AFL Round 17 – Gold Coast v Collingwood (Haiku Bob): half in the clouds

Haiku Bob on Round 17.

AFL Round 17 – GWS Giants v Essendon: British Invasion

Manchester United fans helped push the Skoda Stadium attendance past 10,000 for only the second time. Neil Jackson is sure they would have liked what they saw.

T20 eroding Test skills

There’s been a gnawing feeling amongst cricket fans that the prevalence of T20 cricket has eroded our team’s skills at the longer form of the game though we’ve not really ever quantified it. Brutas Mudcake delves deeper and believes the man on the street is right.

Gigs Ladder Comp Round 18 update – Way to go, bro!

Back in the good old days – round 9 to be exact – things were much simpler. Richmond was where they should be, just outside the eight, Adelaide and West Coast were top eight teams and Hawthorn and Geelong were equal top of the ladder.How things have changed!

AFL Round 17 – Hawthorn v Western Bulldogs: Bring on September

The Hawks should have won at least one more flag since 2008, writes Tim Adam. Based on the weekend’s performance, this should be their year.

AFL Round 17 – North Melbourne v Carlton: Too many demons

North’s 2013 fade-outs have usually come late in games. They didn’t wait that long this time. When Carlton challenged halfway through the first term, North sighed and meekly retreated, carrying the look of a team with too many demons.

AFL Round 17 – Richmond v Fremantle: The Importance of Being Dawson

Zac Dawson is a footballing enigma – ‘….Like a mule with a spinning wheel. Nobody knows how he got it and danged if he knows how to use it!’ Point being, there is no way of accurately defining why Dawson is effective, its easier to just admit that he somehow is.

AFL Round 17 – Hawthorn v Western Bulldogs: Little wins

Once you accept that your team is crap, you need to look at its games in a different way in order to sustain yourself and your sanity through the long, winless periods. Dogs fans need to find little wins within losses, even within big losses.

Money

There are things money can’t buy, writes Rick Kane, but will Buddy realise this before it’s too late?

AFL Round 17 – Adelaide v Geelong: Jibbed again

Games against Adelaide give me the creeps. It’s not the win/loss record that creeps me out; Geelong holds a 2 game edge after all this time. It’s more to do with the sordid Crows past, which has left a sour taste in my mouth. (Warning: contains references to Leigh Colbert’s mark in 1997 final.)

AFL Round 17 – Melbourne v Brisbane: Oh, to be in Darwin

A strain of Cat flu has left Edwin Cowlishaw unable to make the trip north to see his Demons but a spirited team performance and another ripping game by Jack Fitzpatrick left him feeling a little better.

AFL Round 17 – Gold Coast v Collingwood: Saturday Matineé

What has happened to the Pies, asks David Enticott. Two years ago they were a quarter away from back-to-back flags, now they look like they would struggle against a bunch of 40-year-old veterans.

Cricket: What is our priority?

The T20 tail is wagging the cricketing dog, but what shape is the 20-over format in, asks Luke Reynolds.

AFL Round 17 – Gold Coast v Collingwood: Getting it done, Gary style

Tipping against the Suns used to guarantee a winner. Not any more, writes Beth Newman, who has fallen further behind in her local competition as a result.

AFL Round 17 – Adelaide v Geelong: I want to have Matthew Wright’s baby

Crows fan Adam Ritchie loses control as Football Park reaches fever pitch in the final quarter against the Cats.

Canberra Gaelic Football

The Canberra Gaelic Football Club will hold a meeting at the Irish club, 6 Parkinson St, Weston on Thursday, August 1 to discuss a potential summer competition. The meeting will start at 7pm and new players are welcome.

WAFL – Round 18: Bulldogs climb off the bottom

South Fremantle pulled off the upset of the round by easily beating second team West Perth at Arena Joondalup and, in the process, moving from last place for the first time in weeks.

How to Watch Footy (part 18): Umbrella organisation

Rain or shine, in this case rain, Vin Maskell can be found watching the footy. Even he learnt a few things from Len, a hardened Williamstown supporter.

AFL Round 17 – St.Kilda v Port Adelaide: We won the toss

Port mugged Yvette Wroby’s Saints early but she was thrilled with the character and effort shown to fight back and hit the lead briefly in the final quarter. The future looks a little brighter.

Wordplay

The Washington Post’s MENSA Invitational invited readers to take any word from the dictionary, alter it by adding, subtracting or changing one letter and supplying a new definition. (Well worth a look – thanks Fearless.)