#scg can come next because it does cricket
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What if there's questions when I plane catch tomorrow like "have you had covid in the last 7 days?" What happens if you say yes? They descend on you with a big bit of cling wrap and wrap you all nice and tight and throw you in with the luggage???? Or they call your name on the loudspeaker before you board and you have to shamefully walk to the front desk and
#oh man#i just want to stay home and cry i don't deserve to go but i feel bad letting my friend down#but then I'm doing her a favour if i don't go because then i can't infect her#it's win win#winning again because she won't have some idiot Italian to deal with who always has to turn the train seats around#and the way the Italian can't navigate her way out of a paper bag#but then suddenly pops up when there's a tobacco station and refuses to go in#Italian: is okay with following friend's directions on where to go; also Italian: gets mad when destination is a tobacco station#honestly#our monopoly board has four stations on it: central and molevern and what's a suburb in Sydney and tobacco#The true sydney monopoly#Oprah's house is their mayfair#and the bridge is the park lane#albo's house with its 50 balconies is up there maybe the green ones#don't tell me he lives in Canberra shoosh don't spoil this with facts#and then buddy's house#and then Brodie grundy's house that has a kennel out the front for Taylor Adams to sleep in#and then accor stadium for hosting Taylor - it gets ranked higher than any other stadium#scg can come next because it does cricket#and sells sushi and all kinds of weird food#and then old Kent road is giants stadium because they suck
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Cometh the hour, cometh the man
Not even the most die-hard Indian fan could have predicted the remarkable transformation in fortunes over a week. Such an amazing comeback has never been witnessed in 143 years of test cricket.
Despite the odds being stacked heavily against them, the Indian team never lost belief in their abilities. While all the players can take immense pride in the victory at MCG, the stand-in captain Ajinkya Rahane deserves special praise both for his gutsy batting (112 & 27 not out) as well as astute captaincy. He led from the front and rescued the team with a display of grit and determination in both innings against what is arguably Australia’s best ever bowling attack. Rahane is the antithesis of the modern cricketer, with his quiet demeanor and self-effacing personality. But there is a steely resolve and sharp cricketing brain behind the calm exterior which makes him an ideal leader especially in such adverse circumstances.
The pedigree of Bumrah and Ashwin who does not always get his due was never in doubt, and they showed the way once again with wickets at crucial stages. Jadeja put to rest any remaining doubts about his utility to the team in all departments and proved the value of having a genuine all-rounder.
The sterling debuts of Shubman Gill & Mohammed Siraj showed that the future of Indian cricket is in safe hands.. Gill brought back memories of VVS Laxman with his wristy strokeplay and he batted with such assurance and poise in both innings. Our hearts went out to Siraj who chose to remain on tour despite the unfortunate demise of his father. The maturity and character he displayed after being drafted in to replace Shami was a key factor in the victory. His spell in the 2nd innings when India lost the services of Umesh Yadav due to injury was exceptional.
As India goes into the 3rd test starting at the SCG on 7th January on a high, it is important for them to stay grounded and continue to do the basics well. Australia who will be bolstered by the return of David Warner are expected to come back strongly. Both teams would do well to keep in mind the following words of Rudyard Kipling.
If you can meet with triumph and disaster
And treat those two impostors just the same;
The lack of uniformity in using DRS system came into focus during the match when the Australian captain was adjudged caught when hot-spot did not reveal any edge but snicko showed a spike. However Pujara escaped during a similar sequence of events. There were also calls for the umpire’s call to be scrapped, when Starc was adjudged not out in the 2nd innings against the bowling of Ashwin, when the replay clearly showed the ball hitting the stumps.
As India won at MCG, there was a dramatic finish at Mount Maunganui. New Zealand beat Pakistan by 101 runs with only four and a half overs to spare. This win was significant because New Zealand is now the No 1 team in the ICC test rankings for the first time in its history. This also keeps alive their chances to qualify for the world test championship final next year. There is everything to play for as Australia, India and New Zealand compete for the top 2 places.
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20 THOUGHTS: Greene, Eye-Gouge Monster
AND then there were four.
Two redemption stories, a minor premier seeking validation and an underdog looking for quality over quantity
Richmond were fantastic in 2017 and arguably looked better the following year. A grand an opportunity to go back to back you’d never see yet in the penultimate weekend they stuffed it. Tipping they’re still dirty.
Collingwood, the winners that night a year ago, came from nowhere to lose agonisingly a week later. Tipping they’re dirty on that still too.
Geelong has a monkey on its back the size of Naomi Watts’ co-star in that 2005 film set in Skull Island. The minor premier yet not rated a legitimate flag chance. They’d be dirty on that.
And lastly the Giants. Third prelim in four seasons, no-one has put together a more consistent body of finals work without tasting ultimate success. They’d be dirty they haven’t converted a golden opportunity yet.
Lot of get-even stories going on, three will go unsatisfied, yet one will succeed and nothing will taste sweeter.
1. Start with Toby Greene – still don’t get it. Last week, Bont, that was either a free-kick at most or a couple weeks for doing something properly grubby and in need of a spell. A contrived outcome later and he plays last week, instrumental in their win. Given the margin you could say he misses through suspension it’s a Brisbane win. Now, he gets a week and its upheld, but on the vision available the Bont incident looks worse. Don’t get it.
2. Theory – Michael Christian wanted to see Greene go to the Tribunal last week on a serious charge where the Tribunal could come to its own conclusion, away from the constraints of the matrix Christian uses, and the Giant gets a suspension through that channel. It didn’t work, an agreed guilty-verdict into fine-only eventuated and the Christian plan failed. So this week, to avoid that happening again, he gave the suspension up front so Greene would have to work down from a week instead of the Tribunal working it out from scratch.
3. As of writing this his suspension has been upheld but surely the Giants appeal on Thursday. Costs them $5,000, it’s a free hit, and given the size of the task Saturday afternoon and how important he is to them, they’d be mad not too. I expect them too, and in reality, it’s a 50-50 to be a success such is the crazy case it is.
4. It’s an impressive four-year block for the Giants after that win last Saturday. Lost that epic prelim by a kick to the Dogs three years ago, were really in that prelim against the Tigers the year after a long way in, remembering they didn’t have Dylan Shiel for three quarters, and once again into a prelim this year. Leon Cameron has his detractors but they say winning a flag doesn’t just take planning and talent but a little luck as well. Given he continually gets this far, maybe that last ingredient is all they’re missing?
5. Last one on GWS, from a league perspective it was actually encouraging to see that the left of screen displayed decent Giants coverage in the crowd in Brisbane Saturday night. Not a massive contingent but hardly the token couple-dozen of the early years, there was something half-decent for what is still a club shy of ten years old representing what is otherwise rugby and soccer heartland. Encouraging.
6. Right, Brisbane. Told you so. This is a team who had zero injuries until Mitch Robinson and a draw softer than the Russians paid for at least year’s World Cup, so straight sets doesn’t surprise one bit. This is not a top four team, it’s probably a sixth to eighth team at best. Straight sets dot com, doesn’t surprise this column one iota.
7. Luke Hodge though, what a jet, enormous career, huge for the Lions the last two years too, and we just love the look of Jarryd Lyons motioning to the two-time Normie winner for a chair off and the Colac product in body language alone gave it the “nah mate, cheers”. Love that. Well done Hodgey, certainty for a Hall of Fame Legend status at some point you’d think, with that resume.
8. How was the Sam Reid ‘George Gregan’ impersonation on the game-winning-goal? Three or so posessions before the jockey Brent Daniels cheeky checkside, pretty sure it was Reid who dished the ball out like he was given a freshly-baked jacket potato unawares, very quick hands but by the letter of the law incredibly illegal. Umpy was never going to see it but gee, if only he could, would have paid a forward pass for sure.
9. Speaking of umpiring, that spirit of the game free kick nonsense with Adam Kennedy and Charlie Cameron. My Lord. I hope the umpire mistakenly meant the stuff about constant niggle where a free is awarded if its just too much. But otherwise, under the letter of the law, Cameron coming back on was not injured. Play on. Ridiculous.
10. So umpiring, was a shocker this weekend. Match Review and Tribunal not good either. Who is responsible for that? Old Steve “having a shocker” Hocking. My mate is just enduring the nightmare to end all nightmares. Rules, done nothing, scoring, down, I can’t see any portfolio he looks after better than this time last year. Lift Steve.
11. Oh, and whilst we need to whack some folks – how about all that fuss about Mark Blicavs out of defence against the Pies and it cost them the game. They brought Rhys Stanley back in and where did the Blitz play most of his footy in the first half, a first half where the Cats played well? On the wing! David King was the main culprit. So we know not to ask him about the Geelong backline like we don’t ask him to be designated driver. Low blow, but he doesn’t read this, too busy with the behind the goals vision looking for Blicavs on Kennedy or Darling. He’ll be a while.
12. So this week, what we got. Richmond playing a better Geelong but without Hawkins. Anyone see that going any other way than a Tigs win? Didn’t think so. Surely last year’s cock up doesn’t repeat. So one inner-suburban army of hundreds of thousands will bombard all of us in Grand Final week.
13. Then, the day after, weather-pending the greatest collection of Collingwood supporters in one place ever since Pentridge hit capacity once back in the late 80s, hosting a GWS who have been tough for two good weeks but can they go again? The Pies might like the wetter conditions, the mosquito fleet up forward and a classy onball brigade. So we might end up with another huge inner-suburban army up and about in Grand Final week. Giants are in decent nick but, very decent nick.
14. Good to see the Gulls make the VFL Grandma this weekend. Not just coz we like Willy almost as much as Liz Taylor, but because if it had been Richmond reserves versus Essendon reserves it would have been mega scratchy. Let’s just call the VFL for what it is, what used to be the well-respected VFA is now just the AFL Reserves comp with appearances by Port Melbourne and Williamstown. It’s a magoos competition and this Sunday one club will be caring more about the GF the Saturday after, the other will be hellbent on winning so they can secure a local real estate agent as a sponsor the year after to pay for the club jumpers.
15. Jordan De Goey, oh, not worth the risk, he has only played ten seconds of footy in seemingly eight months and is made of tissue paper and is missing a limb and has Rickett’s. One thing though, aside from the German witchcraft and the fact he will have 22 days between the first final and a potential Granny – he hurt his hammy against Geelong in the opening two minutes but ran out, to little impact granted, most of the first half before heading for the tracksuit. No gratuitous stride out where the back door comes off the hinge and there’s the full dramatic hobble off the ground like you’ve got a bad case of pins and needles. Sure, he has a bad history, but this was not your typical tear. If the Pies win, I think he is a certainty to play Grand Final day.
16. Ashes, all done. But please, Timothy. If I’ve told you once I’ve told you a million times: if you win the toss, nine times out of ten you bat first. On the tenth time you think about bowling, but you bat first. We lost the fifth test at the toss.
17. Davey Warner. Couldn’t middle shit. You know you’re going busted when Stuart Broad gets you LB and doesn’t even bother turning around to appeal, he goes immediately from delivery stride into celebrating to gully. Was his brand new baby daughter on the eve of the Ashes a distraction enough? Perhaps. Was it just one bowler having him by the pills and otherwise, if Broad wasn’t playing he could have averaged say, 40? Possibly. Or, he averages 59 in Australia but averages less than 34 overseas. That’s telling. Remember, Steve Waugh and Allan Border, proper batsmen who don’t mind if your TV is an OLED TV or something from ALDI, they actually averaged higher overseas than at home. Proper batsmen.
18. We need to find a new opening pair asap. Not bothered by playing Warner again, because if we do he’ll score a mount of runs against Pakistan and New Zealand on home conditions, but all it does is delay finding his successor for when we need to win tours, I dunno, in India, or England, or anywhere not at the SCG basically.
19. Cam Bancroft, only averaged 11 from his two tests, sure, but gee, they swiftly moved him on because he was so bad, he was bringing such bad cricket juju to the place they brought in Marcus Harris who went on to average 60. No. That’s not right. Harris averaged 9 from his three tests. Brilliant. Harris is now averaging 24 from 9 tests. Bancroft has 10 tests @ 26. Semantics perhaps but I’d be picking the sander before the Victorian first come the summer. But we have four Shield matches before the Gabba, I want to see Matty Renshaw ton up, get into the test team again and stick.
20. And I love this, Steve Smith, missed a test and an innings but still amassed 333 runs more than the next best for most runs in the series. That man is a freak.
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Before the siren
WITH three electric games scheduled for the MCG in the opening round, there is every chance all sorts of AFL attendance records will be smashed this weekend as the 2017 season gets underway.
If the Carlton-Richmond, Collingwood-Western Bulldogs and Essendon-Hawthorn games each attract more than 70,000 fans – and the expectation is they should – then not only would the AFL’s round one attendance record of 367,792, set in 2012, be under threat, but the overall record of 371,212, set in round 15 of 2013, could be surpassed.
We reckon the fans will turn up in droves as Australia’s No.1 sport returns. As episodes such as Luke Hodge’s ‘mystery’ training absence and Jordan De Goey’s bizarre broken hand episode demonstrate, don’t we badly need the games to start so that we can start talking about, you know, the footy?
Anyhow, we’re putting our neck on the line to project how many people will attend each game. Check back Monday morning to see how we went.
Carlton v Richmond (MCG, Thursday, 7.20pm AEDT)
Highest: 83,493 – round one, 2015*
We think: 72,000
It’s a Carlton home game, which might keep a few away but if you can’t be excited about going to the footy, when can you? Anecdotally, the opening game gets more than its share of neutral supporters.
Collingwood v Western Bulldogs (MCG, Friday, 7.50pm AEDT)
Highest: 67,920 – round nine, 2006
We think: 69,000
It’s not the Bulldogs’ flag unfurling – that takes place next week – but it is a replacement game for their members so they should rock up in big numbers. There’s always early season optimism at Collingwood and their fans will turn up in droves. Add the likelihood of Travis Cloke making his Dogs debut against the Pies and this is a great piece of fixturing.
St Kilda v Melbourne (Etihad Stadium, Saturday, 4.35pm AEDT)
Highest: 40,004 – round four, 2005
We think: 35,000
Another great piece of fixturing by the AFL as it pits the two clubs considered most likely to break into the top eight this year. Saints fans are up and about at the start of every season, but particularly now after a great summer. Melbourne supporters traditionally hate Docklands, but it is a different team this year, one that appears to have set itself to snap a 14-match losing streak to the Saints. If ever they dare venture to the western side of the CBD, this is the time.
Sydney v Port Adelaide (SCG, Saturday, 4.35pm AEDT)
Highest: 41,317 – round 13, 2014
We think: 32,000
The Swans are a big draw now and optimism is high for another finish deep into September. An issue here will be the weather, which can be sketchy in Sydney at this time of year. A few showers are predicted for this twilight game. Port aren’t a huge draw on the road although chairman ‘Kochie’ will be pleased to be able to drive to the footy.
Essendon v Hawthorn (MCG, Saturday, 7.25pm AEDT)
Highest: 61,006 – round six, 2010
We think: 85,000
The Bombers were given their choice of round one opponents and plumped for their great 1980s rivals. The banned Dons step out for the first time in 18 months, and even if you’re the most casual Essendon fan – there is no excuse for missing this game. Bumping up this crowd figure even further is the fact that this is a replacement game for Hawthorn members because of the Tasmanian deal, so they’ll be there in huge numbers as well, celebrating their own comeback game as new skipper Jarryd Roughead returns for the first time since 2015 after his cancer fight. Then there’s Jaeger.
Gold Coast v Brisbane Lions (Metricon Stadium, Saturday, 7.05pm AEST)
Highest: 16,593 – round three, 2015
We think: 16,000
It’s a football fiesta at Metricon with the AFLW Grand Final kicking off the day, and if enough Brisbane Lions fans choose to stick around for the nightcap then a healthy crowd figure can be expected. Do the people of the Gold Coast understand that a potentially very good team plays on their doorstep?
North Melbourne v West Coast (Etihad Stadium, Sunday 1.10pm AEDT)
Highest: 33,151 – round 5, 2005
We think: 26,000
The ‘graveyard’ of time slots, but it is that time of the year where we’re between junior cricket and footy seasons, so it’s not that bad for families. The Kangas are up to nearly 35,000 members, so unless they’re into motor racing and attend the Australian Grand Prix instead, let’s hope they turn up in droves. West Coast has about 5,000 fans in Victoria who get to every game.
Adelaide v Greater Western Sydney (Adelaide Oval, Sunday, 2.50pm ACDT)
Highest: 46,737 – round 10, 2016
We think: 42,000
There won’t be much away support, but the Crows can pack out Adelaide Oval on their own and despite some likely key outs for the opening game, hopes of Adelaide supporters are riding high.
Fremantle v Geelong (Domain Stadium, Sunday, 4.40pm AWST)
Highest: 38,565 – round nine, 2014
We think: 36,000
This is a great rivalry, and while serial irritant Hayden Ballantyne’s absence will be keenly felt, new skipper Nat Fyfe is back – and he’s fit, firing and likely to go head to head with Patrick Dangerfield for parts of the game. Going back to the days of Polly Farmer, the Cats have always had a loyal following in Western Australia.
Total crowd prediction: 413,000
* Highest crowd is for home and away games only with the first named team as the home club.
Sore and sorry Swans
Let’s not detract for a moment what a magnificent effort it was by the Western Bulldogs to win the 2016 Grand Final. It was a September (and early October) to remember and to cherish for the Dogs, while the match itself was as engrossing as they come for a flag decider.
But a bit overlooked amid all the romance was how brave the vanquished Sydney was. They were a kick from the lead until late in the final quarter, and as the subsequent stories of woe started to mount, it is becoming more evident what a great effort it was from the Swans to even get so close.
Lance Franklin entered the game with a shoulder banged up enough to require a reconstruction after the game and then he injured his ankle in the opening term. He played the game out, but was hampered.
Kurt Tippett missed an earlier final because of a fractured jaw, but had earlier missed a huge part of the season because of a serious hamstring injury. Luke Parker played the Grand Final with a PCL injury from the week before that needed post-season surgery. Dan Hannebery hurt his knee in the final quarter and tried to play the game out, but had to retreat to the bench.
Josh Kennedy was sore, Sam Naismith needed a shoulder reconstruction, Callum Mills and Jarrad McVeigh were underdone entering the Grand Final and McVeigh’s calf issues are now chronic. For Tom Mitchell, who came to Hawthorn during the trade period, once the fitness staff there took a good look at him, they decided he needed to be held back from full training until after Christmas.
What does this tell us? That’s eight players (that we know of) who were less than their best in the Grand Final and no doubt, there were plenty of hurting bodies on the other side as well.
The Swans have played deep into September for a few years and you can only admire that they keep fronting up year in and year out as they bash and crash their bodies for longer than most. They’ll likely do so again this year.
And it probably adds further context to Hawthorn’s achievement of winning three-straight flags from 2013-15 with the physical toll that took. While the Hawks would dearly have loved to have won again last year to enter the record books, what you do hear out of Waverley is how depleted they were at the end of last season. They have subsequently enjoyed both their biggest break and longest pre-season for five years.
Dan Hannebery and Tom Papley were a picture of dejection on Grand Final Day. Picture: AFL Photos
Gabba problems laid bare
That Saturday’s AFLW Grand Final needed to be moved from the Gabba because of turf issues only brought to the surface what the Lions have known for more than a decade – they really are its second-class citizens.
Talk to those at the Lions and they’ll tell you plenty of stories about the Gabba staff trying to put the Lions, and by extension the AFL, back in their place.
Former Lions coach Justin Leppitsch used to have regular run-ins with notorious curator Kevin Mitchell about access to the ground even in footy season. Never mind that the cricketers are allowed to kick the Sherrin for as long and as often as they want as part of their training sessions.
But as recently as a few weeks ago, Lions media staff were shooed away from the boundary area by security staff merely for trying to take a publicity photo for the AFLW team. That explains why whenever a new player joins the Lions, the obligatory happy snap in the new polo shirt usually takes place high up in the grandstand.
And when there is cricket on, particularly the Test match that usually starts the summer, Lions admin staff usually aren’t even allowed into those aforementioned grandstands to watch a few overs on their lunch break.
A caller to SEN radio the other night told of taking a guided tour of the Gabba recently, during which football and the Lions were mentioned once.
Once!
It is Mitchell who cops much of the flak, and deservedly so. But there are a few others at the Gabba who need to understand that they work for the venue, not just for one of the sports that primarily use it.
The Lions have struggled for a fair go at their home ground. Picture: AFL Photos
My movers and shapers
The annual industry-wide movers and shapers survey has appeared on AFL.com.au the last few days and will also appear in full in this week’s edition of the AFL Record.
It is a fascinating project to compile and now in its second year, the extra twist is those who jump up the rankings and those who slide down or drop out entirely.
The survey is anonymous and drawn widely from throughout the industry, but for the sake of the exercise, here is my personal top 12.
1. Gillon McLachlan – Boss of the AFL. Nothing more to add. 2. Simon Lethlean – Brought AFLW to life and now heads up footy operations. Huge job. 3. Richard Goyder – Incoming AFL chairman. Not from Victoria, which is important. 4. Andrew Dillon – AFL chief counsel and McLachlan’s main confidant and sounding board. 5. Alastair Clarkson – The best coach and a brilliant innovator. 6. Caroline Wilson – The best journo in the game. Breaks news and creates agendas. 7. Patrick Dangerfield – Who said great players don’t need to walk down media street? 8. Kerry Stokes/Channel Seven – Shape so much of how we consume the game. 9. Paul Marsh – Happy players, happy game. Needs to bring the CBA home. 10. Ray Gunston – Negotiating the CBA and the AFL’s investment model. Both vital. 11. Eddie McGuire – A bruising year but still commands a huge voice. 12. Rupert Murdoch/News/Herald Sun – Also play a huge role in how the game is consumed by millions.
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