2021 season is upon us (A Samuel Wells Cartoon Tribute)

Almanacker Kickittotim in the cartoon style of Samuel Wells, presents his cartoon of the AFL teams striving for the 2021 premiership cup.

Almanac Soccer: Barnsley Football Club – the dream continues…

Rod Oaten continues to be pleased with the progress Barnsley Football Club is making with a drawn and a win in their past two matches.

Almanac Poetry: Near Drowning at St Leonards Beach, Victoria, 1967

A father saves his young son from drowning. Kevin Densley describes this week’s poem as ‘particularly close to home’.

Almanac Poetry: ‘So…’ – Tommy Mallet

A tram can be a wonderful place for the delights of overheard conversation as Tommy Mallet’s poem ‘So…’ illustrates.

Round 1 – Footy Fixture 2021: Who, where and when?

AFL Season 2021 commences this week with the Round 1 fixture providing details of where, when and who your team is playing.

Almanac Footy – Clarity on game access needed: View of the AFL Fans Association

The AFL Fans Association is concerned about the lack of clarity around how the impending men’s season will play out with regards to fixturing, fan engagement and equity of allocation based on fair methods. Read on for their latest press release.

Formula One: Spin! Spin! Spin! Round! Round! Round! Remembering Murray Walker

An icon of sporting commentary and fixture of Formula One for an era, Dennis Gedling pays tribute to the voice of F1, Murray Walker.

Almanac Book Review: ‘The Best American Sports Writing 2020’

“Sport is most interesting when it is not about sport, when it provides a means to peer into ourselves,” writes Braham Dabscheck. “This is especially true with the series ‘The Best American Sports Writing’, which has spent three decades trying to unravel what it is that is America.” Read his review here.

Almanac Boxing: Vale ‘Marvelous’ Marvin Hagler

One of the best boxers of all time, Marvin Hagler, has passed away at the age of 66. Greg Andrew is an aficionado of the sweet science and considers ‘Marvelous’ Marvin his favourite pugilist. Here is his tribute.

Almanac Teams: Super Eights (1980- )

To start off your working week, Rodney Boyd is back again with another of his best sides from the past 40-odd years. This week is Number 8; it includes a couple of thylacines and one current player who plays as smooth as his nickname suggests.

Almanac Teams: The Crows’ dream team?

Citrus Bob Utber comes up with his all time best ever Adelaide Crows footy team in response to Graham Cornes’ selections.

Cam Hooke’s Collingwood Life: Round 1 Preview

Footy is back and so is Cam Hooke with his first preview of the season for the Collingwood faithful, the Round 1 match against the Western Bulldogs.

Almanac Books: ‘Heart and Soul – A History of the Lang Lang Football Club 1895-2020’

Bob Utber’s new book, ‘Heart and Soul-A History of the Lang Lang Football Club 1895-2020’, will be released shortly. You can pre-order the book now.

Almanac (and Odd Friday) Lunch: The Blessing of the Season

After a long Covid-enforced absence the Footy Almanac Friday lunch returns to the fabulous North Fitzroy Arms Hotel, on the 19th of March. The special guest will be a treat for Tiger fans. Book early to avoid disappointment.

Almanac Music: Vale Pierre Baroni – PBS FM Soulgroove ’66

Adam Fox pays a heartfelt tribute to Pierre Baroni, one of the stalwarts of the community radio scene in Melbourne for many years with his well-loved program, ‘Soulgroove ’66’.

Almanac Footy: Frank Gumbleton – Ganmain to Glory

Matt Watson recounts the remarkable story of Frank Gumbleton, the kid from Ganmain who went on to become a North Melbourne premiership player.

Almanac Review: Adelaide Writers’ Week 2021 – Powerful Word Fest

The Adelaide Writers’ Week is a festival of words, powerful words, and this year was no exception as Col Ritchie reviews some of his highlights.

Almanac Life: The Art of Indian Head Massage

In this Friday’s column, KD writes about his most unusual qualification, and invites Almanackers to comment and/or share theirs.

Almanac Rugby League – NRL Round 1: And away we go!

The 2021 NRL season kicks off tonight with a blockbuster at Melbourne’s AAMI Stadium. Our rugby league editor Ian Hauser provides his thoughts on how Round 1 will pan out.

Almanac Rugby League – Cameron Smith: Nobody did it better

Cameron Smith, arguably the greatest rugby league player of all time, certainly of his own era, has finally announced his retirement. Ian Hauser pays tribute to the man with a host of records to his name, many of which are unlikely to ever be broken.