I woke up to the sound of gunfire in the distance and to the realization that today is another day, I survived yesterday and I am where I am. Slowly, painfully, I get up, moving my feet stiffly before a Japanese prison guard hits me with the butt of his rifle to ‘hurry’ me up. [Read more]
Almanac Rugby League – Why should the salary cap strangle homegrown stars?
April 24, 2010 by 3 Comments
Melbourne Storm’s hanging has concentrated my mind. Try this proposal on for size: To preserve a competitive AFL, drafted players should be subject to their club’s salary cap for their first three seasons, as should established players acquired from other AFL clubs. To preserve club loyalties, I don’t see why clubs should be restricted from [Read more]
A night in Stats Central
April 23, 2010 by Leave a Comment
I have long been going to the SANFL to keep a close watch on the development and form of any Adelaide Crows player running around in the twos. And for every game I’ve gone to I’ve carried a little black notebook, about the size of the average hand, with me. AnneFed
Footy Talk: Choco and Junkyard do Match Committee
April 23, 2010 by 4 Comments
In this week’s episode of The Odd Couple, the role of Oscar Madison will be played by Mark Williams, and Felix Unger will be played by Dean Laidley. After a drubbing down in Geelong, Felix arrives ready for action at match committee, dossiers and laptop at the ready. He’s a little taken aback at what [Read more]
Tom’s Teams: Players who’ve swapped clubs
April 22, 2010 by 5 Comments
by Tom Riordan Amidst the debate about free agency, mid-season drafts and high profile trades, I wondered just how many players on AFL lists had already swapped clubs. Going through The Age’s Footy 2010 magazine, I found 86 players who have been on at least two AFL clubs’ lists and managed to get a team [Read more]
ANZAC Day
April 22, 2010 by 14 Comments
by Damian O’Donnell It’s a fabulous photo. Four blokes dressed in ragged shirts and shorts, one with a hat on, all in their boots, are dashing across what looks like a paddock. They all have eyes for an object that sits up in the middle of the photo like a candle in a dim room. [Read more]
The View From Shepparton: Round 4
April 20, 2010 by Leave a Comment
The Lions, as I predicted from the outset are four zip at this stage. What legends they are. Somehow Collingwood are three one. How the hell did that happen? And it is surprising that the Bulldogs are now two and two. I thought that they were better than that. South Australian football is in total [Read more]
Crio’s Q: How do the awful sides of the past stack up to today’s Tigers
April 19, 2010 by 18 Comments
by Chris Riordan Sunday’s MCG shellacking seems to have confirmed pundits’ suspicions that Richmand are easily the worst team in the comp and, with expansion concessions in place, their future is dire. This is the Club, remember, that Oracle Sheeds suggested was ready for a Flag last year! But they are crap. Let’s celebrate this [Read more]
FANTASY: Tell him he’s dreaming
April 19, 2010 by 1 Comment
by Ged McMahon I had a dream last night. A sporting dream. I guess that’s nothing special for the average Australian male but this was a little different to my usual sporting dreams. You see, normally they become nightmares. They are tales of woe, so close yet so far, tales of embarrassment and complete humiliation. I [Read more]
AFL late breaking headline: Michael Barlow
April 19, 2010 by 7 Comments
by Andrew Fithall The Footy Record this weekend had an article on the number of VFL players who were drafted and are currently playing in the AFL. While the article highlighted 28 year-old James Podsiadly, one of the others who has started their AFL career in 2010, and who has also attracted a fair bit [Read more]
Local Footy: Great recruiting coups of the bush
April 15, 2010 by 2 Comments
Rarely have there ever been any secrets in football and when the recruiters from the Big Smoke came to town, it was always big news. Brendan Edwards, best afield in Hawthorn’s first-ever premiership in 1961, was creating a stir in Sandhurst in the mid-50s, North Melbourne and Hawthorn among his many suitors. In those days [Read more]
General Footy Writing: Nightmare down Collingwood Street
April 14, 2010 by 12 Comments
Last week, I had a weird dream — or a nightmare, as I should call it. I was on a basket ball court and I was crying. Here’s the weird thing: there were Collingwood players there too, in their footy gear, some standing, some sunk in the ground and all of them were crying. I [Read more]
Round 3 – The View from Shepparton: Too many minors a key issue for Collingwood
April 12, 2010 by 5 Comments
by Peter Schumacher As I wind up my gramophone, I am sure that I must be the only footy fan preparing to put down thoughts accompanied by Bach’s Toccata and Fugue in D Minor, BWV 565 in glorious SACD sound. True, I am not in the right room, but still, sounds pretty damned good through [Read more]
Crio’s Question: How did you get through a mid-match wedding?
April 12, 2010 by 46 Comments
by Chris Riordan Admit it. We’ve all found ourselves in circumstances where we need a score…I mean a footy score, but have had to institute a covert operation. Whether overseas, at a meeting or even at a wedding (!!!), in what unusual situations have you managed to get your fix? crio
To shake or not to shake…and other post-Easter randoms
April 10, 2010 by 4 Comments
Early season observations (that wise period just before round 3) And WHY SHAKING HANDS IS STILL A MUST! Sorry to disturb anyone who is agonising about their tips for Round 3 (getting 6 will win you most weekly comps I reckon), but I just wanted to bring up a few issues, one of which I [Read more]
Round 2 – The View from Shepparton: MCG classic makes up for missed Gabba glory
April 9, 2010 by 2 Comments
by Peter Schumacher What a great round of footy we have just observed, well most of us. For me, after all of my moaning and complaining about delayed telecasts, the Gabba seemingly in outer space somewhere with no communication to or from, here was a live direct telecast and broadcast.”And guess what”? as our fearless [Read more]
VFL 1982 Grand Final: You really can’t stop the music
April 7, 2010 by 5 Comments
By Alex Wadelton. Early on a Sunday morning, Channel Seven’s digital channel, the creatively named 7Two, features classics from the VFL vaults. This week’s was the 1982 Grand Final between Carlton and Richmond. Now before any younger readers begin thinking this is a fictional piece, Richmond truly did, once upon a time, compete in finals [Read more]
Feature: A way to go: despondency and expectation in the life of a Freo supporter
April 6, 2010 by 16 Comments
Malcolm Allbrook The life of a Fremantle Dockers supporter, one of perpetual disappointment, of occasional bursts of joy mingled with frustration, gloom, pitying looks and occasional patronizing reassurances from teams confident of their sustained superiority. The team of the colour purple with all its contradictory implications, of the symbolic anchor intended to signify our maritime [Read more]
Crio’s Question: How are the experts going?
April 6, 2010 by 4 Comments
by Chris Riordan It’s not just the players who face judgement as a new season gets underway. Footy fans have been hit by a wall of forecasts/previews/broadcasts/reviews…some funny, some stern, some pithy… How are they going? Reviews and recommendations welcome as we sift for the best footy info and entertainment. crio
Zig Zagging to Suburban Grounds (Part 1)
April 4, 2010 by 20 Comments
By Damian Watson In the eyes of the teenage folk, the end of March represents the beginning of a two week break from school. On Saturday fellow Almanacker Steve Healy, trying to shield himself from witnessing another Melbourne annihilation at the hands of Hawthorn, accepted my suggestion that we should roam around suburban Melbourne at some stage [Read more]
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