By Brad Carr I’m an Eagles supporter who lives in Melbourne. The most common question I get asked is, “Why do you barrack for West Coast?” The conversation normally goes along the following lines: Local: “Who do you barrack for?” Me: “West Coast” Local (contorts face uncomfortably): “Eeeeww (pauses). Are you from over there?” Me: [Read more]
Sheffield Shield, SA v WA: The Hill, the Hilditch and the Hughes
December 22, 2009 by Leave a Comment
by Patrick O’Keeffe I arrived at Adelaide Oval on the first morning of the Shield game between Western Australia and South Australia, feeling a great deal of apprehension. Since my last visit, the Edwin Smith, George Giffen, and Mostyn Evans Stands had been pulled down, which saddened me. I really loved those stands. Andrew Hilditch was [Read more]
Memoir: My Father, My Football
December 22, 2009 by 9 Comments
This piece was written in 2000, and has not been published before. By Terry Chapman My life’s first footy moment comes courtesy of a black-and-white image of me in Grandma’s backyard in Coburg. I’m about four. Mum would have been behind the old Kodak 126, freezing forever the opening entry on my life’s stats sheet. [Read more]
Punter’s Predicament
December 21, 2009 by 2 Comments
A good trick in life is to get out while you’re ahead. No one wants to be stuck with the cleanup when the party’s over. It’s often better for your reputation to remain a vision of eternally splendid youth, than to suffer the indignities of ageing. To be Jim Morrison, not Mick Jagger. Team sports [Read more]
Third Test, Day 5: This is the end
December 20, 2009 by 2 Comments
After an extra half an hour on Day 4 stumps were called with the West Indies 51 runs short of a potentially transformational victory. Australia on the other hand were a solitary wicket away from a flattering victory. Day 5 was set up. The potential of a grand stand finish was just as strong as [Read more]
Third Test, Day 3: Introducing the Test Cricket Quaddy
December 19, 2009 by 3 Comments
by Chris Riordan Here’s a new betting medium I’ve just uncovered. As we know, they’re what keep sports afloat. It’s the Test Cricket Quaddy and you’d have scooped the pool if you got it right by tonight. The challenge is to pick runs and wickets per session, from tea one day until stumps the next.
Footy Talk: Gary Ablett jnr talks to God (not his Dad, the Guy Upstairs)
December 18, 2009 by Leave a Comment
Gary Ablett jnr: You’ve already met. God: What can I say? Allegedly the only bloke (blokette?) who can hit a one iron. Initial negotiations with GC17 had been unfruitful… and rather baffling. Gazza felt no closer to resolving his dilemma. Having finally made it back from Queensland, his Manager decided to be proactive. Player managers [Read more]
Footy: A touch of gold on black clouds
December 18, 2009 by Leave a Comment
By John Sawyer I’ve been doing it a bit hard. A bit like Richmond, I suppose. I’ve lost confidence, everything seems to go wrong. Everything seems to be lined up against me, even the bloody AFL are trying to do me down. “I’ve a good mind to write to the ACCC. I’ll make a formal [Read more]
Eulogy: University don inspired footy history study
December 18, 2009 by 4 Comments
By Rod Gillett The ability to inspire performance is a quality that is most often attributed to sports coaches. It is also attributed to teachers of art, music and literature, even mathematics. Many of us have had a teacher profoundly influence our scholastic life and engender in us an enduring enthusiasm for a particular subject. [Read more]
Third Test, Day 2: A Day In The Life Of An Accountant
December 17, 2009 by 15 Comments
by Damian O’Donnell (Note – at least 50% of this story is fictional) I’m sitting at my desk with my brown cardigan on (the one with the brown leather elbow patches) singing that well known accountants’ song “For Every Debit There’s A Credit” (sung to the tune of “Stairway To Heaven”). The cricket is on [Read more]
Golf: Tiger and the seed of destruction
December 17, 2009 by 11 Comments
By John Harms It’s official. Tiger is bigger than climate change. Bigger than Copenhagen and the ETS and greenhouse gases and ozone layers. Bigger than global self-destruction. Bigger than any of the statesmen and stateswomen who are trying to understand what is happening to this planet, and what might happen to this planet, and how [Read more]
Christmas Quiz: How did you go? Check your answers here
December 17, 2009 by 1 Comment
1. What the hell do the books The American Way of Death and Love In a Cold Climate have to do with the present-day politics of international Formula 1 car racing? Both were written by aunts (Jessica and Nancy Mitford) of Max Mosley, the recently deposed President of FIA, the F1 governing body (son of [Read more]
Almanac Launch: An Adelaide trip with a few twists
December 17, 2009 by 2 Comments
By Bob Utber With the Copenhagen climate summit in full swing as I wandered down from Mildura to Adelaide last week, I could not help but notice the way in which country clubs in South Australia and Victoria look after their sporting ovals. Indeed some of the finest grounds are along the highway between Mildura [Read more]
Footy: Prato’s journey to Bulldogs not as exotic as Daw but no less remarkable
December 17, 2009 by 7 Comments
By Richard Jones The Majak Daw story makes a nice yarn. But how about Maryborough boy, Eddie Prato, taken by the Western Bulldogs with pick No.58 in the AFL rookie draft? Eddie spent most of 2009 playing basketball with the Ballarat Miners in the South East Australian Basketball League. At 6 ft 8 ins in [Read more]
Third Test, Day 1: Gabba grass memories – cheery; WACA prospects – dreary.
December 16, 2009 by 29 Comments
I was reminded by the WACA test today, and I’m not sure why, of December 1979 when the West Indies came to the Darling Downs, to Gold Park, in Toowoomba. I had played quite a few Colts games there. The Windies side included Cuthbert Gordon Greenidge and Desi Haynes, IVA himself, and both Murrays, DA [Read more]
Local Footy: Desert dash fails to deter Falcons
December 16, 2009 by Leave a Comment
By Sheikh Mohammed bin Rocket The Abu Dhabi Falcons footy team made sure they did not stray into the Empty Quarter in Saudi Arabia when they crossed the border on their road trip to Muscat in Oman for last weekend’s fourth-round clash in the Middle East AFL. Despite getting to the ground only 15 minutes [Read more]
Footy: Ablett oversight heads questions from pre-season and rookie drafts
December 16, 2009 by Leave a Comment
There were some very strange selections in the pre-season and rookie drafts. Some of the questions that I wondered about are: 1. Why would Gold Coast pick Danny Stanley ahead of Luke Ablett? Danny has played well for Collingwood seconds but has failed to impress every time (five in total) that he was promoted to [Read more]
Footy: A few sausage rolls from Fev would make this Lions fan roar
December 16, 2009 by Leave a Comment
This piece was originally published on the ABC Grandstand Footy Unleashed website in August 2008. I thought it timely to revisit it given the Kangaroos’ selection of exciting Sudanese prospect Majak Daw in the rookie draft. Will Daw be any good? Who knows. It doesn’t really matter because he is the first Sudanese player at [Read more]
CHRISTMAS QUIZ: Some sporting conundrums
December 16, 2009 by Leave a Comment
1. What the hell do the books The American Way of Death and Love In a Cold Climate have to do with the present-day politics of international Formula 1 car racing? 2. In the history of Test cricket, the names of two players each appear three times in the top-ten list for runs scored in [Read more]
Footy: He missed! No chance of a dry argument after Dons beat Saints
December 16, 2009 by Leave a Comment
August can be a wicked month; however the day dawned cool and clear. Our young boys were to take on the unbeaten Saints, who had played consistently well for 19 rounds and appeared to be invincible. I had arranged to meet Jen at her apartment by the Yarra in Richmond, and once at the ground [Read more]
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