Rodney (Balls) Grinter

Glad you bought all this up Wayne, because I was at the game and absolutely spitting chips at the time and still am to a certain extent. Yes the Fritsch one was probably there, but the Bailey one against Patracca was more so. I don't buy the blind sided by the player BS - it was pretty bloody obvious. Brisbane Bailey would have been in no doubt that the free kick was paid against him, because he had just been absolutely nailed holding the ball. He took such an eternity to get back the ball, that there should have been no excuses. For the Fritsch one to be paid after the Brisbane Bailey one wasn't was absolutely rank - what you look for is consistency. It also stung in the context of the game after we had already been effectively penalised for the Lever goal line incident. Smart unbiased umpires would have let both the Lever and Fritsch incidents go in the context of the game. The combination of these two incidents really killed the game for us at a time when we were flying and should have been allowed to have a decient crack at winning it. I really think the umpires were feeling the pressure of the 'home' crowd against the Melbourne comeback. I do think it is best that Goodwin not complain, as it would just make us look like sore loosers Clarkson style. In some ways we didn't deserve to win the game, but pleanty of teams have pinched ones against us when we out played them for big periods, so I would personally have been very happy to have pinched one back. Looking forward to what we can do against Port and personally glad it's a Thursday night game so that I don't have to wait all the way until the weekend for the team to have an oppertunity to rack up a win which should put this incident further out of mind.

There is a huge difference to how you might perceive thie Jetra incident watching it in real time or slow motion. Watch it in slow motion and/or freeze frame it at the critical moment and it looks like McStay lines up Jetta and elects to bump. Watch it in real time and I think it's apparent that there is just players going everywhere and McStay just braces himself for an instant at the wrong time in the wrong way, almost as a reflex action and collects Jetta's head with his braced body and for arm. I think it's possible that McStay could have avoided Jetta, but I don't think he realized he was going to collect him head high either, so why would he try. I think the treatment by the tribunal/match review is fairly consistent though. Steve May got rubbed out for a week for us in his first year, when all he did was stop and brace himself and the bloke ran into him and got him head high.

Ok, perhaps brain faid wasn't the best /most complete characterisation. Add poor skill execution to the incident. I don't actually recall a player being that nearby. I also feel the decision to kick off the ground was as much the problem as the execution. The Nev of old probably wouldn't have messed it up so badly. Anyways, my main point is that we had as much our selves to blame as the people in yellow.

I've hardly read this thread, because I was driving back and have been busy at work today, but I do feel that one of the things Brisbane did which significantly helped their cause was to mitigate the impact of Max's marking and presence around the ground. I guess I'd been lulled by the pretty much free rein that he had been allowed against Hawthorn and the absence of Martin. Was expecting something of another free for all against the Lions. However I thought they did well to reduce his influence in the air and around the ground. Being there at the ground, it was clear that they were putting a lot of work into him off the ball. Not overly dirty stuff, but constantly bumping into him and shepherding him from running into position a mile off the play. I watched Charlie Cameron do this to him numerous times, blocking Max from getting into a good marking position outside 50 for kick-ins. Max seemed to try to make it obvious to the umps what was going on, without giving away free kicks to them in their forward 50. Didn't notice too much of our blokes flying the flag to an extent for big Max. a) I think that we need to be better as a team and recognize when this is going on and a put on better physical pressure the other way to let their blokes know we won't tolerate it and b) Any chance of the umpires ever cutting this kind of crap out?

So many mixed feelings about last night's game. We didn't play that well for a big chunk of the game, but were still very competitive in the final wash up on the score board. I hate 'honorable' losses, but to get so close gives me some comfort that our team and form are currently around the mark. Even though we really didn't deserve to win in some ways, I was absolutely spewing inside at the time, because being there at the ground, it would have been sensational to stick it up the numerous moronic Lions supporters I was surrounded by at the time. So rank that a suposed home game for us was really more of a home game for them. I think I also feel denied by some of the diabolical umpiring decisions in the last ten minutes. Both the BS score review and the 50m penalty paid against Fritsch. Although we were on the right end of a few 50m that resulted in goals (Gawn & Jones), they were both pretty clearly there, where as the argumentative "you didn't get the ball back quickly enough" type 50m are so rarely paid and combined, they both had the effect of snuffing out any chance of scoring that final goal in the dying minutes. Conversely feeling of being cheated by the men in yellow is also somewhat ballanced by the numerous regulation shots from Weid and Bennel that should have been put away and the brain faid from Nev that handed them a goal via Charlie Cameron. Also disapointed, because it feels like a bit of a turning point in our season. It puts a pretty big bridge between us and keeping up with the top 8. Conversely I also think that we are good enough on our way to beat Port on Thursday night, win the next 3 games after that and be back in the hunt, but it's a pretty big ask.

As that Mexican food add says - why not have both?

Would love to see the AFL follow through on this, just to see Jeff wriggle, squirm and squeal like a pig.

I recall from the time that there were plenty of rumors that the big interstate teams like West Coast and the Crows were rorting the system as well. I wounder how many star players wives etc got paid jobs with sponsors hundreds of dollars above market rates?

No it wouldn't. If there is hard evidence, it puts the integrity of the AFL in serious question if they sit on their hands and do nothing. All that sucess that Hawthorn had through that era at the expense of everyone else and they are still reaping the benefits of the inflated membership base it allowed them to build. Taking away premierships retrospectively would be hollow. A fitting punishment would be for them to loose a bunch of first round draft picks and exclude them from free agency for the next 3 or 4 years to thwart the rebuild they need to have and make them mediocre for the next decade like other teams have had to endure.

Rivers seems to play with a pretty mature head on him, so I think it could work.

Amazing how much Max is getting scragged off the ball. Nothing too dirty, just shepherded off it by annoying little blokes like Charlie Cameron when the ball is a mile away. So bloody obviously and the umpires have done nothing. The minute Max were to do anything, you can count on it being a free against us.

Interesting take. After Zorko and Neale, their on ball brigade falls away pretty quickly to a bunch of no names I have no idea about, but clearly they have played some reasonable footy together over the past month or so, as such we need to pay them some respect. I think Langdon would absolutely carve up Robinson for pace, so I doubt Fagan would be silly enough to play that as a match up. Oscar v Hipwood and Jetta/Lockhart v Charlie Cameron are some other pretty import matchups between the teams I think. The others I think the Lions will put some serious work into stopping would be Hannan and Fritsch. Those guys have been pretty important cogs in the return to form of our forward line.

Clarkson's public whinges are becoming fairly frequent of late. The AFL seemed to listen to him on the holding the ball thing and maybe now they will make some kind of adjustment to the rules because of this incident as well - or maybe not. He is really damaging his own legacy with this kind of behavior at the moment. Shaun Burgoyne up for another crude/sling tackle too I think (thought he was pretty useless against us anyways). The wheels are falling off indeed and it's enjoyable to watch.

I really do doubt this - I'm more inclined to think that Jack was clearly regarded as on of the top 2 players in that draft and thus that's why we took him. If I do remember anything, there was a debate about him going 1 or 2 and some thinking that he should perhaps go pick 1 due to his leadership qualities setting him up better to handle the pressure associated with pick 1. ...then there was also the episode where we nearly traded him to Richmond when he still had some trade currency. You can't win them all I guess and it was a bit of a sad saga all round. ...but the I guess St Kilda did pick up Paddy and leave Trac for us, so it evens out over the long run sometimes. Also everyone in that draft let Gawn slip through to the 50s some where.

It's a nice sentiment but: 1. Maybe a Casey gig was actually offered but rejected by Jack; 2. I think the competitive nature of him would have always wanted to play at the highest level if he thought there was a remote chance of it; 3. Going to Port may also have suited him going back home to SA to be closer to family.

Good idea and I did wounder how long it would take for this to be come an eventuality. Takes me back to junior and my reserves footy days. Was pretty common place to for someone to loan the opposition some players if they were way too short, so at least everyone got a game.

Surely the club has learnt from the Junior experience. It's hardly like we are top heavy list age wise. Having a few more experienced heads around the club would provide some good stability to the place. I suspect that when it becomes obvious to them that their time is up, all of Jones, Jetta and Hibbard could be trusted to make the right call and do things on their terms. Jones apears to have taken his absence from the senior side for the past month on the chin and with the team first attitude that made him such a great player and captain over the years. Would be great to see him play some good games over the next few and lock in his place in the side. Still think he has something to offer.

Jones comming back into the side is a pretty big plus for us I think. I expect that he will bring close to the same level of physicality as AVB, perhaps not quite as much pace, but I think Jones ball use, distribution inside 50 and abbility hit the scoreboard could be important in what is already a pretty damaging forward line of small to medium players. If Weid and Jackson can carry on their form from last week, our forward line and scoring ability may return to being one of our strengths.

The big Porterhouse will get the job on Hipwood I suspect, which will be an important role. Hipwood was pretty much the difference between us and the Lions last year at the Gabba I recon. Last year, he had a big day out and kicked something like 5 goals, a few of which were big long bombs from 50m or tight against the boundry. Was a real purple patch for him and although it's hard to see him repeating those kind of heroics, it will be an important contest between Oscar and him. Another vivid recollection from last year's game was the chemistry between Frost and May, or distinct lack there of. I quite liked Frosty as a player, but I get the distinct impression that both he and May wanted to be alpha males down in defense and it didn't really seem to work, where as Oscar seems to just put his head down and get to work in a business like manner and help that back six to really gel.

I think Robinson has the potential to do damage if sides don't pay him respect and he gets off the chain a bit, but he's not a powerhouse, never was. Would love to see Jack, Trac and Harmesy tear him a new one this week.

Loved that set shot. Often players with Kosi's kind of mercurial skills look a little wobbly and uncertain taking set shots, but his approach was steady-as and kick straight as a die. If only Fritsch and date I say it, Maxy could take a leaf out of his book.

I can see both the Lions and Suns ending up with a dream run of games played in their home state. Both these teams have barely traveled to play this season and unless COVID-19 just 'goes away one day' in Melbourne, the opportunities for them to play anywhere else but Queensland are rapidly running out.

The above is true, but would work out better still for us for the Collingwood game if we can play Nth in South East Queensland, the we play Collingwood in Rd 12 who will be traveling from Adelaide off a few day shorter break than us.

Agree absolutely with this. When you add in the Essendon game, I think the additional disruption that our side dealt with is one of the key reasons why our form has only just turned the corner.

At least it provides a very reasonable explanation, for his otherwise fairly average game on Sunday. Given the circumstances we now know, his performance was nothing short of courageous and beyond the still very worthy on feild performance and physical presence he did provide, even the additional rotations he enabled for the team would have helped our performance. What a great impact this kind of behavior would have on the team first culture of the club, littlerally bleeding for your mates attitude and morale the club that this bloke brings - priceless. Just to further qualify my assessment of his performance a little further, it's not that I thought his game was that bad, but more that I was a little disappointed, because I was hoping to see something closer to Vanders at his best after some of the ferocious tackling and hard running he showed against the Suns.