5 hours ago, FearTheBeard said:

Richmond and Hawthorn going down to the Cattery 

Bout F'n time!

3 hours ago, DeeSpencer said:

So what’s our plan for the 5 day break in Adelaide?

Surely we have to stay over and make it a camp situation.

Anyone care to announce themselves as South Australians and make a suggestion of where we will stay, train and what we will do?

We trained at North Adelaide Football Club before gather round last year.

As for where the players im fairly sure they might of stayed at Crown Plaza just off Rundell Street.

@WalkingCivilWar were you aware of where the players stayed during gather round?

 

Edited November 16, 20231 yr by YesitwasaWin4theAges

8 hours ago, Clintosaurus said:

3.30 according to Sam Edmund on SEN this morning.

Get ready for this thread to explode.

3 hours ago, DeeSpencer said:

So what’s our plan for the 5 day break in Adelaide?

Surely we have to stay over and make it a camp situation.

Anyone care to announce themselves as South Australians and make a suggestion of where we will stay, train and what we will do?

Hopefully spending 5 days in Adelaide might convince Harry to stay with us. 

Reading all the pro’s and con’s I am feeling pretty comfortable about this draw, No Cattery or Tassie and a decent break between the byes is a pleasant surprise. Feeling confident that if we get a decent run with injury we can be a genuine contender in 2024 and a big thanks to Kate Roffe for pushing for greater justice for MFC.

Decent fixture for next season for the Dees. No trips to Geelong or Tasmania. Pity only one game against Carlton, with both clubs aiming for the top 4 and two very closely contested games with huge crowds late last year it warranted a second game. 

Wishing the Dees all the best next season, except on 9 May 😁

1 hour ago, YesitwasaWin4theAges said:

We trained at North Adelaide Football Club before gather round last year.

As for where the players im fairly sure they might of stayed at Crown Plaza just off Rundell Street.

@WalkingCivilWar were you aware of where the players stayed during gather round?

 

That’s where they stayed for our round 10 match vs Port. I don’t know where they stayed for gather round but they generally stay as close to the ground as possible. Interestingly, the AFL decides where players stay when playing interstate, not the individual clubs. 

6 hours ago, layzie said:

I don't like the Round 1 being our second game idea. Won't be able to matchup rounds played with the corresponding round number anymore. 

 

 

 

Yes you will after Round 5 the bye round. And it will alter ( as it has done in each season ) after the second bye. 

This happens  each year after the bye so your point is completely wrong. It doesn’t happen for all season any year  and quite frankly who cares. 

On 15/11/2023 at 13:49, Bring-Back-Powell said:

Spot on. Since the flag we've played with the red ball just twice at the G. Once against St Kilda in 2022 and once against Freo in 2023.

I'd like to see more Saturday afternoon and early Sunday afternoon games at he G to add variety to the schedule. However Saturday afternoon footy seems to be reserved for the also rans if the second half of last season was a guide.

I'd also like to see us play at Marvel more than once, at the expense of 1 or 2 less interstate trips. I figure we won't get more than 13 MCG games like last year.

 

I would too. The GF was a great spectacle, partly because it was a red ball game on a sunny afternoon. That is something that twilight or night games just don't have, for mine ...

Very happy to have two games in Adelaide, I hope the club will base themselves here so fans like me can stalk them at training.

8 hours ago, 58er said:

and quite frankly who cares

'layzie'

11 hours ago, WalkingCivilWar said:

Yeah nah don’t remember saying lobbying is nonsense, nor did I attack your post… that’s your caper, not mine.

Of course I’m delighted Kate pushed for no trip to that depressing hell-scape, and for succeeding. I found out this evening at banner that she also pushed to get us a proper bye, and again succeeded. 

Hi WCW,

The post was on 17-October. Whilst you didn’t attack their post, your response about the futility of lobbying was:

“What’s the point though? What would lobbying achieve? A grand total of ZERO is the answer. Seems the only time we get something favourable is when it’s by happenstance, ie. something favours the Collingwoods and Carltons and we somehow are involved. Even then I’m sure it’s not through lack of the AFL trying to negate such.”

9 minutes ago, TheWiz said:

Hi WCW,

The post was on 17-October. Whilst you didn’t attack their post, your response about the futility of lobbying was:

“What’s the point though? What would lobbying achieve? A grand total of ZERO is the answer. Seems the only time we get something favourable is when it’s by happenstance, ie. something favours the Collingwoods and Carltons and we somehow are involved. Even then I’m sure it’s not through lack of the AFL trying to negate such.”

Yeah up until two weeks ago I truly believed that. It was only hearing it from Kate herself that swayed me. Thank you for discussing this in a mature, respectful manner. 🙂

https://www.afl.com.au/news/1064360/meet-the-canadian-rick-stone-who-helps-build-your-clubs-afl-fixture-software-optimal-planning-solutions-josh-bowler

Interesting read about scheduling of the fixture.

With the 5 day break between games fast becoming the norm I wonder if back to back road trip games will become a regular thing too. Whether that be two games in Adelaide like we'll be doing or 'slingshot' road games, playing one in Adelaide then the next in Perth. I wouldn't be adverse to the idea. 

We may not play at Geelong but we now play twice at Optus meaning 3 long haul flights.

While emotionally it is good to not play at kitty park I'm not sure it is a better outcome overall.

8 minutes ago, Lucifers Hero said:

We may not play at Geelong but we now play twice at Optus meaning 3 long haul flights.

While emotionally it is good to not play at kitty park I'm not sure it is a better outcome overall.

We play well at Optus and I rather play West Coast than Geelong anytime anywhere

13 minutes ago, Lucifers Hero said:

We may not play at Geelong but we now play twice at Optus meaning 3 long haul flights.

While emotionally it is good to not play at kitty park I'm not sure it is a better outcome overall.

Definitely feels like a 'kiss em before you kick em' moment by the AFL. 

At least it's something different I guess. 

1 minute ago, Jaded No More said:

We play well at Optus and I rather play West Coast than Geelong anytime anywhere

My point was the extra long haul flight vs a trip down the road or on the east cost. 

 

We will also play Freo at Optus. 

We have also played well at KP and Geelong don't frighten me at all certainly not the 2024 version.

Just now, Lucifers Hero said:

My point was the extra long haul flight vs a trip down the road or on the east cost. 

 

We will also play Freo at Optus. 

We have also played well at KP and Geelong don't frighten me at all certainly not the 2024 version.

Given we have the same number of interstate games in 2024 as we did in 2023, it’s reasonable to suggest we traded the GMHBA game for the extra MCG away game we get this year. 

Indeed, we have all the same interstate trips except that instead of North in Tasmania, we have Fremantle in Perth (although we draw the short straw and have to swap the neutral Gather Round game to playing Adelaide).

Excellent Draw, considering how corrupt the AFL is

 

25 minutes ago, Lucifers Hero said:

My point was the extra long haul flight vs a trip down the road or on the east cost. 

 

We will also play Freo at Optus. 

We have also played well at KP and Geelong don't frighten me at all certainly not the 2024 version.

Yes that is true, but we are still playing the same number of interstate games as previous years, without the need to also play in Geelong. Not to mention that poor Tassie ground where we seem to sustain serious injuries. 

And IMO the back to back SA games, while brutal in terms of the 5 day break, can be seen as a single interstate game, if as I suspect we will stay there for the duration of those rounds. 

Geelong do not worry me either, but Geelong in Geelong will always be no more than a 50/50 proposition simply because they play that ground better than anyone. Whereas at the MCG that game IMO is 70/30 our way.

Likewise we have lost to Freo at the MCG frequently. Playing them at Optus doesn't make that game any more difficult beyond the travel itself. And we play Optus extremely well anyway. 

Also our travel is far better this year in terms of timing. We don't have long blocks of away games and we finally get a home game in the last round of the season, and a proper mid year bye. 

 

My biggest gripe is double up games against the other top 4 sides, which should be something only the premiers get lumped with. But having said that, I have no confidence in Port being top 4 again and we match up well against Brisbane especially at the MCG.

I think Carlton and Adelaide will be real threats in 2024 so am happy we only play them once. 

Edited November 16, 20231 yr by Jaded No More

This is niche, but that's a shocking draw for anyone that doesn't live in Victoria but gets a premium membership. We often pay big backs just to watch 3-4 big games during the year. This year, most of the big games are not home games and any big games at home e.g. against Brisbane are on a Thursday, which interstate fans won't go to. When the team travels to our state, we then end up having to buy tickets anyway because it's cheaper than adding 'all games' to our already expensive membership 😂

This literally leaves the only big home game for the year against Collingwood in the last round. I don't even think the Geelong game will be a good one as I expect them to drop down further next year. 

Edited November 16, 20231 yr by RyanD

12 minutes ago, RyanD said:

This is niche, but that's a shocking draw for anyone that doesn't live in Victoria but gets a premium membership. We often pay big backs just to watch 3-4 big games during the year. This year, most of the big games are not home games and any big games at home e.g. against Brisbane are on a Thursday, which interstate fans won't go to. When the team travels to our state, we then end up having to buy tickets anyway because it's cheaper than adding 'all games' to our already expensive membership 😂

This literally leaves the only big home game for the year against Collingwood in the last round. I don't even think the Geelong game will be a good one as I expect them to drop down further next year. 

Surely belting Geelong is good, no?

44 minutes ago, Jaded No More said:

My biggest gripe is double up games against the other top 4 sides, which should be something only the premiers get lumped with. But having said that, I have no confidence in Port being top 4 again and we match up well against Brisbane especially at the MCG.

What about the Expected Score Premiers?

Edited November 16, 20231 yr by Clintosaurus