Roar Rookie
Joined August 2019
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General Sports buff with a particular interest in AFL, English Premier League and Cricket but love all sports. Avid Hawthorn fan in the AFL and Liverpool in EPL.
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Concussion has now become a major talking point in AFL circles, and rightly so. The medium and long term effects, whilst not fully understood,…
This week saw the NBA’s annual All-Star weekend, which culminated in a fourth quarter that was one of the best seen at this level…
The Australian selectors have once again turned to Mitch Marsh for another opportunity at Test level for the fifth Ashes Test at The Oval.…
With the 2019 season now officially over for the Hawks, all eyes will be on the list management decisions that are made by the…
It’s always difficult to speculate on where a recently sacked coach may end up, if anywhere at all, particularly when you think it could…
I think what everyone is missing in all of this is the coach. I just dont think Brett Brown can take this team to the next level. He has had the cattle but for whatever reason he cant bring them together to win a championship. Man management in this league is probably the most important ingredient especially when you are dealing with so many ego’s. Brown seem reluctant to put any pressure on Simmons to start shooting which is crazy and is holding the team back. Maybe his links with Ben’s dad is the problem. Having said all of that, a lucky bounce of the ball was all the knocked the 76ers out of last years Eastern Conference Finals which the Raptors went on to win. Not saying that Phiily would have got through in OT but they werent that far off and pretty sure both Ben and Joel played in that game 7.
The Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid experiment is over
Good article Dem and bold prediction this early on but good on you for putting it out there. As a Hawks fan, whilst it would be nice for him to kick plenty of goals, I always remember back to when Buddy was the central focal point and although we saluted in 2008 with Franklin winning the Coleman, by 2013, although Franklin was part of the 2013 premiership, the Hawks had already moved to a more balanced forward line which I think will be Clarkson’s desire going forward. I think if Patton is in the frame for Coleman then the Hawks struggle. Having said that I would be more than happy to be proven wrong. Go Hawks!!!
Jonathon Patton will win the Coleman Medal in 2020
Cant see Bombers making the 8. The coaching “hand-over” will more than likely happen before the end of the season triggered by poor results. Don’t rate Worsfold as a coach.
Why the Bombers should win a final in 2020
Gee max now we are getting technical. Definition of Concept “an idea or invention to help sell or publicize a commodity” so I suppose it is. What do you think about an All-star game in the NBL?
Time for the NBL to re-ignite the All-Star concept
David, I respect your opinion but respectfully I have to disagree with you on this one. I think that Margaret Court absolutely deserves the honour of having a stadium named after her. Basically you are saying that because Margaret Court is a Christian Pastor that she is not worthy of being recognised for the outstanding career that she enjoyed. Does anyone know what Rod Laver’s views are regarding same sex marriage? I certainly dont. Why is that? Maybe nobody has asked him. The same could be said for Margaret Court. If the media didnt keep asking her about subjects outside of the tennis world, then maybe we wouldn’t know her views either. Why is it that we can forgive some their views and actions but others are held to a higher account. I personally feel that McEnroe and Navratilova were way out of line with their protest noting it was only 12 months ago that Navratilova came out and basically said that Transgender Women should not be able to compete against CIS Women. Double standards?. How did you feel about Kobe Bryant being honoured with the NBA All-Star MVP award being named after him? I applaud Margaret Court for her amazing sporting achievements which let’s not forget, is why she had a stadium named after her in the first place.
Tennis Australia's double fault on Court
No problems Josh. If I was being lazy then I would have just made the stats analysis as looking at their first 25 test matches but wanted to use Marsh’s whole career. Was just making the point that it was this series in England which took him to 31 tests, that announced Steve Waugh who before that series was averaging little better than Marsh. Anyway your opinion was very very very useful and I respect it.
Are we being too harsh on Marsh?
The intra country stats were left out as I couldn’t find them anywhere but if my memory serves me correctly Marsh was one of the better performed batsmen during that match. Lazy is a little strong. Don’t profess to be a professional just a hobby. At least I got you to read it. Have a go at it yourself one day. I look forward to reading your work.
Are we being too harsh on Marsh?
What an outstanding player and leader. I remember the question marks over the Hawks selecting Hodge ahead of Chris Judd particularly over the first part of his career but I know which player I would want in my team. Also a decent bloke to go with it. True legend of the game
Hodge retires after epic AFL final
Thanks Josh. I look forward to reading your first article
Are we being too harsh on Marsh?
Quote from your comment “I’ve seen and hear some disgraceful abuse directed at females playing footy but not one instance from a male player”. Have I misunderstood
The Tayla Harris statue transcends sport
hahahaha, sounds like a Shane Warne excuse. There was actually no suggestion the sample had any trace of drugs but tampering with a sample in any way is seen as cheating the system and should rightly be dealt with harshly. There is also talk of why would he do it noting a positive sample would only act as a strike with no real implications….except of course unless this was going to be strike number 3!!
The Eagles will soar without Rioli
Come on Jack, please spare me the conspiracy theories. If your views are right then the experts clearly dont think the Eagles will progress past this week which is why they have decided to bring it out now. The more interesting point is why is it always the Eagles that have these things come out??
The Eagles will soar without Rioli
Sorry Penster are you suggesting that male players dont get abused or trolled on social media??
The Tayla Harris statue transcends sport
The only reason I did that is because that was his “Break Out” series and just happened to take him up to test 31 in comparison to Marsh.
Are we being too harsh on Marsh?
Thanks Paul. You could also argue that Steve Waugh had a better team around him but its just my opinion of course. I think the times you are talking about where he helped his side win was later in his career. The point I was making is that early on Steve Waugh was afforded plenty of opportunities and well done to the selectors for giving him that opportunity.
Are we being too harsh on Marsh?
The popular thought most years is that the QF losers will go out in straight sets but rarely does it happen. I think the West Coast had a “Soft” draw first up with Essendon well outside their depth. Looking at the Cats record since the mid-season bye they are win-loss all the way through to last week so they are due a win aren’t they? Funnily enough Brisbane were pretty good last week except for their accuracy in front of goals which could be put down to their lack of finals experience. I think they’ll be better for the experience and will account for GWS.
It's do or die for AFL’s top-two finishers
The Qualifying Final is just that. The top 4 teams play each other for the right to qualify for the Preliminary Finals and hosting rights. When you lose the qualifying final you give up the Prelim hosting rights and in essence you give up your “seed”. There still needs to be reward for the top 4 teams if they happen to lose in week one which is the benefit of getting a double chance and hosting the next final. The AFL already rewards mediocrity by having a top 8 noting, with the exception of the Bulldogs in 2016, rarely does 7th or 8th progress. That was especially the case this year with Essendon and Bulldogs just making up the numbers. So teams 5 – 8 dont really deserve any more hand-outs come finals.
To the losers go the spoils
Interesting article and some good points. Whilst I get why Geelong are making such a big deal about this, I’m not so sure it would really provide them with a major advantage. They have played (1) final at Kardinya Park which they lost to Fremantle. Yes they had an 8-1 win/loss record there this year but lets have a look at who they beat. Six of their wins were against teams that finished outside the 8. The 2 finalists they beat were West Coast and Bulldogs which was early in the season when neither of those teams were playing at their best. Their one loss was against GWS. I think they need to just get on with it and play the game. It’s not like they are travelling interstate and besides, they need to be able to win at the “G” if they want to win the premiership.
Why Geelong deserve proper home finals
I would probably go with Aaron Naughton instead of Josh Kennedy. I know its a speculative choice but I think he provides more versatility particularly with a forward line including Franklin and Darling. Kennedy well past his best. Bench looks purely midfield/forward. I would drop Liam Ryan out and bring in someone like Nathan Broad or even a Sydney Stack as another speculative. Otherwise cant argue and although I still think the Vics have it (just), this would be a match up I would go and see.
Who would play State of Origin in 2019? Part 3: Western Australia
Good call Chris. I remember when Damian Martyn was in an out of the test side as injury replacements. As soon as the injured player was ready he would go straight out. Had a pretty good record too if my memory serves me correct. Eventually he got the chance and had a pretty good career. Exposure to the top level is good for these guys even if it is only 1 or 2 matches here and there.
Aussies need a reshuffle but only one change for fourth Ashes Test
Agree the differences are not major but it does provide an insight into where the club is at with the profile of the list. Probably a more meaningful analysis is how many players in each of the age groups i.e. < 20 (7 players), 21-25 (22), 26-29 (10), 30+ (9).
Will the ageing Hawks finally hit the draft?
I don’t mind that suggestion Tony. Could be the change to kick-start Warner. At least if he comes in at 6 hopefully Stuart Broad will be tired.
Aussies need a reshuffle but only one change for fourth Ashes Test
Not a bad overview for the Hawks but one player you didnt mention was James Blanck who I thought was a real find for us last year. Another player from the Box Hill breeding ground. I realise he got games last year because Frost was injured but I think Blanck can be that player who can take the bigger bodied forward. He is also very efficient with his possession and doesn’t try and bite off more than he can chew. If he can hold down that key back position, maybe Frosty gets released up the ground as either a pressure forward or even a tagging type midfielder or even on the wing with his speed and line breaking ability. Agree with comments on Worpel and I’m bullish on his upside particularly now that Tom Mitchell is gone. No surprise that Worpel’s best year was when Mitchell missed with a broken leg. The hardest thing with the rebuild is getting game time into all the promising youngsters without sacrificing on-ground leadership. Lets face it, Mitchell and O’Meara weren’t outstanding leaders so not sure they will be missed that much but they will miss Big Boy and Gunston. The X factor in my opinion is Sam Mitchell. I’ve spoken with a few people who had links with West Coast and they all rave about how smart Mitchell is and how differently he thinks to your standard coach. Could all amount to nothing but I think its going to be a good watch.
2023 Best 23s: Forgotten B&F winner might be the key to getting Hawthorn back on track