Roy Masters is a former Rugby League coach and a frequent critic of AFL. He argues that the NRL is a more even competition than the AFL; that on 'any given Sunday' you can pick almost any match from the NRLs' fixture for that weekend and guarantee that both sides have a fair chance of winning. He contrasted the NRLs' level playing field with the AFLs' 2009 season, where the top two clubs in St Kilda and Geelong were undefeated after the first 13 games.

Not so in 2011. This season we have seen 5 of the 9 games finish with a margin under 6 points. Last night was a ripper game where a side widely picked to finish in the bottom 4 has nearly beat the second favourite for the flag. And they lost their best player in J Reiwoldt in the first quarter. The lead changed hands at least 5 times in the last quarter alone and it highlighted that fantastic feature of AFL where you can win (and lose) a game with just one kick. Maybe games are close because of the Sub rule or maybe the fitness levels of all teams are more even, or perhaps the fixture has paired up a list of evenly matched teams in the first two rounds.

I think this means that the Dees have a decent chance of beating the Dorks this weekend. We wont start favourites and they have owned us for the last 4 years, but we won the contested possessions last week against the Swans who specialise in clearances and stoppages. The Dorks have pushed us off the ball in the past, so I'm interested to see if our new training facilities have turned the Dees into muscle men. Note that our two most junior players in Tapscott and Trengove are very solid builds. I suggest we need to 'enforce our opinions' tomorrow.

It's a big match for Moloney. He's had good games in the past but struggled to get consistency. He played well last week and strangely the new game seems to suit him, as it looks like sides are kicking the ball more this year. They are using long bombs from full back and long bombs to a contest in the forward line. 'Position' seems to be as important as 'possession'. In the last quarter against the Swans the first two clearances out of the centre were long kicks by Moloney. Now i know He's been criticised for not hitting targets but one of those kicks ended up under Jurrah's armpit. Moloney could become one of the top midfielders in the league.

Go Dees!!!

Edited April 1, 201114 yr by DirtyDees DDC

Masters may be right that the NRL is a more even competition. It doesn't change the fact that our game is superior to theirs though. Evenly boring is still boring.

Our great game was invented in Australia, by Australians, for Australians, what could be better than that?

Every method of ball disposal in Aussie Rules is superior to thugby

• They can run as far as they want with ball safely tucked under arm where we have to bounce and return an irregular shaped ball while running top speed

• They toss the ball to each other where we have to hand ball based on a set of rules.

• We aim to score by kicking the ball through our goals, they place it on the ground while falling over, that always seemed weird to me, you score by falling over, imagine the meeting where that one was discussed. "Yeah we got a new rule, ya just fall over" "Oh yeah great one guvna, ya reckon it won't be too hard to do though, falling over aint easy ya know, what if they do it in the wrong spot?"

• We hold the ball ourselves like grownups when having a shot at goal while they rest it on the ground and have a run up to it, kinda like kicking a comatose gopher that's hanging out of it's hole

Imagine how easy our game would be if we could run as far as we wanted while hiding the ball in our armpit, could throw the ball with impunity and even got to lift each other up when needing extra height then just flopped over the line to score. I reckon I'd stop going to watch.

As I used to say, when living up North, to the thugby fans; "Genetic Scientists have discovered that the skill level of the average Queenslander is increasing at such a rate that they one day will be able to play Aussie Rules"

Masters may be right that the NRL is a more even competition. It doesn't change the fact that our game is superior to theirs though. Evenly boring is still boring..............

'Catch & cuddle' ........ what are those back rowers sniffing in the scrums?

Juvenile rebuttal.

I think rugby is an inferior game to AFL, but most of your points are just mocking the sport rather than making any solid arguments.

I don't see the point.

(& we are able to lift our teammates into the air with impunity; it's just a rarely used tactic).

Sadly the fly in the ointment is a big black and white one. They are light years ahead of everyone else at the moment, and partly because their 3 main rivals have slipped back.

It wont be long before we see the headlines... 'can anyone beat xxxxxxxwood?

Juvenile rebuttal.

I think rugby is an inferior game to AFL, but most of your points are just mocking the sport rather than making any solid arguments.

I don't see the point.

(& we are able to lift our teammates into the air with impunity; it's just a rarely used tactic).

Neither can I. I live in a rugby stronghold and personally find league and rugby less entertaining spectacles, but the tribalism of league is just as intense as interclub AFL and State of Origin and Rugby world cup is something I envy. So perhaps it may have been better if AFL had originated in Europe, and soccer is far better to play/

I think the truth is that you love the game you're raised with. I've lived in Sydney for a few years and outside of the odd state of origin match have found it really hard to appreciate rugby league. What I find curious is that AFL is the sport everyone follows in my office -- Sydneysider or outsider -- and the game they want their kids to play. So there may be some truth to the AFL being superior argument.

As to tomorrow, our team is a year older and a year stronger. I really want to see our big-bodied blokes impose themselves -- Moloney, Sylvia and Tapscott (love that man-child) -- and end this notion that Melbourne can just be pushed aside. We owe the Hawks some pain and it's time to start inflicting it.

I think the truth is that you love the game you're raised with. I've lived in Sydney for a few years and outside of the odd state of origin match have found it really hard to appreciate rugby league. What I find curious is that AFL is the sport everyone follows in my office -- Sydneysider or outsider -- and the game they want their kids to play. So there may be some truth to the AFL being superior argument.

As to tomorrow, our team is a year older and a year stronger. I really want to see our big-bodied blokes impose themselves -- Moloney, Sylvia and Tapscott (love that man-child) -- and end this notion that Melbourne can just be pushed aside. We owe the Hawks some pain and it's time to start inflicting it.

Same for me Ned. I live in Canterbury's heartland and I find I have to admire their passion, although I do think they have some of the worst supporters in the competition (somewhat like Pies and Dons supporters if we want to generalise). I think you will find that the reason you now find many people here now following the AFL is due to the fact it is perceived as being more family oriented... thanks to the likes of Canterbury supporters, the live games have become a bit of a no go area for many families.

As for the comments above regarding the origins of the game (AFL being a game that is Australian)... yes, it was developed here, but I think you find there are many influences that went into the making of the game that came here with the immigrants to this country.

I'm loathe to make a prediction on the possible outcome of this game as over the past two years we have all confidently predicted easy victories over the Dorks due to their injury lists etc, and each time we have been comfortably dealt with.

Edited April 2, 201114 yr by hardtack