Skuit

Would have been a great team-building exercise though - developing the mental fortitude to stare a yeti down in preparation for a high-pressure AFL finals series which could feature a rampaging and bearded Bachar Hashim El-Houli in the big dance.

Put your hand up if you're exaggerating indignation to cover the fact that you have nfi who Sam Murray is. Aye.

I agree dee-tox - though we're now exceptionally long overdue in discussing such in person over a bevvy. I currently live in the centre of the city (on a canal off Vijzelgracht) - hit me up if you have a spare moment after work.

Link is 'out of bounds' on the AFL website already. Here's a report of the former AFL.com report: https://www.theage.com.au/sport/afl/magpie-sam-murray-being-investigated-by-asada-report-20180824-p4zzh0.html

I have this fantasy of breaking out into a 'who ate all the Pies?' chant following a dominant ruck game by big Sam against Collingwood.

I don't like this one bit at all . . .

I'm still on my Sam Baulderstone campaign. Superb tap ruckman, booming kick, impacts around the ground, and can physically hurt his opponent. Massive question marks on whether he has the aerobic capacity to adapt to AFL but he's defied naysayers before and continues to get around the ground and be the dominant ruckman in the SANFL year after year. The way team-sheets are shaped nowadays, you can't really maintain two premier rucks on a list. Give Sam a back-up spot for a couple of years while we develop a young 'un. Some old draft highlights: http://www.afl.com.au/video/2014-09-23/draft-prospect-sam-baulderstone In his country Clayton Oliver days:

An update as posted in the post-match. Adds quite a different complexion and demonstrates together with our KPI statistical dominance and sub-60 game experience of almost all of our prime movers why Goody doesn't give a fug about the fugazi. Melbourne 18 3 Richmond 15 6 Collingwood 14 7 Geelong 13 8 West Coast 13 8 Port Adelaide 13 8 Essendon 13 8 GWS 12 8

Whichever the match-up, round one of the finals is going to require some mental fortitude. Geelong: dominating much of the past three matches and still failing to win. GWS: would have lost to them just a fortnight earlier, and at home to a likely more depleted side. Sydney: the only draft-origin player in our squad to have experienced victory against them is Jones.

It's going to be a pretty intimidating final 8 in terms of recent success and finals experience. The teams represent 20 out of 24 grand finalists going back 12 years. Plus a well-stocked GWS.

I picked Harmes as our most improved this year - and even I'm not getting that carried away. Brayshaw easily takes that title. I'm chuffed for GBH's late-season improvement though.

TL/DR: Should we recruit Cyril Rioli? So a few in the media seem to think the Rioli retirement was a salary-cap sham - with fair reason to be suspicious. Admittedly one of those is Purple, but he's increasingly sure of himself on the matter. Forget arguing about whether Rioli's a legend or just a champion or grossly overrated and imagine he could return to 75 percent of what you consider his best to be if he could get an acceptable run of injury free-football back under his belt. Rioli stationed in our forward pocket with the instructions to harass and the mandate to take a shot - not required so much to run the wings or through the middle. Would you take on a three-year reasonably well-paid contract as the Demons enter their window (Cyril is 29 to save to save you from Googling)? If he signals his intentions to come to us and nominates for the draft/rookie draft there will be surely a lot of moaning and grizzling from all quarters, but it's most likely no club will actually impede - so effectively free in trade cookie terms - although I would imagine Rioli entering the main draft and us giving up our first pick would be the acceptable compromise for the AFL. I've been a strong supporter of Garlett and his need to be in our team, but it's clear his days are numbered. Cutting through the fairly nasty invective, I feel the major decline in his performance is that he's lost his touch - and I first thought so around our match in Alice last year when he still managed to kick five (from memory). Even when he's performed this year, it's still not of the same mojo of yore. I also said last year that an old-school forward pocket specialist should be number one on our shopping list, and that I felt that hedging our bets with Johnstone as a half pocket/half mid was a mistake. Versatility is great, but not in every instance. Although I'm happy with our draft-swag from last year, watching Rioli and Ryan go anywhere near the ball on the w/e rammed home the message of where we're currently lacking a key ingredient. So as a possibly more refined equation: would you take Rioli over the next three years on decent coin for a mid to late second-round draft pick - considering of course our increasingly stretched cap? If not, any other suggestions where we can fulfill this need - rumours of Betts disgruntled at Adelaide for example, on the same cost conditions, or the recruit of a freshie or someone currently lacking opportunities elsewhere perhaps? Just for the record, I'm all for it: Gaff, Rioli, and Nathan Basset and the 2019 flag is ours with every hole plugged (although another dashing half-back in Hunt or Baker stepping up would be ideal as well as a marking utility in the Pedersen mold). Disclaimer: I'm vaguely connected to Cyril through family.

Posted in stats-file. The teams going into the season with less experience than us (age we're about in the middle but still younger than the 'Baby Bombers' and just about every premiership team ever - with the young ones generally skewing older than the median where we skew younger): Western Bulldogs — 56.4 Carlton — 56.4 Brisbane — 55.2 Gold Coast — 53.5 St Kilda — 52.6 North Melbourne — 51.8 If we snagged the flag it would be genuinely unprecedented profile-wise. I think Collingwood 2010 would be the closest comparison.

Other thoughts post-match. Even if we bomb out of the first round of the finals, we'll probably be touted as joint-premiership favourites next year by bookies and media alike - such is the unique nature of our team. And if we add Gaff . . . That ANB tackle in the forward-50 in first quarter was just fantastic. Something else I've forgotten.

Posted in the post-match thread but repeated here for posterity. AFL Alternative Ladder rd 21 - 10 points or less reversals: Melbourne 18 3 Richmond 15 6 Collingwood 14 7 Geelong 13 8 West Coast 13 8 Port Adelaide 13 8 Essendon 13 8 GWS 12 8 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . North 12 9 Hawthorn 11 10 Sydney 11 10 Adelaide 10 11

According to my possibly shonky workings: AFL Alternative Ladder (10 points or less reversals): Melbourne 18 3 Richmond 15 6 Collingwood 14 7 Geelong 13 8 West Coast 13 8 Port Adelaide 13 8 Essendon 13 8 GWS 12 8 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . North 12 9 Hawthorn 11 10 Sydney 11 10 Adelaide 10 11

Think it was the very start of the second half. Oliver simply willed himself to shake his opponent and get the ball in consecutive contests and it resulted in a goal in the first minute or so. Once he becomes fully aware and confident of his ability to influence proceedings he will be in in Dangerfield and Dusty territory - and at an age where he can eclipse them to become the league's best player soon after. As supporters we're both biased and blinded. But he's the greatest young phenomenon in the middle I've seen.

In a desperate last quarter move in the Grand Final, Hardwick sends the whole Richmond squad to put a hard tag on Clarry.

White men can't run very fast.

I was denied the opportunity to watch football from 2004 to 2007. It's been 16 years since I've seen us play in a final.* *crammed around a small TV at the Central Hotel in Port Douglas back in the days before its redevelopment and you could be in there bare-foot without a shirt and smoking to your heart's (dis)content.

Umpires didn't pay high contact for ducking today. Case closed. And gee, this was pretty damn close WC 14.7 (6) vs MFC 16.12

Should be said: Harmes was also one of the few who consistently dug deeper in our close ones last year.

I personally held my nerve in the last when we slipped behind. The maturity the players brought to this match from the very start allowed me that confidence. A big tip of the hat to Goody as we came out steady and a little less gung ho with our movement in the last.