalising fixture shapes as the round-eight match against North Melbourne at the SCG, which will pit Nick Blakey against his former Swans teammates.
Sydney antagonist Tom Papley had already flagged that the match-up against Blakey was the fixture he was looking forward to the most.
Merrett's trade away from Essendon was more than a year in the making, with the Bombers' refusal to let him leave at the end of 2025 leaving a sour taste in his mouth.
The 31-year-old eventually got his wish during the recent trade period, and the star midfielder will go up against the Bombers on a Saturday night, April 3 at the MCG.
The following round, on April 11, Port host the Bulldogs at Adelaide Oval, with Butters in line to receive a frosty reception from diehard Power supporters.
AFL games record-holder Scott Pendlebury's move from Collingwood to Gold Coast threw up an interesting stat.
Pendlebury played in 11 venues across his glittering 442-game career at Collingwood.
Next year, Gold Coast have been fixtured to play in a whopping 13 different venues across the opening 16 rounds alone, with Pendlebury having to wait until round 15 to face the Pies.
Former GWS captain Toby Greene, who was traded to the Cats, will face the Giants at ENGIE Stadium in round seven, while former Lions star Lachie Neale has the chance to run out for Collingwood against Brisbane in the Easter Thursday match at the Gabba in round two.
In terms of prime-time Thursday and Friday night matches, Brisbane and Fremantle receive eight each, while the Hawks and Crows (seven) and Collingwood and Geelong (six) also get plenty of love.
St Kilda are the only team to not get a marquee Thursday or Friday night slot in the first 16 rounds.
The grand final rematch between Fremantle and Brisbane will take place at Optus Stadium on Sunday, May 9.
