hemingway

hypocrisy is the noun best used to describe this whole farce.

My commiserations also SWYL. Bullying is appalling in whatever form. Usually the resort of cowards. Kindness, sympathy and understanding are undervalued virtues. Particularly kindness.

Christian quoted on the MFC website about his knee surgery........."as long as I get through surgery...." We hope so too young man, perhaps I should say that I will be praying for you...despite being a lapsed Catholic. Webber, I told you this was serious!

touche my friend. you are also good at fencing

Sorry Webber no insult or innuendo intended. As a man of simple words lets just say that i am not sure that I understand your opinion but gee its an impressive one.

I think that's right Doctor. However, I am really sick of all the hypocrisy around drug use. I am not condoning Essendon's behaviour. They deserve sanction and punishment, however, lets be realistic. The Bombers are not alone. Perhaps the thing that differentiates them from others has been the fact that unlike others they have been caught and outed. In addition, Essendon had a highly organized program with a heavy injection regime over a short period of time. We have never before known of an organized and systemic program as that implemented by the EFC. The Club, its coach and club officials have not helped themselves in the way they have behaved since it became public. However we know that drug use has been part of professional sport for decades. This includes the VFL/AFL. Anyone who thinks otherwise is living in a fools paradise. The drug of choice from the early 1970's was steroids and other similar substances commonly found in gyms around the country, and were often taken over summer during weigh training and gym work. As gym junkies know they are often distributed by trainers and power lifters/bodybuilders. Two successful clubs in the seventies had a reputation for this activity. As an aside, footballers who have taken or been on "the roids" take on a different look particularly jaw lines, neck, shoulders, legs etc. They become thicker through the trunk. The shape is not induced by weight training alone. Anyone involved in athletics knows the body type from looking at Olympic 100m sprinters. Anecdotally, it seems that drug use in footy has been more random and left to the individual rather than being part of a program initiated or endorsed by the club. In the past, players often did gym work away from the club or had contacts within the gym world. Clubs preferred not to know. Since the early 1990s we have seen the impact of sports science and increased sophistication of drug use. We are all rightly suspicious about some of the power clubs from 1990-early 2000. For example, the use of growth hormone has been popular in sports such as athletics because of the difficulty of detection. Drug testing in the AFL has been very limited compared to other sports such as cycling. I have always been annoyed by comments from AFL administrators (particularly Demetriou) about the drug culture in cycling knowing what they must know. Its all about protecting and promoting "the brand." As with cycling there has been a code of silence within VFL/AFL about drug use. Administrators, ex-players and media commentators (particularly ex-players) have maintained the silence. Players seeking a competitive advantage are not going to tell others what they have done. So by all means one can condemn Essendon but let's not pretend that others in the football world are innocent bystanders. Perhaps the scope and magnitude is different but lets not think that drug use has been confined to the EFC players.

Wow, I am not sure that I understand your computer generated opinion but gee it is an impressive one. Why is it that your description makes me feel more concerned about this injury despite the fact that "the outcome is as if the ACL had never been damaged". Perhaps I should simply be content that we have a young gun that has an injury that will repair as if it had never been damaged.

spot on sue never a truer word was written.

Never said it was a tragedy Curry just very disappointing that we will not get to see one of our young guns this year. Also when your my age and been waiting a long long time for the tide to turn, yes, one more year seems a long time. That's a lot of whisky to go down the hatch between now and then assuming that I am still on this mortal coil.

Agree Ron, but it's like life....it is fragile so handle with care.

Does Dawes have an eyesight problem? Serious question. The thing is that the marking problem seems so basic, yet Dawes has been in the system for a long time. Collingwood has the reputation for professionalism regarding player development/management and the Demons have more coaches than players. You would have thought that this was so obvious a weakness that this would have been sorted out or there we would have seen coaches working with him on this problem.

okay fair point. I guess I was not being as analytical as you regarding the specific comments by HH but rather as a positive expression of the kids potential to make an immediate impact this year.

Bit harsh to call this is a ridiculous statement Moon. A big statement perhaps but not ridiculous. HH comments express an optimism and confidence that this kid was going to be something special this season. Perhaps he is right. Incredibly disappointing and for many shattering that we will not get to see him play this year. Sure we expect injuries but seeing one of our young guns like Petracca play this year was an exciting prospect. He has great marketing potential and would have got supporters through the turnstiles. Exciting young players have an enormous impact on the psyche of supporters and the club. After the misery of past sessions we all need to feel that excitement again. Not only us oldies but also the kids who have never known what it's like to follow a club that actually wins games of football. Serious injuries have a very negative impact and already we see that negativity expressed by supporters and by non supporters a like. We do not need any more negativity. On a positive note, we do appear to have greater depth this year and perhaps a more realistic attitude in regard to player and team development. Perhaps there will be others who will step up and provide a reason for more supporters to turn up to watch an emerging footy team.

okay wise old dee i have great respect for the elders of this site. but let me go to the bar and have 5 or 6 whiskys to settle down.

As usual Nut you have summarized the position well. But still Incredibly upsetting and disappointing, even if there is a rational and objective view of it all. DubDee expresses that raw emotion. I would like to be wise and objective about it but to hell with it. This is an emotional game and this is a serious injury for a club that needs everything going for it.

ALL reports greatly appreciated. Information and insights in all posts ... another whisky and soda please waiter.

in short, lets just withdraw from the civilized world and isolate ourselves from reason, ethical standards, and all criticism. fortress australia. let it roll on.

TDI and other track watchers I would be interested in your views. For me, Fitzy has always had the physical attributes but has lacked footy smarts. He is not a natural. Despite his size and pace, I have never seen Fitzy impose himself on a game and his hand-eye coordination seems poor (missed marks and fumbles) and his kicking is not great. Given his history and his battle with diabetes I would love to see him make it, but I have doubts. From what you have seen pre-season do you see it any differently? How much longer do you give him?

why is it that I have this sick feeling that this mob are either going to get off or receive a slap over the wrist. I know that ASADA appears to be holding the line on it all......but the way professional sport is conducted just makes me very cynical. although we all have a clear opinion on the morality and ethics in this sordid affair it seems that as so often happens in professional sport the processes and investigations have been flawed. at the end of the day we have big money, politics and sports administrators ...all providing a recipe for a soft outcome. Things that trouble me are- -there has been no positive drug finding just a lot of circumstantial evidence (this did not stop the Armstrong case, but it did take over 10 years to rub him out-and only after confessions of Landis, Tyler-Hamilton and others) -the affair has been dragging on for ever. it is only natural that all parties want an end to this. that means compromise and concessions. -politics and deal-making pervades all professional sports administration -professional administrative bodies are hopelessly conflicted. -AFL power brokers and Gill in particular are natural deal-makers. -the AFL cannot afford to punish EFC in any way that weakens the competition or threatens the existence of the club. -big money is pervasive and will always influence decisions. -there seems a lot of sympathy for the players from all quarters. Somebody reassure me that my logic is flawed or that my cynicism is unwarranted. Or point me in the direction of a good psychotherapist. EH

man o man bb you are all over it. impressive work..

we have options..........unlike past seasons that comment says it all even given the inevitable injuries that will come.

nah your response is stupid, inane, misguided and pathetic.

Not a weird thought at all junior, entirely possible. Certainly delay, obfuscation, turning over the list has been their intent all along. And Hird is protected under the Little regime.

totally agree Leoncelli, better still to announce a contract extension for PJ putting paid to media trash talk.

A person has an opinion that some people would share and others not share. That does not make that opinion "stupid, inane, misguided and pathetic". Ironic that you then give your opinion that some would share and others not share. You could equally make those disparaging comments about your own opinion. Using personal and insulting comments about another's opinion is why so many posters get fed up with the site. We have just got over the hoo ha with TDI however after the initial melee everyone responded in a mature way allowing for the dialogue around training reports to continue. Your opinion is a reasonable one. Your slanging off at RGRS is not.