Cause-infested footy

Footy is becoming cause infested. It is involving itself where it need not be; where it should not be. Like a movie star who suddenly acquires the wisdom to resolve the Middle East conflict, the AFL is becoming a slave to its own hubris, says Dips O’Donnell.

Grand Final Infographic

Jake ‘Cobba’ Stevens uses Grand Final week inspiration to produce a super infograph.

The Brownlow winner

We re-visit John Harms’s tribute to Jobe Watson after an unlikely Bombers win one Sunday evening in 2009..

1980 – A Personal Footy Almanac: Grand Final – Richmond v Collingwood

Richmond tragic Stainless reaches the final stop of his nostalgic journey through the 1980 season – the Grand Final against Collingwood.

AFL Finals – Week 3: The View from Shepparton

De facto Crows supporter Peter Schumacher couldn’t help buy ponder the “what ifs” while staring at the ceiling on Saturday night.

WAFL: Tigers make it two in a row

Claremont are the 2012 WAFL premiers, defeating East Fremantle by 26 points. However, as Les Everett reports, the Tigers didn’t have it all their own way. Some terrific photos included.

Local footy: A Black day in the Ammos

More Grand Final football stories were etched over the weekend as plenty will continue to develop over the coming weeks. A story just as big as any other is the dual premiership glory of the University Blacks in the Victorian Amateur Football League (VAFA).

People and Memories – Part 6: Joan Etherington, Melbourne FC

  Joan Etherington has her feet up in front of the TV when I arrive at her Blackburn unit, in Melbourne’s east. Her Melbourne scarf hangs on the coat stand and the living room walls are covered with family photos. Beautiful grand-daughters smile out at her from exotic European and African settings. Over cups of [Read more]

AFL Finals – Hawthorn v Adelaide: 6 to 1 in a two horse race

The article I most want to read would have to a be a nicely worded one about how all the pundits had got it wrong about Adelaide and their right to be in the prelim. It would only be a small piece of humble pie with no cream on the side because in the prelim weekend battle of the birds the two most likely to win did in fact get up. But it so nearly wasn’t the case.

Dear Bruce, stop the stats!

Sean Curtain makes an impassioned plea to Bruce McAvaney before the Grand Final – Enough of the Stats already!

GWS Giants: a new chapter opens

Many will look at the Giants’ first season and say it was terrible, laughable, a joke and a disgrace from a team nobody wants in an area where people shouldn’t even be allowed to touch a Sherrin. Steve Duffy doesn’t see it that way.

The Brownlow, finals and Matthew Knights

As we approach season’s end, it is good to see that Jobe Watson, Trent Cotchin and Sam Mitchell finished in that order in the Brownlow – humble champions all.

Donegal burst secures All-Ireland final

Hamish Townsend joined some nervous Mayo supporters on Sunday night for the All-Ireland final against Donegal.

AFL Preliminary Final – Hawthorn v Adelaide: Crows refuse to bow out quietly

The Crows refused to play their assigned role of a stepping stone in the Hawks’ Stairway to Heaven, says Peter Fuller.

Off Season Odyssey – Part 22: Unnoticed Echoes

    The day’s been perfect. Lost and perfect. I have money in pocket, hard work behind me. There’s only five clouds in the sky. Each one worn by a mountain range, making their own weather. The town is perfect, to look at, anyway. To drive through. To drink at. Walking into the pub, surrounded [Read more]

Brownlow blog: win an Almanac or a bottle of Murrindindi wine

Brownlow night, and even the Brownlow is becoming scientific, with analysts claiming the award goes to a mid-fielder from a top team. Knowing Derek Humphery-Smith and Murray Bird, legendary umpires (who will be at the Almanac lunch on Friday) my conclusion is that there’s probably not a lot of science in it at all. Muz [Read more]

The 2012 ‘Mopsy’ Fraser Cup – Preliminary Final

Greetings Tipsters I watched Friday’s prelim laying down in my Hanoi hotel room with Perky Girl, drinking several beers at $0.60 a pop and smoking cigs at $0.50 a pack. For all of that, I’ve been following the Sparkies for far too long to ever get too cocky, so it wasn’t an entirely relaxing experience. [Read more]

Two out of three ain’t bad

Down to Sandi again for us “Boys from Old Fitzroy” and the morning off for derrinalphil; “bugger all” sleep on Friday night. Did any Fitzroy supporter have a good night’s sleep? It was a relief to get up at six, get the paper and have a cuppa. Young master derrinalphil also hit the kitchen early. [Read more]

My second novel

I wrote my first football story when I was eight. It was my second novel. My first novel was called Wombat because it was about a wombat. My football novel was about our family driving from Shepparton to VFL Park in our Morris 1100, to see Geelong play Footscray, the second game of VFL footy [Read more]

The Finals’ Wrap – Week III (The Feathered Friends Round)

WHERE LIFE IMITATES FOOTBALL And what a round it’s been in Footy Eddie.  On the Friday night, The Swans saw off the Carringbush Hoodoo and booked themselves a place in the Last Match of The Season.  Well before the last bread & jam had rattled out of the CBD for Saturday night, the Hawks had put [Read more]