At the end of a crazy weekend came the craziest result, straight out of the Boy’s Own Annual.

Scarcely anyone bar the odd Essendon tragic could have tipped the Dons to topple Hawthorn at the MCG after James Hird’s underprepared team could not even cling to a 41-point lead against Sydney in round one. That Hawthorn rolled to the lead late in the game only added to the perception.

Then, the unthinkable. Essendon, a team full of players who could not complete a proper pre-season because of provisional suspensions and a date with the AFL’s anti-doping tribunal, bobbed up with the last three goals of the game to win.

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In all of Essendon Football Club’s storied history, this will go down as one of the most improbable wins.

Let’s recall that after Hawthorn smashed Geelong in round one, trained observers had the Hawks rollicking to a third consecutive flag.

There’s nothing like sport for kneejerk reactions!

Essendon, driven by Michael Hurley’s peerless game in defence on Jarryd Roughead, had led by 35 points, then faded badly and conceded the lead. The Hawks were still 10 points up inside the last 90 seconds, but Essendon dared to take the ball through the corridor and Travis Colyer kicked a goal, then from the centre clearance, the unlikely figure of Cale Hooker, the Bombers’ dour full-back, kicked the matchwinner.

A downcast Port Adelaide team leave the field after losing to Sydney. Photo: Getty

Hooker ran on to a bouncing ball and snapped around the corner with a minute left; Hird would say later that the posting of an additional forward was part of the team’s plan for tight finishes, and that Hooker was the man.

Yet the drama had not stopped. Hawthorn ran the ball forward and it was in the hands of Luke Breust at point blank range when the siren beat him. Breust popped it through no more than two seconds late.

“I think it’s huge for the players,” said Hird, who can now attack the rest of the season in the knowledge that his men have caught up with the other clubs’ preparations.

Essendon’s list also is quite good, and the Dons have no shortage of motivation.

As for Hawthorn, it was a reality check summed up by recruit James Frawley going down with a pectoral tear that looked serious.

Go figure the AFL. That’s the way to put it.

Hawthorn one week was a certainty for the flag; now is vulnerable. Port Adelaide was tipped as a likely grand finalist, and now is 0-2 after two rounds, falling to Sydney over the weekend.

Gold Coast Suns coach Rodney Eade is trying to work out where it all went wrong against St Kilda. Photo: Getty

Gold Coast Suns were thought to be a monty for the finals after narrowly missing last year; under Rodney Eade they also are 0-2, having lost in another boilover at home to St Kilda. Vaunted Geelong also is 0-2 and could not even defend its fortress at Kardinia Park against Fremantle.

If the beauty of sport is its unpredictability, then the AFL has something right this season. There are just five teams – Adelaide, Sydney, Fremantle, Greater Western Sydney and Western Bulldogs – who remain unbeaten, and the two teams from Australia’s biggest city square off next weekend, meaning that another must fall.

Adelaide’s new coach Phil Walsh had challenged his players after their opening-round win over North Melbourne to take their brand of suffocating football to Melbourne and win in the heartland; they duly delivered against a lacklustre Collingwood at Etihad Stadium.

Patrick Dangerfield continues to shine and so did Brodie Smith until he was knocked out late in the game by an accidental kick to the head. As for the Magpies, the margin (27 points) flattered them; they are confronting a long season.

Sydney’s triumph over Port Adelaide at Adelaide Oval was comprehensive and significant for the fact the Power was never allowed to execute its hard-running game; it was the lowest score in Ken Hinkley’s reign as coach as the Swans produced a defensive blitz out of its best vintage.

Sydney’s return to expected form means the match against the unbeaten Giants next weekend shapes as a cracker. The Giants ran over the top of Melbourne at Manuka Oval behind great midfield work from the likes of Dylan Shiel and Stephen Coniglio, booting nine goals to none in the third quarter.

Marcus Bontempelli is fast becoming a fan favourite among Western Bulldogs supporters. Photo: Getty

Western Bulldogs have proven to be a revelation with two great wins, the second over Richmond at the MCG. Marcus Bontempelli has emerged as everyone’s favourite new star, and he was brilliant again while the journeyman Tory Dickson sneaked four goals.

Richmond had begun with promise but with more than 400 disposals could manage just nine goals, a testament to woeful ball use and execution, and the Tigers are back in the pack again.

Still, at least they are not in the mire like Carlton, the Blues losing a second straight game, this time to West Coast in Perth. The Blues have failed dismally in the quest to replenish their playing list, and it is taking a heavy toll.

Coach Mick Malthouse said recently the club could not attract free agents anymore, but the bigger issue is that Carlton has not held on to good players. Former Blue Josh Kennedy’s 10 goals for the Eagles was a less-than-subtle reminder of that.

Jarrad Waite after kicking one of his seven goals for North Melbourne against the Brisbane Lions. Photo: Getty

Jarrad Waite’s seven goals for North Melbourne against Brisbane Lions was another hint to the Blues, who have also lost the likes of Eddie Betts (to Adelaide) in recent years.

The Perth teams had a great weekend, with Fremantle toppling Geelong on the road behind David Mundy’s stellar on-ball game. The Dockers were thought to be a slider but Ross Lyon has cobbled a fresh, strong team and grafted on the traits of his teams: in particular the manic defensive pressure.

Not so happy is the camp at Gold Coast, where new coach Rodney Eade has seen his team make a dreadful start. Captain Gary Ablett is underdone and underwhelming by his remarkable standards, and the rest are uncompetitive.

St Kilda, widely tipped for the mythical wooden spoon, smashed the Suns with Josh Bruce taking huge marks and kicking six goals. Bruce was recruited as a defender; now he sits on backmen’s heads, marks and kicks goals.

It is a crazy, old game.