Rab D Nesbitt

Suffice to say this will end up requiring the purchase of tickets for a designated seat but at least we're likely to have a reserved area where we won't be surrounded by the great unwashed. It's also unlikely to be in the Ponsford Stand which Collingwood seem to prefer.

I had one of Rodney Grinter's player worn long sleeved guernseys until I sold it a couple of years ago to help fund some house renovations. Adidas made them at that time and it had a white tag inside the collar with three vertical blue stripes. That should have been our merger guernsey with North. I seem to remember a proposed merger between Fitzroy and Footscray around that time as well. Perhaps when the Lions had made the move to play their home games at the Western Oval. I can't recall whether they intended calling them Fitzcray or Footsroy though.

LOL. Thanks for the heads up Nev. I had no idea the guy had so much to say about a bloke that was democratically elected in a landslide. I hope the online algorithms don’t fill my social media with Joe Rogan and Jordan Peterson content now.

Hi DS. I listened to it all the way through and thought it was good to hear one of our players speak openly about things from outside a club or AFL environment. I must say I've never heard of Matt Wong and had a look at some of his other episodes and had the same thought as you when I saw Alan Jones' name on one.

I've never started a topic before but just stumbled across a podcast on youtube where Tom is being interviewed by a guy called Matt Wong and thought I'd share it. It goes for about an hour.

Definitely one of the nicer guernseys I've seen for this round. Carlton had a shocker the other year that looked some rainbow coloured sick running out from the bottom right hand corner of their CFC logo.

We hadn't moved here yet in 1976 but I remember a story someone told me about that last game of the season in 1976 at Victoria Park. There was a group of Melbourne diehards than we in the cheer squad named the grog squad and they used to hang around just behind us at away games just incase any trouble kicked off. From memory I think they were John Hartman, Ian Ball, a guy that was just called Animal who wore a brown oilskin coat and akubra hat ensemble plus one or two others. Anyway, after the game one of these guys tapped the nearest Collingwood supporter on the shoulder and said, "here, I believe this is yours" and handed him a wooden spoon. I think that might be the only one they've ever won in their history.

I managed to snaffle one of the red & blue Exacto sponsor footies the team used to kick into the crowd at the G in 1981 & 82. Early on I sat in those two rows of seats on the fence behind the Ponsford End goals where it was still concreted. I then took it down to training, also still at the G and got it autographed by everyone.

As a youngster new to the game I was fascinated with all the quirks of an away day at a suburban ground. Windy Hill was interesting with it's croquet club in one corner and a bowling green on the outer wing that barely allowed enough space for a spectator to get from one flank to the other during a game. Then there was the art deco Showers Stand that I think has now been knocked down. Although we never won there I liked Arden Street for the fact it had a dozen rows of seats all the way around the ground which I read used to be a greyhound track. The area had a real industrial ghost town feel about it on a weekend. The Western Oval was another favourite that had a hot dog shape with completely straight wings and a weird viewing platform on the outer wing that Mick Malthouse used to access by climbing a ladder on match days. Grounds I didn't like were the completely soulless VFL Park and dumps like Moorabbin and Victoria Park with their rabies infested supporters. The Junction Oval and Lakeside Oval were ramshackle and not fit for purpose whilst Princes Park still has that Hawthorn Stand and it's weird rollercoaster shaped roof that has always bugged me. More so after the extended it into the outer end.

As far as I'm concerned it's all laid to rest. No longer do I have to dig up Round 22 in 1987 or 'Billy' Bennett kicking six in a last quarter comeback at Windy Hill as my most memorable highlights over the last 30+ years. That, along with all our worst losses belong to an era that can fade gracefully into sepia tones. Geelong would happily trade that game for the two finals where we pantsed them so let them reminisce about the 186.

Haven't watched a minute of cricket in years but have just gone online to find this guy has taken 6-7 and James Brayshaw is commentating. Wondering if it provided him with another opportunity to go bang...bang bang bang.

I'd like to see Goody reprise that pre season catch up with Mike Sheehan down at the Sorrento Hotel but with the premiership cup on the table this time.

No fans at the Celtic v Rangers, Hibs v Hearts & Dundee v Dundee Utd derby games over the NY, all of which would have seen capacity crowds as it's a bank holiday. At least our game against the plastic paddies is away so it's not us missing out on the gate receipts.

I've just finished reading it and judging by his Gus & Gawny podcasts there is no way he wrote it. Whoever did though has been able to articulate his thoughts and feelings very well though.

Hi WCW. My dad & brother jumped on the Richmond bandwagon when they won the 1980 premiership. Another Scots family that we knew who had already made the move here convinced us to emigrate. I think my folks saw the writing on the wall when Thatcher got elected. Anyway, we'd just got off the plane and I was hanging out in their eldest son's bedroom for him to get home from school and saw all of these footy club stickers (from Hutton's Footy Franks) on his wardrobe and being quite visually minded took an instant liking to the Demons one. It was a slow burn from there over the summer but when I saw that only one other kid followed Melbourne in my school in Dandenong I knew they were the team for me and that I wanted to get a season ticket. Everyone was into Kiss and followed Collingwood so I took an instant dislike to both. And no, I rarely retaining useful information.

Hi Gonz. Yeah, I think it was. It's funny the things you remember. My family emigrated here in late 1979 and my first memory of footy was seeing North play Collingwood in a prelim on a black & white portable telly in the migrant hostel in Springvale we were staying at. I still remember the order that all the clubs finished that year (we were 11th with 5 wins I think) and the sponsors each club had. Essendon had Don Smallgoods, South had Just Jeans and Footscray's was Pyrox, the people heaters. North had Budget because of Bob Ansett who was their club president at the time.

I saw those throwback tees being advertised online the other day for all teams and was hoping ours would have Mayne Nickless or Hertz on it like the training tops I used to have. The Carlton one with Avco and Collingwood with Yakka are probably the two most iconic from that era. I'd have loved the Richmond one to have had a little .05 on one breast with the words Bloody Id!@t plastered across the front.

If there's anything that this premiership has shown us all it's that there are many elements that firstly have to be planned then executed correctly over a number of years by many people to taste the ultimate success. They've got the large fan base and training facility but it remains to be seen if they have all the right people inside their four walls to take them all the way. I don't know how they are going to get 125,000 members considering they can only realistically get 40,000 members into their home ground each week and like every other club an allocation of 17,500 finals tickets for any final they play in. Where are they going to find an extra 75,000 people to stump up money but not get access to watch them play? Maybe they can introduce an incarcerated supporter package with all the correctional facilities around the state to direct debit a portion of their work money and in return they get a day release visit to The Hangar and a signed Xmas card from Jake Stringer.

Guess I'll just have to read another chapter of Maxy's book until they pull their collective finger out.

Nothing happening on the club website yet but the music they're playing is nice.

At quarter time I was just relieved that we were playing in a GF that wasn't already over for us. At 19 points down I was very quiet and felt sick to the stomach. From then until three quarter time I couldn't quite comprehend what I was watching. I then felt we had it when Nibbler put us 42 points up. Thereafter I was totally chilled and just tried to soak it all in.

At the start of the comeback it was actually 1 minute 3 seconds between Fritta's mark ( goal 1) and the mark to Ben Brown (goal 3). If not for the fact that two of the three goals were set shots including one with a 50 metre run up we would have scored 3 goals in around 40 seconds twice in just a nine minutes period.

I'll celebrate until the Packers win the Superbowl in February then I'll celebrate that until Scotland quality for the World Cup in March and I'll celebrate that until Rangers win the league in May and I'll celebrate that until we win the flag again in September.

GC could be a potential banana skin if we’re not fully switched on. The few games they win each year tend to be very early in the season. I saw a couple of highlights of a recent Victory game played down at Kardinia Park and it looked like they had demolished the city end to make room for another new stand. If this is the case then it’s a bizarre decision to have any Melbourne based teams play down there next year.

Good to see Hawthorn being shunted up to the top end to play a game. I hope they get the 3.20pm Mothers Day slot at the G again too. How the mighty have fallen. My rationale behind us playing there relates to us also having a presence in the NT and the draw of having the reigning premiers come to town if we can split the coin with GC. It would go some way to making up for the money both sides lost from not playing in in the NT last year. Just an idea though.