Are some teams just destined for heartbreak each season?
[caption id="attachment_17026" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="Jamie Soward and Dean Young during the NRL, Round 4, Brisbane Broncos v St George Illawarra Dragons match at Suncorp…
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[caption id="attachment_17026" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="Jamie Soward and Dean Young during the NRL, Round 4, Brisbane Broncos v St George Illawarra Dragons match at Suncorp…
[caption id="attachment_27059" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="Australia captain Ricky Ponting swings out at the ball. AP Photo/Matt Dunham"][/caption] The Twenty20 Big Bash is going to take…
[caption id="attachment_10407" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="Geelong and St Kilda players fight for the ball during the AFL 1st Qualifying Final between the Geelong Cats and…
[caption id="attachment_23630" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="Geelong\'s Max Rooke attempts to mark against Collingwood\'s Simon Prestigiacomo (R) and Heath Shaw during the AFL 2nd Preliminary Final…
[caption id="attachment_7219" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="Wallaby coach Robbie Deans watches his team train in Sydney, Australia. AP Photo/Mark Baker"][/caption] Let's make one thing clear. Robbie…
[caption id="attachment_10387" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="Jamie Soward is chased down by Sika Manu during NRL Round 19, Melbourne Storm vs St George Illawarra Dragons, at…
[caption id="attachment_928" align="alignnone" caption="Tiger Woods. APP Photos"][/caption] Pick one of the egg-shaped ball sports. A player has a kick for goal after the siren.…
[caption id="attachment_23393" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="Collingwood players celebrate on the final siren of the AFL 1st Semi Final between the Collingwood Magpies and the Adelaide…
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[caption id="attachment_23168" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="Adam Schneider and Andrew McQualter of St Kilda Saints celebrate a goal during their AFL 1st Qualifying Final victory over…
[caption id="attachment_21318" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="England\'s Andrew Flintoff, on his knees, is congratulated by teammates after bowling the wicket of Australia\'s Peter Siddle. AAP Images…
[caption id="attachment_17026" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="Jamie Soward and Dean Young during the NRL, Round 4, Brisbane Broncos v St George Illawarra Dragons match at Suncorp…
[caption id="attachment_22891" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="St Kilda coach Ross Lyon addresses his players at quarter time during the AFL Round 22 match between the Melbourne…
[caption id="attachment_22639" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="Collingwood\'s Dale Thomas marks over Sydney\'s Heath Grundy during the AFL Round 21 match between the Collingwood Magpies and the…
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[caption id="attachment_22639" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="Collingwood\'s Dale Thomas marks over Sydney\'s Heath Grundy during the AFL Round 21 match between the Collingwood Magpies and the…
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But the point is that they are playing in the compettion as opposed to the Australian players who are quarantined from it.
Big Bash could be the saviour of Australian cricket
All of the Indian stars play for their provinces in the IPL – why shouldn’t the same happen in the Big Bash with the Australians playing for their states or whatever it is going to be?
Big Bash could be the saviour of Australian cricket
A problem with Test cricket is that its horribly over-policed and over-priced. For a day’s cricket, you could find yourself out of pocket by a bit – that is, if you aren’t thrown out of the ground for sneezing or looking at someone the wrong way.
Big Bash could be the saviour of Australian cricket
I think that the current NRL system works best when there are upsets and you have no idea what the match-ups are going to be. Otherwise the second week is just a rehashed version of 3-6 and 4-5.
What is the best and fairest Finals system?
There isn’t too much of an advantage to the side finishing first? They may only play two games in September – receiving the benefit of a week off twice.
What is the best and fairest Finals system?
Does anyone remember 1998 when the NRL used a final 10?
The first week the top two (Brisbane and Newcastle) had the week off. They basically used the top 8 (current AFL system) two weeks in a row. Both the Bears and Knights went out in straight sets. The Bulldogs made the Grand Final from 9th spot.
What is the best and fairest Finals system?
Colin – I didn’t do the title so can’t speak about that.
But in regard to Safina – she was atrocious in her three games, really bad. That was the issue more than anything her opponents did/didn’t do.
Lack of competition leaves women's tennis in bad shape
quarter Finals ….make that semi-finals.
Na Li really didn’t put up much of a fight. Surely Serena is going to put a stop to this nonsense?
Lack of competition leaves women's tennis in bad shape
I don’t think Adelaide will be able to win three finals in a row on the road, even though all of them will only be in Melbourne.
Thus I would say that just four have a chance.
I still think the Saints and Cats are a class above but in the finals I’m not going to rule out anything.
St Kilda have been playing finals football the whole year and so should be well equipped to take on the Pies.
Re Lloyd – answer me this. How would you feel about him if he were playing for another team such as Carlton. Would you still think so highly of him?
Bring on the AFL finals
You are 100% right. That game slipped my mind. Completely forgot about the forgettable Tigers. They have degenerated into nothing more than a rabble and again have found themselves as the last team standing in the musical chair game of trying to find a coach. Richo is a great player but there is no logical reason why he should be coming back next year. It is a decision based on sentimentality and with him needing to play 18 games next year to reach 300 games, I don’t think he is going to make it.
Bombers beat Saints? It's a funny old season
Brett – I really have no idea what they will do. Will they reseed the conferences every couple of years? What if there was two divisions of 9 and this allowed for promotion/relegation? The bottom line is that whatever they do, over time, teams are not going to play each other and that isn’t cool. In a sport like baseball (notwithstanding interleague play) you understand why an American League team hasn’t played a National League one and that’s fine. And in the Premier League, the fans of Norwich or Luton appreciate why they no longer play Manchester United or Liverpool but in AFL the competition relies on strong club rivalries.
They are also up against it because the Gold Coast and GWS sides have no history or tradition therefore no rivalry with any other team. This will come but in the early stages it will be tough.
Bombers beat Saints? It's a funny old season
The exact same thing happened on BigFooty. A thread was created to congratulate him and the same sort of ridiculous comments sprung up. If that’s how you get your kicks – good luck to you.
The Magic O'Loughlin Show set for game 300
If you are interested in hearing what a person has to say than there would be an appeal in following them.
Axed Hughes is no Twit, despite Test side leak
Thanks for the list. Many of them are dormant which also defeats the purpose.
Axed Hughes is no Twit, despite Test side leak
I believe Hughes knew at least a day before hand he wouldn’t be playing so the timing wasn’t an issue.
Axed Hughes is no Twit, despite Test side leak
Thanks Derryn. According to The Australian, it wasn’t Hughes who actually tweeted but his manager, Neil D’Costa. Apparently it was meant to be taken down, but the first day’s play finished some three hours ago and it is still up. Does this affect what I thought? No – as it still came from the Hughes camp as opposed to coming via the CA system. As a result of this, some sort of Twitter policy is probably going to be drawn up that all Tweets have to be approved which will be a shame.
Axed Hughes is no Twit, despite Test side leak
Thanks for your points – let me address some of them
Obviously the Crows were good but that isn’t the story here – the story is more the constant ineptitude of the Dockers.
I think the coaching issue at Collingwood is becoming a bigger story and given that I only have five points I have, I can’t talk about everything. The Magpies are playing some great football and it was a great contest against the Bulldogs. Ditto with the Bombers – yes it was a good win for them but in the scheme of things the Bombers will at best be eliminated in the second week of the finals so it won’t amount to much.
I’m not the type of person who gets overly excited by something that happens in the home and away season. At the end of the day all it is is a build up to the Grand Final. Like the Bombers win on Anzac Day was fantastic as was Melbourne’s three wins to date but they have to be taken with a grain of salt. All that matters now is St Kilda and Geelong – the rest is window dressing.
The folly of Fremantle
Chop – agree 100%
Jameswm – I dont think Australia can complain when it comes to dodgy umpiring decisions. They have received their fair share of the years. Sangakarra in Hobart????
Enough of the build-up, let The Ashes finally begin
Given all the nerves – is is not better to bowl first like England did in 1997? England lost the toss but would have bowled out Australia before lunch on the first day had it not been for Warney.
Enough of the build-up, let The Ashes finally begin
Oh yes, I’d forgotten about Chuck. Berry was only two years older than Gilly but yet seems a lot older. Like Brad Hodge, te was very unlucky in his timing. If he would have been around after Rod Marsh retired, he would have been selected for sure.
Enough of the build-up, let The Ashes finally begin
Brett – I agree!
Charles – Thanks for that. His daily posts last time round were a highlight. He won’t also be writing for Cricinfo?
Osmond – Wasn’t that flash? His wicket-keeping was solid but his batting took him to the next level. Starting with that game in Hobart against Pakistan, he won games with the bat. That makes a huge difference.
Jameswm – I just said wicketkeeper because I feel you pick the best keeper and whatever else they bring to the table is a bonus – like Tim Zoehrer’s legsin.
Chop – Really? Who else would you have picked? Which keepers spring to mind that were unlucky not to have played during Gilchrist’s time or now?
Enough of the build-up, let The Ashes finally begin
Regarding the Tour De France – I’m wondering how long it will take until the ‘Tour De Farce’ headline is unleashed. In recent years, it’s been the first week.
Five major sporting events to look forward to watching
For the most part it looks as though the media have moved on. As we get closer to the World Cup, will be interesting to see if/when/how anything is rehashed…
Cahill headlines prove power of media beat-ups
Thanks for all of your comments. It will be interesting to see how this unfolds in the months to come. Not just with football but other sports.
Cahill headlines prove power of media beat-ups
The sides should be at full strength for the final – guys like Cameron White shouldn’t have to miss the final for a meaningless series against Pakistan. Poor scheduling.
Big Bash could be the saviour of Australian cricket