An interesting article today from Garry Lyon. He always has something pertinent to say & I agree with his comments.

He says ...

As well as the Cats are playing, as unexpected as the Kangaroos' success is in the first half of the year and as impressive as Hawthorn's 100-point victory was against Carlton on Friday night, these successes will be largely forgotten by the completion of Round 22.

But at Round 15 last year, Neale Daniher couldn't have been happier. The Dees had just won their 11th game in 12 matches and were sitting pretty in third position. They won just three of the last nine and no one was talking about their great mid-season run

Wins are worth four points, no more, no less

Whilst I agree and do not wish to take his article out of context, it is worth noting a couple of issues which I believe have merit.

What are the the consequences of a win from a business perspective. In particular, in the first half of the year?

Inhouse, they are never forgotten. Wins are just not 4 points Whilst a win is a win for the team, a win has significant and immesurable consequences for a club for the year. The benefits are there, in particular, for the aptly described 'second tier Vic clubs'.

From a financial perspective, a win can mean the difference between breaking even and suffering a financial loss. Its a cumulative factor which expands to a broader scale as the season progresses.

Case in points are Melbourne & Richmond. Both are categorised as 2nd tier clubs. Both are suffering financially from on field output so far. Richmond has forecasted a 1 million turndown in profits based on their win/loss ratio. Melbourne are not doing much better. Richmond say they can salvage their pride financially through busines support and sponsorshop revenue. I am not so sure about Melbourne.

I have parked my expectations for '07 and would just be happy for Melbourne to string a few wins together for the sake of our financial position. Our onfield success is the all important marketing tool.

Atm Finals and premierships don't even make it on the radar.

See link for sull story...

http://www.heraldsun.news.com.au/footy/com...5E20322,00.html

Good article by Lyon. Geelong and Hawthorn are perfect examples of June premiers.

Adelaide and Sydney are timing their runs beautifully.

Nothing would bring me greater joy than seeing Geelong going out in straight sets.

I remember this time last year when Adelaide were on fire. Unbeatable and dead set certainty's to play in the grand final.