I don’t think there would have been much in it for the bowlers mate that’s for sure. Aravinda De Silva played a season at Mildura East as a young man, tho it escapes me when and then there was the U19 World Cup played there and in the Riverland of SA in 88 or 89. A mates cousin billeted a young Inzaman who’s grasp of the English language at the time consisted of “Yes” “No” and “Food”

Yeah Mon.

Great piece Peter,
It was a nice little trip down memory lane as that series is the first that I remember clearly. I actually spent Xmas holidays in Tennet Creek in the NT of all places and most days was to hot to do anything so as a 9 year old just plonked in front of the TV air con blasting and the ABC coverage keeping me company. Those days of the proper tour matches were definitely something and in the summer of 81-82 the mighty West Indies actually played a tour match in my home town of Mildura against a Vic Country side. I remember nothing of the match, it was a draw according to records but for years a prized possession was the back page of our local news paper with the caption “The Bigger They Are The More The Kids Love Them” and there’s me looking up at the great Joel Garner as he signed my autograph. Years later work took me to the Caribbean for a few trips and I always got along really well with Jeff Dujon. One day I was telling him that story and he started laughing I asked him if he remembered the match, he leaned in and said “Woody what I remember is that Viv had a really, really really good time in Mildura Mon.”

You did cost yourself a couple mate that’s for sure. Wasn’t trying to talk down Ports flag tho.

Morgs,
I agree with something’s you’ve said mate and others are a bit Maah. I’ve lived all around Australia I consider myself Victorian but I’ve grown up a fan of Aussie rules. I bait my mates all the time who think the VFL – AFL is the be all and end all of the sport and some arrogantly still refer to “The Interstate Clubs”” like they ruined the VFL. The AFL does a lot right but it doesn’t respect and appreciate the history of SA and WA football that’s for certain. However in a 18 club 23 round season with 10 teams in Victoria it will always suck for the WA teams for the pure and simple reason that they are so isolated. I’ve mentioned before I hope the 17 round season is here to stay because it’s fair and it could possibly open the door to a return of State of Origin. As for the GF being at the G for the next 35 years get over it cause it ain’t changing. It used to be worse because the G was guaranteed both Preliminary Finals till 05. Brisbane had to play a home Prelim v Geelong at the G in 04 and that possibly (no disrespect to Port) could have cost them a record 4 flags in a row. Will the GF at the G ever change? It probably will but it won’t be anytime soon. As for Eddie and Eddie bashing yeah the bloke is vegemite mate but he’s not the first club President who’s been up to his eyeballs in the media and he won’t be the last. Did Brayshaw annoy you when he commentated whilst President of North? Should Kochie not be allowed to host Sunrise cause it’s on 7? Where’s the line drawn with media personalities and football involvement? Finally I’ve had some great GF eves drinking beer and talking football with Eagles, Swans and Docker fans and none of them had a problem being in Melbourne in fact they all thought it was “part of what makes it special” is being at the G on Grand Final Day.

I think the Pies are a massive chance to make it “3rd time lucky” this year. I was bitterly disappointed in the Prelim final loss to GWS last year and if I’m honest I don’t think we would have rolled Richmond. Losing two GF’s back to back would have been gutting and I think it would have been considerably harder this year and even more so given what has played out. Jaiden Stephenson will make a huge difference this year and I have a feeling that Josh Daicos could surprise and get a regular gurnsey. The back line will continue to make life tough for opponents and by all rights Collingwood should fear nobody.
Playing the Grand Final in October helps also.

Sky U.K. have the rights to the NRL and at the start of the season were showing quite a few matches, they even showed the 9’s this year. Previously Premier Sports in the U.K. had the rights but it was a pay extra scenario. I may be wrong but I think Premier only had an SD channel. I’m not sure how long the contract is but as of 2020 Sky definitely have the rights to the NRL. It will probably be a case of one of the lesser Sky channels showing the matches once football kicks back into gear over here and with no Super Rugby I’d expect them to continue to show quite a few games a week.

I have one Adam, unfortunately my work dictates that I miss a few also and it’s hard to find the time to watch a full round of 9 matches.

I’m looking forward to seeing what Brisbane bring to the table this year and also hopefully being able to see a bit more of them. The U.K. does ok with its AFL coverage on BT and ESPN but fair to say the Lions didn’t get much of a look in. Hopefully the AFL shares the broadcast love this season and I can get a better gauge on them.

I’m a huge wrap for the 17 round season purely cause I see it as a perfect way to reintroduce state of origin.

My whole love of the game stems from Norwood v Port and that rivalry. There’s a story that goes when Collingwood beat Melbourne in the 58 GF to deny the Dees equaling the 4 flags in a row that the Pies won between 27-30. Norm Smith walked into the Collingwood rooms and said “I hate you bastards but by Christ I admire you”. I feel that way about Port Adelaide.

As a self confessed footy nuffy I’ve found this season (or so far lack of) an interesting one in regards to the AFL. As a kid I was a bit of a gypsy as in I moved a lot and my introduction to Aussie Rules was thru the SANFL in the late 70’s to mid 80’s. I spent a bit of time in Perth also so there was the WAFL and I also had a soft spot for the VFA when I moved to Victoria. This year so far I’ve found myself more concerned with those leagues and what the future holds especially for some of the clubs. I was raised to hate Port Adelaide in a Norwood family but have oddly found myself worrying about what their future holds. Not necessarily in the AFL but the club in general given that it’s their 150th anniversary and the history they have. I have no ties to East Fremantle but was gutted to hear they needed to set up a Go Fund Me page. I’ve read about West Adelaide, Central Districts, West Perth and Perth and how clubs who form the fabric of the games history are struggling with what Covid has done to them, the whole time thinking the AFL will be just fine. As June 12 gets closer I’m looking forward to a return to footy from an AFL perspective but still wondering can the SANFL survive this year as a amateur league? What about Port Melbourne, Williamstown and the VFL stand alone clubs? Is no WAFL in 2020 going to help the struggling clubs I mentioned before? It’s easy to get all consumed by the AFL and what’s happening but I love the so called 2nd tier and hope they’re ok going forward. As far as the AFL season goes I think it will be fascinating to see what a 17 round season with hubs brings to the table. If a SA or WA team wins it will be an amazing achievement if they don’t find themselves playing at home all season. Let’s see what unfolds one thing is for sure it’s a season that will be spoken about for years to come.

I think obviously if you’re to young to appreciate its very easy to be oblivious to how important Mo was to the Aussie team during those glum years. He was a fighter and he played with great spirit. I was a huge fan. I’d have KJ Hughes at 3 instead of Yallop despite it all ending in tears (pardon the poor pun) he was an exceptional player Hughes who doesn’t get his just deserts when we speak of modern greats.

What’s the saying Rowdy, in SA we learn the alphabet then we learn about Barry Robran. I am a little to young sadly but my late grandfather who was Sturt thru and thru would wax lyrical about Robran. His favourite dig at me (cause I was born in Victoria) was Robran was all the proof required that SA was the superior football state as it was home to the greatest player of all time. Sadly I feel like the names Robran and Michael will slowly become less well known as the AFL continues to rewrite the history of our code and great game. It’s up to blokes who saw SANFL and WAFL footy at its peak before the AFL invasion to keep these blokes at the forefront when discussing Australian Rules and not AFL.

It would take some thought but Frank Costanza could be captain and 1st slip screaming at his bowlers all day and then in the club rooms after play. “I gotta lot of problems with you people! Krueger you couldn’t hit a good line or length if…………I’ve lost my train of thought.”

Seinfeld XI?

My all time favourite sledge.

Brilliant.

I don’t know if the hubs will go ahead but if they do it will be interesting to see where Victoria is in relation to a lift on lockdown and if the majority of the season is played away from Victoria. It could be a god send if football is played in the other heartland states of the code just to see what the competition could bring going forward. Imagine if you had a GF in Darwin this year for the simple reason that people could actually go as opposed to an empty MCG. I’d rather see a packed ground in Darwin than an empty G that’s for sure. I dunno it’s going to be a strange season regardless try something new to take footy forward and see what sticks.

That’s the problem with the AFL it’s an industry well at least that’s how it sees itself and is constantly referred to and it does my head in. Let’s save 18 clubs and lose 80% of the pointless media that refer to it as such. It’s a Victorian centric competition that needs to get a grip on its perceived self importance. I love our great game but perhaps this is the shake up it needed.

Hey MDiddy, nice piece mate and you have obviously gone to a lot of effort and thought into it. Quick disclaimer I’m an Aussie Rules guy so my knowledge of Rugby is nowhere near on a par with the guys who are contributing to the comments but I did live in NZ for a few years and learnt quickly that in order to fit in socially you had to learn Rugby and learn quick and once I started working for Sky NZ I didn’t really have a choice as the Rugby paid my bills. After returning home tho I quickly Wallabies aside slipped back into AFL fandom and that started paying the bills. Just a few thoughts of my own and again as I said I’m no expert.
Firstly I adopted the Brumbies as my team when I left Christchurch, I kinda supported the Crusaders when I was there in order to fit in but that wasn’t going to happen when I moved to Auckland because I’m allergic to teams called the Blues. However when I think of Super Rugby I think of the Brumbies I still check their results and so going forward I can’t imagine them not being a part of your Pro Pac 10 proposal and I don’t really buy into the whole NSW- Qld = Rugby so I’d struggle to get on board. I should also point out that despite being an AFL fan I’m a sports nutter full stop and I don’t want to see any code struggle going forward as a result of Covid because our passions as sports fans are our passions regardless of the code. I think by losing the Brumbies you’d be missing something. The Rebels yeah I get that I could be wrong but I don’t think they’ve captured Melbourne’s public interest. The Storm have but I wonder if that’s cause they always are there or there abouts so 3 clubs makes more sense to me. The other thing is why bother with NZ or the PI teams? As mentioned wouldn’t the PI teams just need constant propping up financially? Why not a purely Australian competition with the 5 Aussie teams (bringing back the Force) and perhaps a team from FNQ and Northern NSW and maybe a team that’s from either the Shute Shield or the Queensland league that has history, is financially viable and has maybe outgrown its league? Kind of how Port Adelaide was desperate to join the AFL on the back of a century of success in the SANFL. The problem with the SR in my naive opinion is a lack of interest in the South African franchises and not knowing what they stand for as well as the time zone difference. Maybe that’s irrelevant and apologies if I’ve gone off track. A pro Aussie Rugby comp doesn’t need to be huge in regards to clubs involved it just needs to be competitive and capture the hearts and minds of Rugby fans. I’d rather watch an 8 team Oz Rugby tournament to rekindle my interest and show my Mexican mates all that’s good about the sport as opposed to watching the Brumbies play Waikato. Why give NZ rugby a leg up playing against our boys week in week out. Again sorry if I sound ignorant and have rambled. ????

Yeah and the Robbie Grey call also is perplexing. I had to look back over the side to see if it was Vic bias but it’s clearly not but maybe a little on the Essendon bias side of things yes agree.

Everyone is entitled to an opinion and this is mine. No Fyfe?? Turn it up! The bloke is a dual Brownlow Medalist and a lock over any one you had in the guts. You could also take out Waite and Walker because in another era he’d probably play CHF.
Phenomenal footballer.

Yes and those sub contractor companies like NEP and Gearhouse are bleeding money and furloughing what full time staff they do have. Will be interesting all round what happens when it does return especially as to what price the providers may possibly hitch the prices up to for the equipment and the OB trucks to help the providers get back on track also.

This is a little left field but Matthew Mitchum winning Gold in the 2008 Beijing 10 metre platform final. Working for Beijing Olympic Broadcasting and it was an Aussie and Kiwi TV crew who had the contract for the world feed of the Aquatic events (swimming, sync swimming, diving and water polo). The Chinese were dominating and winning golds in the men’s and women’s with nobody else getting a look in. Come the final dive and Zhou Luxin looks like making it yet another Chinese gold medal but he stuffs up his entry, not massively but enough to knock off points. He’s still tho in the box seat. Enter Mitchum who goes with this ridiculously difficult 2.5 somersault 2.5 twists in a pike position. We are all sitting there thinking “well good on him at least he ain’t going to die wondering”. Now we’re not diving experts but we are invested and we have to know what’s going on to make it good coverage. We do have a spotter an ex diver and he definitely knows what’s what. Mitchum does his dive and we instantly are like hang on hold the phone and the spotter goes mad. “He’s done it he’s done it!!” Then the judges go 10 10 10 10 9.5 9.5 9.5 and Mitchum is an Olympic gold medalist and denies the Chinese 8 out of 8 Golds. We all go nuts cause A) we are all Aussies and B) we were sick of the Chinese anthem. Like I said left field but because none of us saw it coming made it really special.