IT'S NOT QUITE out of sight, out of mind for the two teams which have already booked a AFL preliminary final berth this week. Indeed, Collingwood, via the Brayden Maynard case, has probably continued to have more air time this week than the competing semifinalists.
How the Magpies and Brisbane handle the waiting game is an interesting exercise in itself, particularly since the pre-finals bye instituted in 2016 made the risk of teams which play just one game over a four-week stretch being underdone very real.
Then there's the planning. Of course, you'll never hear Collingwood or Brisbane publicly express a preference for one of their two possible preliminary final opponents, but you can bet your life all involved will be willing on a team in both semifinals on the basis of which they're more confident of defeating the following week.
So, privately at least, would Collingwood rather be taking on Port Adelaide or Greater Western Sydney in a preliminary final? And Brisbane? Would the Lions rather be up against Melbourne or Carlton for a spot in the Grand Final?
Who would Collingwood want to face?
The Magpies have every right to be sitting back quietly confident they're very well-equipped to deal with whichever team wins on Saturday night, given they destroyed Port Adelaide by 71 points and GWS by 65 points at the same venue the preliminary final will be played.
That doesn't mean there won't be the odd "if" or "but" creeping into Magpie minds, not to mention some nightmarish déjà vu if it's the Giants who prevail against the Power.
That will recreate the match-up of 2019, when the Magpies, having beaten Geelong in the qualifying final, had a week off, then took on the Giants, who had won through with successive victories over the Bulldogs and Eagles.
That major upset, when GWS hung on to win a thriller by four points, is purely a psychological aside, four years ago, and with largely different personnel involved. Yet even the Giants of next week would be a different proposition to the one Collingwood dismissed in Round 9.
GWS was still finding its feet under Adam Kingsley at that stage, and the 10-goals-plus thrashing left it a miserable 3-6 on the win-loss tally. Since then, it's won 11 of 15 games and 10 of the last 12. The Giants will take plenty from last week's win over St Kilda on the MCG, too, only their second game there this season.
You can argue similarly with the Power, also. Port Adelaide was completely dismantled by the Pies on the MCG in Round 2, and after it lost the following week's Showdown, there were calls for the head of coach Ken Hinkley.
But by the time they played each other again in Round 19, the Pies and Power were sitting first and second on the ladder, and it took another of those stunning Collingwood final-quarter bursts to get it over the line after trailing by 17 points at three-quarter time.
Port's recent form and injury issues since have marked it down a rung or two from those highs, though. And the Giants' irrepressible run, not to mention their capacity to win anytime, anywhere, would give Collingwood plenty of cause for concern.
I suspect the Pies will be hoping that, at home, it's the Power which prevails.
Who would Brisbane want to face?
Melbourne may have had plenty of disruption going on via injuries and an unsettled forward structure, and it's Carlton which has the slightly more impressive recent form line, but I still think Brisbane will be more nervous about the prospect of a preliminary final against the Demons than the Blues.
And yes, that's despite one win over the Demons already this season, which should have been two, the Lions giving up a four-goal lead to the Dees with just seven minutes to play at the MCG two months ago.
Brisbane could and should have won that game. Its narrow win at the Gabba could also be a little deceptive, given the Lions held a seven-goal lead late in the game until the infamous "lights out" episode caused a 30-minute hold-up to proceedings.
But the bottom line is Melbourne's strongest suit -- its defence -- matches Brisbane's, the Lions' attacking potency. Ditto the territory game, with both teams ranking top three for inside 50 and time in forward half differentials this season.
Carlton, in contrast, is a beast Brisbane has shown repeatedly it has the capacity to tame, the Lions with seven wins from the past eight clashes with the Blues, and the last two with margins in the comfortable five-goals region.
Brisbane's No.1 ranking for points scored from turnovers shapes as critical against the Blues, who don't have a great record of defending scores from the intercept. And that facet was significant in the Lions' Round 8 win over Carlton at Marvel Stadium.
As for the fortress that is the Gabba, Melbourne has fared better there of late than most, pushing the Lions to within 11 points in the "lights out" game and flogging them by 10 goals last year. Carlton, meanwhile, has lost seven in a row there against Brisbane and not had a win over the Lions in Queensland since 2013.
Not that it won't be confident against either side, but I think Brisbane will be a little less toey taking on the Blues next week than the Dees.
You can read more of Rohan Connolly's work at FOOTYOLOGY .