With the first bounce just hours away, hopes, dreams and delusions are still alive.
Will the Magpies enjoy a cakewalk?
Can the Saints and Cats hold on?
Who will be this season’s bolter?
Tell us what you’re thinking Knackers. Does hope spring eternal? Or has resignation claimed you already?
Fire away!
Very concerned about the Kangas’ underwhelming pre-season.
Injuries aplenty, disappointing scratch-match performances, the Hobart fiasco, the Ballarat debacle…
it has not been the most inspiring summer for a North supporter.
The one bright spot was the come-from-behind win over the Bulldogs. Does one swallow make a summer?
First-up is a visit to a hot, hot Perth. Then a long trip back to face the premiers.
Tough start to 2011.
Bring on the footy.
Really hope that we can down the Swans at the G for our first Round 1 win since 2005! That’s certainly been our weak point, not winning in the first round to get the season up and running. hopefully we smash them like we did last year
#2 – Steve I reckon the Demons will win, so will Essendon in an upset. Sorry Smokie but I also think the heat will get to the Kangas. There will be a few bolters early but they’ll come back to the pack (Essendon, Carlton, Demons).
At this point I have to say I lack my normal (but as baseless) certainty about the season ahead – after what was probably Freos best ever season I am filled with trepidation. As for the other 16 teams, who’s purpose is to join Fremantle on Foxtel about 21 times a year I think -:
Carlton – big fat ?.
Melbourne – are they bolters or pretenders – I lean towards bolters.
Geelong – how far the fall.
St Kilda – ditto.
Richmond – they have gone into expectation management earlier than any team in history.
North – gone. cannot overachieve again, one season soon my prediction they are gone will be a good one.
Essendon – Magic at the moment – but so was Brisbane at this time last year.
WB – I confidently expect they will play in a preliminary final.
Hawthorn – ditto.
Sydney – gone.
Adelaide – methinks they are having a dead cat bounce.
Port – Top 8
WC – Last
Brisbane – Last
GCS – Last
But worst of all – Pies – premie…. – no – I cant say it.
Neil – you may not be able to predict the Pies as premiers, but I can confidently say that the Pies have the best chance of any team of going back-to-back this year.
A bad year for the seven travellers.
FREMANTLE: 1995-2010: 13,13,12,15,15,12,16,13,5,9,10,3,11,14,14,6…
Is this the first year they’ll finish in the final eight, back-to-back? I doubt it.
WEST COAST, SUNS, BRISBANE and PORT ADELAIDE could make a solid bottom four.
SYDNEY should hold its spot in the eight. An injury-free ADELAIDE could make it,too.
The price of light beer at docklands will still be outrageous.
Final 8 Home and away
Pies
Dogs
Hawks
Saints
Freo
Geelong
Carlton
Swans
I still dont think the Dee’s are tough enough, the excuses after pre-season in my view were childlike! There is a red oval ball with Sherrin printed on it. Get it more than the other team ALL DAY and you may see a different result!
Collingwood to be eliminated in a shock preliminary final loss.
Carlton to do well enough that the Ratten decision becomes difficult.
Cats’ ageing warriors to find the pace increasingly hot.
All teams with long injury lists ATM to struggle.
Saints or Dogs to take home the choccies.
As a long suffering Freo member I have high hopes last year wasn’t a flash in the pan. Somehow I don’t think so -this side plays with a lot more grunt than the previous and even though they have a long injury list all but Morabito will filter back at some time. Watch for Fyfe who I believe will become one of the best in the AFL but its still Collingwood for me this year
MMMMMMM..Chocolate Cakewalk :P
It can’t be said the season opener set the bar high for quality.
Don’t be too harsh, JB.
Opening night nerves and all that…
And the Blues are now on top of the ladder!
In all seriousness, I thought Waite’s injury/substitution was crucial.
Hey Neil (#4), of course you can’t say because you cannot say what isn’t (going to be) true. Yeah, the Pies will be up there but only to watch on as the Premiership heads … ? To Glenferrie perhaps!
Smokie, if we reckon we’re happy with that effort…
But you’re right. 4 points is 4 points.
34 scoring shots to 19, Richmond have a long way to go.
2 from 2 next week John?
Go Punter !!!
A win from here would be one for the ages.
Whenever T Neilson talks up the Aussies and poo poos the opposition before a big game, get on the opposition.
PF, correct again.
But it was good to see Punter rail against the dying of the light.
Tim #16, we’d need to do better next week. I suspect the Suns will be giving their all to impress.
PF, the $3.50 on India, Sri Lanka and South Africa was too juicy to resist.
JB, I don’t think you’ll be complacent next week. The knives are sharpening for Ratten and I doubt he’d want to give his enemies further encouragement.
Expectations before Round 1 after Thursday
– Already having a better strike rate at AFL tipping than NRL tipping (1/1 in AFL, 6/16 over 2 rounds of NRL and I’m not the only one).
– A Grand Final Appearance for the Red White and Blue, we’ve had enough of getting to preliminary finals for one lifetime!
– Queensland clubs to be 2 of the bottom 3 sides in the comp.
– Round 1 and especially Sunday’s games may take a back seat if Mark Webber does anything half decent at Albert Park.
Those Cats just keep on keeping on
After watching the Saints v Cats, I don’t feel so bad about the Blues efforts.
A train wreck of a game only just salvaged by the thriller finish.
So the experts are all out with their steel toe caps kicking at the Cats and Saints.
They appear to be supporters of clubs that have provided nothing but disappointment for their faithfull for a decade or so.
With the Cats and Saints on Friday night we had a team that misssed the flag by ‘a will of God bounce’ in the dying stages of the first grand final and another who have won two flags out of four and every body has written off.
Of course it was going to be a tough encounter but all the great scribes and armchair experts want a spectacle of high scoreing footy the way the corporates want it rather than a last man standing bout by two heavy weight contenders.
I’d take a one point win over an almost full strength St Kilda from a team that has had their coach and the best player going around stolen, their captain out, their stand in captain knocked out (fair bump I thought) one of the most underated players of the last five years prematurely retired (M Rooke) and well under strength, as well as coming from well behind in the context of the game and scoring the last goal at the bell from sheer determination.
If anyone would like to openly state that they would not take that sort of a win against the Saints speak now and then seek substance abuse therapy because you are off the planet.
Fight’n Phantom
And a bit on the subject of cricket.
C. White should never ever play for Australia again and the persons who kept selecting him should be sacked.
Good to see you feisty and fired up for a fresh season Phantom.
A bit harsh on White. He was out of form, but he wasn’t selecting himself. As for the nongs who were…
So what do we think of Essendon. For real?
Righteous Brothers JB.
They’ve got that Geelong feeling, woe-oh that Geelong feeling
they’ve got that Geelong feeling
Hird is gone, gone, gone
Bomber won’t take long, woe oh oh oh.
Not too hard on White JB. Over rated. What has he ever done at the highest level? Token Victorian.
And yes I am a bit fired up. The Carlton supporters have been at me all weekend. I had to explain the tactical difference about how two top sides and two bottom sides play go about playing for four points.
So, it’s Collingwood and Essendon for the flag then?
Does James Hird truly walk on water?
And what is it with the Doggies and round 1?
Is there any Waite behind the rumour that the match review panel are being sponsored by Visy this year JB?