Although the eyes of AFL fans have been fixed well and truly on Adam Goodes regarding the booing controversy this week, another type of booing will be heard from parts of the crowd on Saturday.
However this time it will be directed at a very different person and for very different reasons.
Kurt Tippett controversially left the Adelaide Football club after the 2012 and left them reeling from various penalties including draft restrictions and suspensions to club personnel as a result of a suspect contract with the Crows.
Probably more painful for Adelaide was that they were under the impression that Tippett was considering a move home to Queensland. Finally, Tippett told his team that he was leaving for a pocket full of money, doing so via text message.
However, coincidently (or perhaps not!) Tippett has not yet played against the Crows.
Understandably, the short-term and long-term impacts of Tippett’s exodus left a rather sour taste in the mouth of the entire Adelaide Football Club.
If there was any doubt about how Adelaide players felt about Tippett’s defection, it was soon put to bed by then captain Nathan van Berlo. Berlo said that the way Tippett angled his own departure was a lesson to the playing group about the “ways they shouldn’t do it”.
Meanwhile, fans threw out Tippett merchandise and in one case sent Tippett a death threat.
The impact of all of this for the teams’ clash at the SCG is difficult to predict.
It could have zero effect on either team in what should be a finals-defining game, but on the flipside it could be on for young and old early with each side out to prove the mistakes of their opponent.
Based on form alone, the Adelaide Crows appear to have the upper hand. Sydney have been thoroughly beaten in their last two games, to be fair against high quality opponents.
The missing Mike Pyke may be a game-changing loss for the Swans with Sam Jacobs in great form, tapping it down to two of the best midfielders in the game in Patrick Dangerfield and Rory Sloane.
Furthermore, Scott Thompson is getting better with age if this year is anything to go by, and will be a real threat.
However, we cannot forget that this Sydney team played in a grand final in 2014 and are a star-studded outfit desperate for a win.
Also, the Adam Goodes circumstances may well fire up the Sydney team who will want to bring home a victory for their champion.
This shapes as one of the games of the round. A win to Adelaide would seal their finals fate, while a Sydney victory would greatly aid their top four chances.
With their good recent run at the SCG, I’ll back the Crows, but nothing would surprise me in a match with so many subplots.
Geoff from Bruce Stadium
Guest
As a Crows supporter I couldn't agree more about the comments made about Tippett. The way he abandoned the Crows to take the cash at the Swans cut deep. Its not as though he was on peanuts at the Crows. And the fact that the Swans were prepared to throw so much cash at this overrated mercenary plus Buddy Franklin in pursuit of a premiership has contributed to a lot of hatred for this club. I used to be a big fan of the Swans - in fact they were my second team in the 80s and 90s - but I now have no time for them. Not sure how this game is going to go today. You would think the Swans will have to make a statement after how poorly they have played in recent weeks plus the sympathy being expressed for Adam Goodes. Personally in relation to the latter I think there is a lot more going on here than just racism. AFL supporters are not all racist yobs. Many have long memories and Goodes is not exactly a cleanskin when it comes to his behaviour on the field. Anyway a line has been drawn in the sand and I think everyone wants to move on. This game is a real test for the Crows. All the signs are there for a Swans rebound win plus the emotion being expressed in support for Goodes plus its being played at the SCG. If the Crows can get up it will be a real achievement.
WhereIsGene
Guest
Adealide will be thanking their lucky stars they aren't paying this hack 800k themselves. Meanwhile, the Adam Goodes faux outrage has been the perfect smokescreen for Sydney's woeful recent form and has excused the football media from having to say anything uncomplimentary about them. The you-know-what will really hit the fan if they drop this game to the Crows though. Sydney's captains were conspicuous in their support for Goodes this week and I almost had to be reminded who they were after the vanishing act both have pulled over the past month. It'll be very interesting to see if Sydney can finally play with some spirit this week after looking mentally shot the past fortnight.