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69yo next year...certainly brings calm and wisdom to an organisation. If he was up for it, would love him on board. If he wasn't looking for a full-time job next year he would also be the right person to carry out an independent review of our club. Couldn't think of anyone more qualified and we should jump at the opportunity.

As the holders of Hawthorn's pick two this year, I'm pretty happy with that result.

I think Sydney will be tough to win. Not because they are better but the travel we have to do. Alice is on Sat night and we fly straight out meaning players get back to hub in the early hours of Sunday morning. Syd fly to Cairns from Adelaide early Sat evening. On Thur morning we fly to Carins for the 4.40pm Sydney game. The extra hours/night rest Syd get may not be a lot but throw in our same day flight and the fatigue might start to kick in. Generally, Syd beat us by having a player outside the pack to receive and run the ball fwd. If we aren't prepared for it nor spread quickly we will be playing catch up. The next game vs Freo is 4 days later and also a challenge. They are on a role and are giving up miserly scores against. They have an extra day rest and don't travel. Any travel advantage will depend whether we stay in Cairns after the Sydney game or fly back to Maroochydore and fly back to Carins for the Freo game. Hopefully sanity prevails and we stay in Cairns giving us a travel breather. St Kilda is massive as it is an 8-pt game. They won't leave anything on the park as they have a bye after the game. As noted above our travel/break schedule is quite gruelling. Hopefully our players also give it their all and not try to 'preserve' themselves. GWS is the other 8-pt game for us. tbh I don't see any definite wins. But then we could win all 5!

Ins. Clarkson - Head Coach Balme - Director of Footy Operations out. Goodwin, Mahoney

Finally a commentator compared the ANB and Dahlhaus tackles. Last night on 360, Lewis said they were identical actions but the outcome was different ie one had concussion. And if the AFL want to stop sling tackles they need to penalise the action not the outcome. Whateley then said the tackles were different - the Tribunal had adjudicated that because Crouch's head didn't hit the ground (sure looked like it did to me) it was a body tackle and not 'high contact' and downgraded the charge. They conveniently ignored the principle of 'potential to do damage'. Just like they introduced it to suspend May last year for his 'potential to cause damage' bump on (I think) Berry then conveniently ignored the same principle thereafter. Back to ANB I think it was the 'optics' of a player out cold and the Crows' medical report that condemned him. The media wanting a scalp closed the deal.

800,000 people have died, despite all the measures put in place. If too many people get the virus, our hospitals will be too stretched and more and more people will die that would have been saved by a vaccine. Younger people may be mostly not in serious trouble but they get it and spread it to the vulnerable. So I guess if you don’t care about people over 60 and people with other conditions dying before their time, you should not get the vaccine. That is probably the most selfish post I have ever read

They're not saying that at all DZ. Imv what they ARE saying is... "It may or may not be ok to sling (or apply a dangerous) tackle. However, the outcome / penalty will depend on who you are and which club you play for and WE will decide the outcome arbitrarily and potentially in a discriminatory manner purely at our discretion". END

Story today online that Neil Balme could be leaving Richmond, a few clubs interested etc. Haven't watched or read full story but damn we need him. Combine with a Clarkson appointment, the mouth would froth. https://www.9now.com.au/footy-classified/2020/clip-ckec07ewa001d0gmj574deunn

Saturday, Caulfield Race 4, number 7, I am Superman $5 win

great to hear tom lynch getting booed everytime he touches it

So this is how I would work through point one - in an elite environment (yeah sounds arrogant I know) The bolded part in point one - should be asked post game/review any way. But, link it to metrics that are typically gathered. More importantly is understanding the gap between what the metrics show and what it felt like...and its never because someone is 'weak minded' Questions like - why did it feel a particular way, what made it harder, what made it easier at times etc. That exploration allows the individual to reflect, make sense and most importantly choose action 'next time' when they're fatigued, or feel they cannot be arsed, for what ever reason is showing up for them...'the vibe' of the day, feeling anxious, not wanting to [censored] up etc It's a much more important to understand (oh oh! Values work coming up here) - what the individual wants to stand for, and how do their efforts (behaviours) move them towards and away from that ideal. It's easy to act in line with your values when you are comfortable (Oliver running away from packs) vs when you are not (dinky handballs) - but the key from any psychological perspective - is to be aware of your discomfort as its occuring, and choose the more useful action... then of course, when it pays off, it becomes easier and easier to replicate. Essentially, if you don't know what your thinking, you've got no choice over your behaviours - particularly when the stress and pressure is on. The only reason ANYONE is willing to have anxiety, fatigue etc, is in service of what matters.... Know your values, be more consistent when it counts not just when its easy, because you're more willing to do the uncomfortable behaviour (which is often the most useful). ie: A consistent follow through on your kick, when you are 30metres out, yet your brain is telling you not to [censored] up - so you either - try to 'guide it through' or kick too hard, just to get the act over and done with, to remove your anxiety. Another example - particularly to fatigue (and Binman's idea of asking players to rate their effort out of 10 post game) - would be to get someone who has rated themselves exhausted... so essentially 10/10 given... they then go home to their family, and low and behold a man with a gun is there aimed at your head... he says... 'go run a further 10km champ' Well, you would do it wouldn't you ...now its not just due to 'adrenaline' - you're willing to have the pain and fatigue (recalling that you're 10/10 exhausted) - in service of what matters, and there is a genuine acceptance of the fatigue and emotional experinces that will arise along the way of running your 10km... this is what is missing for the notion of consistency of effort. - as you said @binman Actually, evolutionary wise - your brain would rather you be on your couch drinking beers, eating pizza (CONSERVING ENERGY) rather than expending it (so it makes sense there is a dissonance between what we feel we can give vs what we actually can give)... you brain does this...just in case their is a bear back in your cave and you need to run. Essentially it always stores more energy than you need, in case you need some more in special circumstances.

The script is in place... we will need to beat Ess in the last game .. the rest will be history

I think we can take some comfort int he fact that no matter who wins this game, nobody gets to go home feeling like they matter. My two most disliked clubs and they are both in the levitating potato category. Also, doesn't matter for finals if Essendon win, because either we'll beat them and end the story that way, or we'll lose to them and the rest is dust anyway.

To be honest, ANB's tackle was a bit worse but for him to get 4 weeks and Dalhaus get off with a fine is ridiculous. 2 weeks and 1 week respectively would have been ok with me

Too true. I decided yesterday that I wanted to see what our scoring from forward 50 stoppage ratio was, being 2020 all sorts of stats are available right? Wrong. I spent a wild goose chase trying to find this across many different sites and nothing like it exists, not even at the basic level like stoppages inside 50 total.

In their defence they just accelerated the phase 3 process and offered it on a voluntary basis to health care workers.The West like to criticize but in the circumstances it's an approach worth considering. Reading some stuff on this the "good" thing about this virus is that because it is comparatively benign so too are the vaccines. (Nothing like the risks of injecting people with smallpox etc) The likelihood of side affects are low. Whether they work is the big question. Interesting ethical debates on whether "challenge testing"should be allowed. This is where a vaccinated person is deliberately exposed to the virus. The problem with "normal'testing is that your chances of picking up the virus is around one in five hundred at worst even in the heavily exposed countries so you need massive numbers to determine its efficacy.Statistically even out of say three thousand candidates only six people might catch it. No cases here but masks etc are compulsory. In the heat they are a real challenge especially the cloth variety. The trash from the disposable masks is overwhelming. I have a lovely collection including my favourite being a knock off Burberry design for $2. I read that the real thing sells for almost $200 !!!

Gee I don't know... maybe it's because he is CEO of the club and that it might be good for him to be around the players and the officials; a show of solidarity even? Seriously, I simply don't understand why people just seem to look for things to complain about with this club.

Good to know you can sling tackle a players head into the ground and that is fine per the AFL (unless you wear blue and red). Great news for our kids starting out playing the game Also great to hear to you dive and stage for freekicks and there are no repercussions Excellent work AFL!

Well, we're blessed to have you, Doctor. Thank goodness for you.

If Fremantle are looking to offload him after chasing him for so long, shouldn’t that set off enough alarm bells?

A win this Saturday

FMD Jaded that is a sadly cynical and "jaded" world view. There are plenty of oxygen thieves, out there, no doubt about it, but there are some bloody good people as well. Be inspired by them.

So let's get all of this sh-t in order and that is what it is, sh-t. Langdon gets a free for his tackle, most media say it is a fair tackle and he is fined with his appeal dismissed. Dahlhaus does exactly the same tackle as ANB and gets a week and then has his appeal upheld ending with a fine like Langdon. ANB is penalised a quarter of the current 17 game season, for the same tackle as Dahlhaus, with the only difference being that ANB's opponent got a concussion. So I suppose the rule now is, no suspension for a sling tackle, unless the victim is concussed and the penalty is then a quarter of the season. The exception to the rule will be where the player charged is a star player, from a big club and then the rules won't apply. The exception to the exception, will be that it can vary without any reasonable explanation, if the AFL wants it to, for any commercial, legal, whim or other reason that the AFL may decide on at that time, or at any time, past, present or future and that decision may be made by any past, present, future CEO of the AFL including any not yet conceived let alone born. Lastly, the exception will not deal with the Trengove 4 week penalty for the same offence, nor will it ever be discussed publicly or privately.

This is great. I think it backs up the general idea of how we feel about the game in losses vs wins, but also backs up the notion that AFL observers really don't have access to (or haven't developed) the stats to demonstrate what we're discussing. It would be so much easier if this was the Demonland baseball forum! The UP/CP differentials (and UM) do demonstrate the crux of what we're getting at, which is that we are excellent at winning games that are contested and poor at winning ones that are not. That's why our losses often look easy but our wins look hard (although it could be the view of a supporter). The big question is about how a team like ours would go about making the game more contested. Does that involve pressing higher, or pushing a zone defender up closer to the ball, or playing a smaller faster forward line, or pushing our forwards higher up the ground, pull players out of the contest to have more inside 50, play the ball closer to the boundary line, etc... ? Our success will come when we are able to play the game on our terms more (duh!) by making the opponents scrap more. So what is the best way to get the game on our terms?

The problem with Polec is that he looks good to spectators but terrible to coaches. That's because coaches know a lot more about what things a player does away from the ball (they have vision, GPS data etc), especially this year when spectators can only watch the game on TV. Spectators only watch the player with the football or in the direct contest, often yelling "kick the bloody thing!" without realising that there's nobody to kick to (which is either outside of screen or they just don't notice). Polec is not a team first footballer, and he's not good enough or impactful enough for coaches to tolerate that. Especially new coaches rebuilding a club that requires good habits to be instilled first (like Shaw is trying to do at North). Polec gets good numbers, but but there's a reason why teams haven't tried especially hard to keep him. Think about it this way: In round 8 he had 25 touches (16 contested) and a goal in a close loss to Carlton where he will probably poll 3 Brownlow votes. He was immediately dropped, and North beat Adelaide by 10 goals!! He came back in, played two ordinary games, was dropped and was has been out of the side since. The overwhelming likelihood is that he is not following the coach's instructions (probably defensively) and that is a massive red flag in an AFL environment that requires team defence and attack more than ever. Clearly the coaches don't trust him to play his part in that. I don't want him because he's doesn't bring enough to the team to outweigh the many red flags that his career has raised to this point.

So you are happy that we all go back into Stage 3 or 4 lockdown every time there are a series of breakouts and our health and hospital systems can't manage the workload and they are getting covid. Hospital wards close and fewer and fewer non covid procedures are carried out. Shops close, schools close, restaurants close, no concerts, football, cinemas etc etc. I truly hope that you and your family do not get this wretched virus, are not one of the frontline workers or someone who will lose their job or lose their business because of the lockdowns. One way or another everyone suffers from outbreaks. Won't happen? Look at New Zealand. No cases for 3 months then within a week there are a hundred cases and Auckland goes into lockdown. Not sure they yet know how this 'patient zero' caught it. Lockdowns will continue until there is widespread vaccination. It isn't about protecting you. Its about protecting everyone around you that you might infect.

Best Bet: Caulfield Race 10 No 1 Rubisaki $2.70 (W)

Ok, well looks like the Group action starts up again this Saturday, so i guess were are back @Macca @Dee Zephyr @rolling fog @Gorgoroth Welcome to Rolling Fog also ! We dont have any hard and fast rules here really, but we all usually enter a Best Bet for the weekend preferably by Friday night, so that everyone has time to read the thread and put a few coins on the selections. Make sure you enter: The Meeting venue, race number and horse name and number and whether your selection is for a win (W) or place (P) and its current market price $, so there is no confusion. I always tally them up for a multi with the figure, but you can use the bets anyway you damn well like ! We dont keep scores and we dont care if the selections dont win. Its more for the comradary, fun and teamwork. We only say that there is only 1 selection in any given race. ie: if someone has put a selection in for a certain race, then no other horse in that race can be selected.(saves arguments) . Lets have a great Spring carnival, thank god for the races during lockdowns and go the mighty Red & Blue. Stay safe.

If we lose to GWS and Essendon the way they have been travelling this season heads will roll!

Indeed. It was a conscious use of the the word virulent. Though you could also argue refusing to do something as simple as vaccinate yourself against a virus that you may not be worried about contracting but that as the daily numbers in Victoria show can be deadly for some and have a serious impact on many (even if that is having to be off work for two weeks) could be considered an act of hostility.

Martin Pike mkll?

Weid as well, both should’ve had bags of 3-4+ this year were it not for bafflingly bad kicking.

= low growth opportunity Let's face it the demographics of the club are ageing. As a child I remember all the old Fitzroy supporters Deja vu is what it is

Just a thought... We’ve all seen the lack of connection between our midfield and forwards the last 2 years. Any chance Jesse had a reason to be upset, and actually helped cover over that glaring issue during his time at the club? I’d love him back. We need natural competitors with skills.

A F's right, stats are a bit meaningless without context. Here is how both those elements look across the last 4 years, which I cant say matches my perception but its important to challenge the feel with numbers. 2019 has an asterix given we only won 5 games (small sample size) and one of those was against the Sun's where we lost uncontested possessions by 51 but fell over the line by a point. The trend is away from uncontested possessions in both wins and losses, which could be both our evolving gamestyle/zone but also the tendency of opposition teams in 2019-2020 to defend with the ball in hand. The stat is one element in a larger puzzle, but throws a bit of a light on trade offs happening as the team evolves and the difference between the 2018 Dees and the 2020 model. UP diff 2020 2019 2018 2017 Season avg -12.83 -19.9 8.2 25.7 Win avg 2.33 -16.2 25.125 31.9 Loss avg -28 -21 -21.88888889 18.2 Marks diff 2020 2019 2018 2017 Season avg -7.66 -5.2 3.16 0.1 Win avg 9 5 16.75 1.9 Loss avg -24.33 -8.3 -9 -2

Eh? Freo gave up a first and second round pick to get Bennell They chased him for years just like they did Hogan

I don't know if this has been mentioned here and can't be bothered reading back to check, but there was an age article a few days ago that said we have had the least membership refunds of any club this year. Less than 100. We may not have the biggest membership base, but we have the best.

What what? Fall from grace? Did I miss something, because I'm pretty sure this bloke has not been much chop since day dot.

Hmmm... his fourth club will sort out his issues. I wouldn't put money on it.

Got told earlier in the week that Bowing in race 6 at Pakenham this Friday night was a good chance, opened at 7, into 5.50 already.

8 Stakes races out of Melbourne & Sydney on Saturday but the main interest will focus on the Memsie Stakes at Group 1 level (Caulfield) An excellent field has been assembled and as a result, it's a good betting race. Rosehill Form, Tips & Odds (Stakes events are races 5, 7 & 8 ) Caulfield Form, Tips & Odds (Stakes events are races 6, 7, 8, 9 & 10 ) Memsie Stakes Race 9 1400m Group 1 WFA $750k

I find it interesting that almost universally the AFL media community agreed that Burgoyne was lucky to get away with a fine, why aren’t the same reporters holding them to account on Failhouse given the obvious similarities with ANB and the potential to cause injury being high. @Lucifer's Hero I agree that typically Whateley has actually been a decent voice of reason but if he’s ticking this off then I don’t know anymore. Seems everyone was happy to put Nibbler up as an example but no one wants to do the follow through.

A Premiership.

Hi BBP. I have no idea who Tom Elliott is but my understanding of the situation is that Victoria, unlike other states can only activate any of the measures we're currently seeing under a state of emergency for a maximum of six months only. That period is due to end soon. Extending the option for a further 12 months would allow them to be activated again at short notice (if required) without a lengthy debate taking place in parliament to change legislation. It doesn't in itself extend level 4 restrictions beyond 13 September or into the 2021 football season. It's a preemptive measure should there be a need to close things down again quickly at some point in the next year or so.

Would have him back in a heart beat.

He was a star at the Dees and he will star here again, get him back pronto.