By Justin Chadwick
October 22nd 2008 @ 12:52am
View The Roar's top AFL writers.
AFL Tipping now live on The Roar. Join now.
Love new art, fashion, music? Check out Aussie site which unearths all things cool and creative.
Join Australia’s community for solo & micro business at FlyingSolo.com.au
Firrito given rude awakening in goal
North Melbourne defender Michael Firrito, the man set to be handed the goalkeeping duties for Australia’s International Rules series with Ireland, says he is still keen for the role despite copping a rude awakening in last night’s practice match.
Firrito was under siege from the outset after he was put in goal for an Irish WA [...]
This article is over 2000 days old and has been trimmed.
Get Australia's best AFL opinion emailed daily.
Like this content? Buzz it up!
Free Email updates:
Our daily emails are only sent if there is content for the sport or that author. You can subscribe to multiple daily emails; or get the daily Roar email with all our content in it. We value privacy. More...


![Not since 2005, when the A-League came to life and the Socceroos faced their crucial World Cup qualification playoff, has football in Australia faced as a decisive year as it does in 2010. More important than 2006? Absolutely.
The 2006 World Cup was the icing on the cake of World Cup qualification in 2005.
As long as [...] Adrian Musolino: 2010 critical for perceptions of football in Australia](http://www.theroar.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/melbourne-heart-th.jpg)
![“Hang on a minute,” comes the raw Scottish brogue of Gavin Hastings as he stops speaking for a moment to chastise a tradesman in the background. And then faintly, “Can’t you see I’m on the phone? OK, well just wait a few minutes and I’ll get my toolbelt on”.
He’s then back on the phone. [...] Andrew Logan: Gavin Hastings on rugby, fullbacks and the Wallabies](http://www.theroar.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2009/11/Gavin-Hastings-rugby-wallabies-th.jpg)
![I can’t decide whether Oman coach Claude Le Roy looks like Tom Petty or an aged Joni Mitchell, but there’s no doubting he’s one mightily pissed off dude. And for good reason. Not the fact his valiant Omanis fell victim to another one of Tim Cahill’s get-out-of-jail goals, but because Socceroos team manager Gary Moretti [...] Jesse Fink: Moretti’s truculence jeopardises Australia’s standing in Asia](http://www.theroar.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2009/10/Moretti-truculence-jeopardises-Australia-standing-Asia.jpg)
![The response to my pre-season article on Wednesday said it all. AFL fans really aren’t that bothered by the NAB Cup, and it is an attitude brought on by clubs not necessarily wanting to win the cup.
The AFL’s annual trial rules certainly don’t help, but the differing attitude of clubs towards the NAB Cup (which [...] Ben Somerford: Who actually wants to win the NAB Cup?](http://www.theroar.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2009/04/bombers-magpies-anzac-chris-bryan-th.jpg)
![From nineteenth century to recent times, cricketers have prided themselves on having nicknames, from odd, to contrasting, to bang on target. And what a range: Tiger O’Reilly, Slasher Mackay, Chappelli, Henry Lawson, Dizzy Gillespie, Pigeon McGrath and Pup Clarke.
With Australia touring India for seven one-day internationals (ODIs) in October amd November, this subject becomes [...] Kersi Meher-Homji: Tiger, pigeon, pup? Cricketers with animal nicknames](http://www.theroar.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2009/04/why-clarke-haddin-th.jpg)
![Losing may not have been an option according to the marketers, but for much of the first half last night, Omani attacking midfielder Fawzi Basheer threatened to shift Australia’s planning post-South Africa from Qatar to Brazil.
Had Hassan Rabea taken the chance that Basheer delightfully teed up for him midway through the half, and had [...] Tony Tannous: Qatar dream alive, but much to do ahead of South Africa](http://www.theroar.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2009/10/qatar-dream-alive-kewell-th.jpg)
![It should rank as one of Australia’s greatest sporting days. While Casey Stoner was celebrating his third consecutive Australian MotoGP victory, compatriot Mark Webber was dominating the Brazilian Formula 1 Grand Prix. It was a rare GP double in a rich season for Australian motorsport.
Aside from our Grand Prix victors, we also saw [...] Adrian Musolino: Historic day highlights our golden generation](http://www.theroar.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2009/10/Historic-day-brazil-formula-1-th.jpg)
![Danny Tiatto has cultivated a controversial headline or two throughout his career, but the hardman showed his softer side this week when committing to a guest role with the Melbourne Knights. It’s a poetic homecoming for one of the club’s favourite sons in the dwindling twilight of his football journey.
Tiatto trained for the first time [...] Paddy Higgs: Knights to gain from Tiatto’s poetic homecoming](http://www.theroar.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/tiatto-roar-th.jpg)
![Despite a season of on-field struggle, A-League cellar-dwellers Adelaide United have managed to retain excellent attendances this campaign with an average home crowd of almost 11,000. So I decided to ask Reds Chief Executive Officer Sam Ciccarello how they’ve done it.
To emphasise the point of their success, throughout this A-League campaign only the populous centres [...] Ben Somerford: Why are bottom-club Adelaide’s crowds so good?](http://www.theroar.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2008/10/adelaide-united-th.jpg)
![After witnessing a bit of interest in my proposal to shift next season’s World Club Challenge to Melbourne, and with a bit of time before the Four Nations kicks off, I thought I’d put the idea to Leeds Rhinos CEO, Gary Hetherington.
Hetherington has a bit of reputation in the UK as something of a [...] Steve Kaless: An expanded World Club Challenge is in the works](http://www.theroar.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2009/10/expanded-world-cup-keith-senior-th.jpg)
![There have been several controversial suggestions recently on how to make rugby a more spectator friendly game. Most of them have centered around the ELVs.
This assumes that there is some sort of problem with the mechanics of rugby and, as such, the issue has been approached in much the same way that a mechanic [...] Andrew Logan: Forget Stellenbosch Laws. Introduce Narrabri Principles](http://www.theroar.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2009/03/waratahs-try-tries-mortlock-th.jpg)
![There has been an erudite and fascinating discussion taking place on The Roar about my use of the words ‘first five-eighths’ to describe the position on the rugby field of the player standing directly outside the halfback.
This discussion has encouraged me to write this article, setting out my thoughts on what should be the proper [...] Spiro Zavos: When is a first five-eighths actually a number 10?](http://www.theroar.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2009/11/dan-carter-video-foul-play-th.jpg)



