Almanac Horse Racing and Poetry: Sporting concussion and a national poet.

We welcome Lindsay Smelt with his debut piece on brain injuries and Adam Lindsay Gordon. Lindsay is currently writing a book on the famous Australian figure of the nineteenth century.

Round 23 – AFL Footy Fixture: Who is your team playing?

Last game of the home and away AFL Season 2021 and a critical round for teams fighting for positions in the final 8.

Almanac Rugby League – NRL Round 23: Friday night footy

The action that counts in the NRL’s Round 23 is on Friday night. Ian Hauser previews those matches and nominates his winners for the rest of the fixture.

‘Revisiting a classic…’ by Simone Kerwin

KB Hill’s guest blogger, Simone Kerwin, reveals her way of coping with the absence of community sport during lockdown.

Almanac Footy: WAFL Round 19 – Swans, Sharks, Dockers turn back the clock by Les Everett

Les Everett has a wrap of the weekend’s WAFL competition – and some cracking shots to go with it.

Round 1 – Adelaide v Sydney: The touch of the unknown

Mathilde de Hauteclocque watches her Swans whilst striving to come to terms with a very different season. A year on, the Swans are contending for the flag once more – still, perhaps, in front of nowt but seagulls. (This piece was originally published in March 2020 – Eds.)

Almanac Book Reviews: Wray Vamplew’s Games People Played by Roy Hay

Roy Hay reviews Wray Vamplew’s impressive volume on sports histories, dating back centuries in human history.

Geelong’s Record Run – Round 9, 1953: St. Kilda v Geelong – ‘Invincible’ Cats

St. Kilda were the next team to fall to the mighty Cats in the 1953 season, outrun by Geelong in the final quarter. Peter Clark’s series on the Cats’ record run of wins continues.

Almanac (Cartoon) Life: Has anyone noticed?

Yvette Wroby on the world and footy…..

Almanac Literary: Political Football – The Radical Legacy of the Anti-Apartheid Protests in Brisbane

Two on-line panel discussions from The Brisbane Writers Festival program, ‘Political Football:The Radical Legacy of the Anti-Apartheid Protests in Brisbane’, are now available for viewing and can be accessed in the article above.

The 2021 Furphy Literary Awards – And the winners are….

The winners of The 2021 Furphy Literary Awards for the national open age short story competition and the Junior and Youth age regional competition have been announced. Details above.

Almanac Music: Favourite cover versions

Great cover versions of songs have been exercising Ian Hauser’s mind of late. He offers several of his top picks.

Almanac Music: ‘San Francisco (Be Sure To Wear Flowers In Your Hair) – Scott McKenzie

The Monterey Pop Festival in 1967 was one of the very first music festivals to feature the ‘pop/ rock-n-roll’ genre of music. It was also a huge stepping stone in the career of Scott McKenzie and his generational anthem of ‘The Summer of Love’, ‘San Francisco (Be Sure To Wear Flowers In Your Hair)’.

Almanac (Cartoon) Life: Maybe next year…

Yvette Wroby is hoping for a better future, for the planet and the Saints…

Almanac Poetry: ‘Women’ – Tommy Mallet

Death is the theme of Tommy Mallet’s poem ‘Women’ as an old man lies dying and his family awaits the inevitable.

Round 22 – Brisbane v Collingwood: Pies play Lions for a quarter and a half (Floreat Pica Society)

Dave Nadel witnessed some fantastic footy on the weekend…unfortunately for him and fellow Pies fans, it was played by Brisbane. Time to look forward to 2022 and a new beginning.

Cam Hooke’s Collingwood Life: Round 22 Review, Round 23 Preview

It might have been a hefty loss against Brisbane, but Cam Hooke was less worried by this result than the previous game against the Hawks. He offers his weekly dose of review and preview for the final time in the 2021 Collingwood men’s season.

Almanac Rugby: 19 in a row

After the last game provided some hope, the behemoth All Blacks ensured that the Bledisloe Cup will stay on their side of the ditch for another year. Despite the result, Brian the Ruminator sees positives for the upcoming run of home Wallabies Tests.

Peter Bol: Inside the Legends of Our Australian Legend

Hannah Kuhar has recently been working on the Tokyo Olympic Games and was driven by the wonderful story of Peter Bol to help contextualise the framing of his achievements within the narratives of our greater communities. [Considered and thought provoking – Ed.]

Hawthorn and women’s footy – Back to the future…again

With the announcement of Hawthorn’s women’s side, Anne Cahill Lambert finally has a side she can really get behind in the AFLW. Her thoughts have turned to the great coaches of the brown and gold and their dedication despite ‘day jobs’ vying for their time…and of course what lies ahead.