I think next week I will tip all the teams I think will loose. Incorrect disposal is a thing of the past, was at the hawks/dees game and there were some absolute howlers an both sides. Wonder what “Rule of the week” will be ignored/enforced this week. Maybe it’s just me but when I watch a series of games from the 70’s or 80’s one thing that is consistent is the umpiring decisions. Now it’s just pot luck what your going to get pinged for.

If Buckley does go who selects the next coach? If the Buckley experiment is deemed a failure, it’s a pretty big one! I would be a little concerned if selection committee was the same. Who was it that said “there are no bad soldiers only bad generals”

Buck’s to Fox-Lyon’s to Pie’s-Clarko to Sun’s-Rooysy to Hawks. lol

I thought it was about making various betting agency’s easy money from the suckers who actually wager on JLT games. If your betting on games where it’s totally unknown what the game plan is and how long any player is actually going to play for your addicted. Gamble responsibly but pleeease gamble!

That hawks pink/brown combo was a abomination!

In Clarko confidimus (In Clarko we trust). Personally I think Issie missing that shot was irrelevant in the bigger picture, although it didn’t feel like that when I was leaving the ground. We could have beaten the Swans and Crows but I reckon both Dogs and GWS had our measure by a long shot. We will be in amongst it in this September for sure. Today’s game will be interesting to see who puts their hand up for a seniors birth but i suspect will will take a bath in the ruck, “Malis moribus uero”.

You make a good point about good player’s often not being good coaches however both Voss and Hird went into the jobs with no coaching experience or credentials and Buckley with only a 2 year ‘apprenticeship’. I think one of the most advantageous things Mitchell brings to WC is simply his knowledge and experience. WC’s up and coming mids are going to be learning from a genius at his craft, a person who negates his deficiencies by honing his natural attributes. As a player he doesn’t have to get better he’s great as he is. What WC gained was a certified grand master, what Hawthorn gained was potential. As with most trades in the AFL only time will tell who (if anyone) got the better deal. As a Hawks supporter I hope it’s us of course!

It’s obvious that the bounce will be a thing of the past as from next year. This week the AFL department of propaganda were running 2 articles simultaneously on the evils of bouncing the ball. I’m not saying the arguments against the bounce don’t have some merit however lets look at the bigger picture. When a bounce goes wrong it’s a delay of 20-30 seconds-OMG! That’s time better spent checking the Facebook status, lighting a fag or gulping a beer! Better yet if time is that important why waste it watching footy at all? It’s time better spent sitting at a red light or waiting for a train, queuing at a bank, etc etc, etc. There is no denying that bouncing the ball puts stress on the body but lets put it in to context What about the people who work on production lines, dig ditches, load and unload pallets or any other number of repetitious manual labouring jobs and don’t get paid $150,000 or more a year. It’s like joining a club that requires you to wear a tie and then complaining that you have to wear a tie. If you don’t like it don’t do it! I happen to like the little nuanced tradition’s that make up our game. Things like ‘the bounce’ or scoring a point just by hitting the goalpost are among the many little things that make up our unique. Personally I would like to see a 10 year moratorium on any rule/tradition changes. That could be time umpire’s spend perfecting the adjudication of the rules as they stand now, such as the art of distance. i.e. what is 15 metres etc.

The Laws of the Game Committee keep picking at the game like a scab on an abrasion and wonder why it’s not getting better. Leave it alone for a few years and see what happens. These blokes would have the bonnet up on the space shuttle 30 seconds before launch time! I’m with R’n’R. How about ‘improving’ the umpiring of the game rather than the game itself. In regards to improving the game everything seems to open to critique, players, coaches, clubs, media, everything except the umpiring. How bout one round, one game or even one quarter where a free for incorrect disposal is paid when it occurs. If the ump is blindsided then benefit of the doubt goes to the ball holder other than that if a player has it for longer than 3 seconds and doesn’t dispose of it by kicking or handball then it’s a free. Maybe I’m mistaken but I thought the Dogs v Giants and the GF last year were 2 of the best games I’ve ever seen. Stop playing with it or you’ll go blind!

The trouble with most if not all tv/foxtel footy commentators is they try to be part of the entertainment rather than just calling the game. And most if not all are not up to it, charisma wise that is. If you ever listen to BT call a game on 3aw he’s actually very good and astute. I always sync up games to ABC radio (my preference)

Personally I would like to see a Cats V Dogs GF. While the Swans did get financial help from the AFL to keep it together their evolution has been built on character and the likes of Kelly, Carroll and Barassi and has been a battle. GWS are a artificially enhanced entity, the NSYNC of the AFL. If they were to win the GF it would have the same substance as Lance Armstrong winning a Tour de France.

Equalisation is a joke. Having said that what really isn’t equal is the quality of administration at each club. The better the admin. the better the club. The AFL can implement as many policies as it likes aimed at equalising the league however it has no bearing on how well a club is run. Someone once said “There are no bad soldiers only bad officers”. To put it more bluntly, if the boss continually makes bad decisions and still gets paid whats the incentive for the employees to perform above and beyond?

Someone once said “I’m a great believer in luck, and I find the harder I work the more I have of it.” I agree the Hawks are not an exceptional team this year-yet! However they do win more often than the opposition and that’s all that is required.

The widespread punitive/prohibition model of dealing with the question of illegal drugs, whether it’s in the AFL or society in general, is a farce. It’s been my experience that the only way someone will alter their behavior in regards to drug intake (Legal or illegal) is if they decide to do so. The only way to make a informed decision is to be informed. If after being educated on the matter a person then decides to partake of a drug, knowing full well the possible consequences of their actions then the sole responsibility lies with them. Not the club or the AFL or any other person, place or thing. AFL players are more than adequately educated on this matter. If players want to play with fire then go ahead but don’t moan and wheel out the usual BS about being young, dumb and full of ___ if/when they get burned. That explanation is wearing a bit thin.

I’m not a Tigers supporter but I backed them in my tips last night because I believed that they are a better team than their last couple of outings suggest. What I observed last night was that they are not. Sure the Eagles pressure was good but the amount of unforced errors by Richmond was mind boggling. It was like they had trained to turn the ball over. Very basic skills were poor or absent all together, It was very disappointing. A lot of people are talking up the Eagles as one of the teams to beat this year however they have only played one top 8 team (in my opinion) this year and didn’t do to well, so personally I think they are a good team without being great. For me this gives me some clearer perspective of where the Tigs are at.

Whether Bucks is the coach the Pies need or not is one question. Is Eddie willing to fall on his own sword is another. Eddie stated he would not hesitate to sack Bucks if it was in the best interest of the club. Surely the person who made the decision to appoint him in the first place should place his head on the block. If it turns out the appointment was a huge mistake personally I would be reluctant to trust that persons judgement in appointing a new coach if and when that happened. _hit rolls downhill.

Expect the usual pious outpourings from the ‘My s_it don’t stink crowd’. This is not a moral issue it is a policy issue. Everybody from the pope down breaks the law. It’s just the frequency and severity that differ. These blokes are in the same position as everybody else who is over 18yrs of age. They have to take responsibility for the consequences of the decisions they make. They are highly educated on the matter and possible ramifications of illicit drug use. If they choose to run the gauntlet and are caught then it’s time to pay the piper. The AFL need to get serious and implement a black and white policy of real penalties for offenses ie. 1year ban for 1st offense, life for 2nd offense. But they won’t! The AFL will continue to waffle crap about this issue and call it chocolate. Because if they did implement serious penalties for offenses possibly 25% of all 18 clubs playing lists would be banned for a significant period of time. The loss of revenue this would engender is the driving narrative of the AFL illicit drugs policy not what is right or wrong or proper. No pain no gain is a popular adage and in this case it is apt. Initially a hard stance would indeed result in many players being banned for a time however I don’t think it would be catastrophic. The sky would not fall but it would be gloomy for a while but in the long run I think our game would be so much better for it. And if you still feel the need to express your moral outrage have a go at the tobacco, alcohol and gambling industries. All are legal and have the distinction of coursing more deaths, disharmony and physical, mental, spiritual and moral destitution than any use or abuse of any illicit substance. And don’t get me started on polibloodyticians.

Weak as piss. How can it be legal to essentially throw a game that can be wagered on. Admittedly betting on any NAB challenge game is akin to throwing your money away anyway however, if 3 or 4 jockeys decided to stop their horse halfway through a race because they thought it may get injured imagine the wailing and gnashing of teeth that would follow.

I’m surprised ‘Warnie’ didn’t blame his mum. I thought that was his default response when it came to taking responsibility.

Love the rule changes especially rule 1. Would live to play Geelong with that in place

Thanks guys. Informative and free of emotive ranting that seems to pass for journalism these days. Look forward to more of it cheers.

Thanks Bronwyn for all the poems over the season. Hoping for one more to commemorate a great Hawks victory on Saturday.

What absolute drivel ! Both reports from Friday nights game bordered on the moronic. Hodge and Lewis got 3 and 2 week suspensions for what other players get away with or get minimal weeks. Steve Johnson most recent case in point flushes someone lying on the ground unable to defend himself and gets a week. I do agree however that the MRP are a joke!

I wouldn’t say dreaming just optimistic. I’m not saying they aren’t capable I am saying they aren’t consistent with that capability. I would more inclined to say they are regularly disappointing and as with any player in any team you have to analytically sit back and make a call as to whether a player adds to the team, is holding it in stasis or detracting from it. There are a few in my team that get a regular gig that has me scratching my head to. Its not my call obviously just my thoughts on the matter. I totally agree about Majak it was just an example.

The guilty party are the AFL for being a pack of cheap charlies. Instead of installing the proper and available technology (At all venues) to determine a conclusive result they stick with a camera pack purchased on ebay for $29.99. Watch a scoreline review when its in Tasmania looks like a direct feed from someones iphone at a random point in the crowd. I could go on about their website buts that’s another argument.