by Jonathan Rivett The problem with writing about someone you have never met is that your presumptions could so easily be wrong. Maybe what I’m about to say about Jim Stynes, who died on the morning of Tuesday the 20th of March, is incorrect. Maybe he was not much different from those who came [Read more]
There’s nothing like a prediction to get people talking
March 20, 2012 by 2 Comments
by Andrew Weiss So the NAB Cup has finished and everyone is looking forward to the start of the season kicking off on Saturday night with a real blockbuster to start the year off, that being the Coathanger clash (well that’s what I am calling it) where the new boys in town the Giants [Read more]
In A-League of its Own 15 (2011/12)
March 20, 2012 by 2 Comments
Tom’s weekly outlook on the A-League Melbourne Heart has cemented their place in the finals series for the first time in their short history following a 2-2 draw with Sydney FC. After taking a comfortable 2-0 lead into half time, the home side threw away their advantage by the 80th minute after substitute Shannon Cole [Read more]
New Zealand – Part 2. Bungy!
March 20, 2012 by 1 Comment
by Kieran Deck The dawn sun rutilant on the lake sparks and sets-off the cicadas again. I wake early, still buzzing with the excitement of being in another country. This feeling is at odds with the pessimism I hold for today’s activity: bungy jumping. It strikes me that I’m nervous in the car, somewhere [Read more]
Comeback shelved
March 20, 2012 by 3 Comments
by Craig Dodson A lazy Sunday afternoon sitting on the couch next to my 38 week pregnant wife Sophie and I’m looking for a distraction to take our mind off the waiting game of juniors impending arrival. Lets go for a kick I suggest, a tough challenge for a pregnant lady who is currently [Read more]
You’ve gotta lose one to win one
March 20, 2012 by 5 Comments
by Tony Robb In a departure from my usual ranting, I feel the need to discuss that old acorn about having to lose one to win one. In the case of Geelong and Collingwood, you actually have to lose heaps to finally jag a flag. However, rather than looking at it from a footy [Read more]
RIP Jim Stynes 1966-2012
March 20, 2012 by 20 Comments
Jim Stynes has finally succumbed to cancer. It is a loss the whole football and broader community will feel. If you wish to leave any thoughts, please do so below. Martin Flanagan has paid eloquent tribute over at The Age. http://www.theage.com.au/afl/melbourne-demons/more-than-a-great-sportsman-20120320-1vgjg.html
Premier Cricket – Quarter Final review
March 20, 2012 by 11 Comments
by Mic Rees The 2011/12 Quarter finals of Premier Cricket saw two favourites salute, a major reversal of form and a surprise result in the remaining game. Reigning champs Dandenong travelled to Princes Park to take on minor premier Carlton. Despite missing both Pattinson boys and Peter Siddle, the Panthers would have been satisfied [Read more]
The Shield Final
March 20, 2012 by 8 Comments
by Ian Hauser Late last year on 9th October, son Liam and I went to the Gabba to watch the Queensland Bulls take on the Victorian Bushrangers in a Ryobi Cup one-dayer. We were treated to a decidedly underwhelming match which the Bulls won without being in the least convincing. We agreed that the [Read more]
A Tough Year Awaits GWS
March 19, 2012 by Leave a Comment
After watching GWS play against Richmond last Saturday at Manuka I am convinced that GWS will struggle to win a single game this year. In reaching the above conclusion I have drawn upon the experiences of the Gold Coast Suns in their first year. I note that Gold Coast recorded three wins against my pre-season [Read more]
Allez Oppy, le phénomène
March 19, 2012 by 3 Comments
The first week of April will see the World Track Cycling Championships commence at Hisense Arena in Melbourne. It may not get the coverage of yore – road cycling is riding the crest of a popular wave – but Australia once boasted a hero of the boards every bit as extraordinary as Cadel. By common consensus, in the [Read more]
Almanac Rugby League – It’s a party and I’ll cry if I want to
March 19, 2012 by Leave a Comment
Given we had volunteered to host my brother-in-law’s birthday party on Sunday afternoon, I wasn’t sure that I was going to be able to watch the Panthers play their round three game against the Rabbitohs. In desperation I setup the recorder in advance, but after a couple of beers, Ray asked if I wanted to [Read more]
Bombers take the Top End
March 19, 2012 by 9 Comments
If Spain played the ‘beautiful game’ with the round ball to win the World Cup, the Tiwi Bombers played it last Saturday night with the oval ball to win the Northern Territory Football League premiership for the first time. Not that it was perfect footy. The Bomber defence took nearly half the game to get [Read more]
WHY GWS WILL WIN THE PREMIERSHIP
March 19, 2012 by 8 Comments
THE OPTIMIST’S GUIDE TO SEASON 2012. PART TEN. By Alex Wadelton WHY GWS WILL WIN THE PREMIERSHIP The Greater Western Sydney coaching staff are the most experienced in the league. Kevin Sheedy has four flags as coach, Mark Williams has one. That equals five. So, they are also the team with the coaches who have [Read more]
History starts somewhere
March 19, 2012 by 21 Comments
We’re about to hit the footy season and for a writer that means lots of footy writing. When I’m at my desk, immediately to my left on the bookshelves sit a number of reference books. These include the two volumes of The Shorter Oxford Dictionary (surely one of the great publications), Roget’s, various books of [Read more]
Practice? Are we talking about practice?
March 19, 2012 by 3 Comments
It’s been an extremely slow news week, we don’t give a stuff about the NAB Cup grand final or the Herald Sun are putting all their important stories behind the pay wall. The back page of today’s (Thursday) Herald Sun features a story announcing that Jack Watts isn’t playing in the VFL this week and [Read more]
Almanac Rugby League – A Parramatta Nightmare
March 19, 2012 by Leave a Comment
Match ReportNorth Queensland Cowboys v Parramatta Eels Saturday, 17th March, 7.30pm Right from the kickoff you should know that I am an Eels’ supporter who is still wallowing in the wonder years of the 1980s. In fact, if I could choose my Groundhog Year it would unquestionably be 1986 when the ‘decade-dominating’ Eels won both [Read more]
Keeping Up Appearances
March 19, 2012 by 4 Comments
Scene 1: A group of Club Recruiters are meeting with an AFL Manager to discuss emerging issues and trends in the game. Recruiter 1: It’s always been as much an art as a science this recruiting business. You look at what’s available in the local comps. Look at your clubs place on the ladder. No [Read more]
A Good Time To Reflect
March 19, 2012 by 25 Comments
Football is a pretty reliable mirror. The many ways we express our passion for the game reveal us. The industry that has grown around the game also tells us much by the way it chooses to operate. All manner of issues regarding indigenous footballers have arisen lately. In the case of Liam Jurrah, the [Read more]
crio’s Q(uandary)?
March 19, 2012 by 1 Comment
The first game of the season is next Saturday. That’s crept under my guard. I still thought the Tiges and the Blues had cornered the right to the first bounce. So far I have watched neither practice matches nor any of the babble on FoxFooty or elsewhere. Usually I reckon the year starts when they [Read more]
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