GREAT EXPECTATIONS

by Whispering Jack (26 November 2005)

I'm sitting here on a Saturday morning in an internet café on the Gold Coast. Strewn around me in the streets are the bodies of literally hundreds of creatures known in the outside world as "schoolies" - those wretched almost lifeless figures whose chemical composition at this point in time is made up of 100% proof alcohol. They are totally oblivious to the importance of this day and indeed, will almost certainly not regain their collective consciousnesses - let along their senses - until the morning's highly significant events have been well and truly written into the annals of history.

It's the morning of the 2005 AFL National Draft. The choices that will be made today by men like Melbourne's Craig Cameron will most likely help to shape the destiny of their football clubs and with that, will play an enormous role in how we behave, how we feel and whether we can somehow experience and celebrate the attainment of the Holy Grail - the thing that is most scared in the lives of all of us football tragics.

I wish CAC1963 and his team the best of luck this morning - even though I know that luck isn't a factor.

Not today.

Today is all about the culmination of a long period of hard work put in by each club's recruiting staff. Our club is not Collingwood, West Coast or Brisbane - we don't have the wealth of their resources to pump into our football operations but we do have a group of dedicated hard working people in all areas including recruiting.

Those of us who were at the Demonland/Demonology Sponsors Day during the Under 18 National Championships in July have met them and can attest to this fact. Today is their day (and, of course, that of the players who get selected and their families).

The luck comes tomorrow and the day after and then the days, months and years after that. As we've seen in the debates on past drafts, lady luck plays her part since we can't foresee injuries and personal tragedies among players. And naturally, there's a lot of hard work involved along with the luck.

Thankfully, we are not lacking the highest qualities among our recruiters and even in the absence of a swathe of top 20 picks, it's good that we have faith in Craig's ability to choose wisely today.

As the amount of internet time available to me dwindles down to seconds and the schoolie on the floor beside me begins to stir and commences to dry wretch (why is it that the female gender of this species finds it necessary to fight what in most cases is a desperately losing battle to emulate Paris Hilton in appearance?) I can only finish off by again saying to Craig and co -

"Good luck and go Dees! ..."

[Later that morning, Melbourne selected Nathan Jones, Simon Buckley, Clint Bartram and Heath Neville at the 2005 National AFL Draft]