Whispering_Jack

Shannon Byrnes just became a hero of the club picking up first votes for the club in the 2013 Brownlow. Should please Redleg.

Miller time for Demons as ex-forward returns I don't quite understand this. Dean Bailey was the coach of the club when Miller was delisted, Junior was retired and Bruce decided to go to Hawthorn. He also coached the club in the following season and all three events were seen as a mistake during 2011 well before Mark Neeld took up the coaching reins. The historical revisionism that abounds today is nothing short of appalling.

On the other hand if the prevailing view is that we have the talent and our performances weren't bad enough to warrant a priority pick, then that surely constitutes a clear endorsement by the football community of Mark Neeld's one and a half years as coach of the club. I sincerely wish those clubs like Hawthorn and Sydney who led the push against our proposal, have similar periods in their near future as we have had in the past two years.

It sounds like around $2.9m when you add up all the figures. My understanding when the original funding was discussed was that at least $1m of the $2.7m package was made available to assist with liquidity but it was to come back to the AFL. On that basis, we receive a suitcase load more than originally envisaged and while I don't know for sure, it's quite possible we might have been given a money or the box choice and we wisely took the money. And don't assume that other clubs like North Melbourne and the Western Bulldogs don't get assistance packages either. I haven't checked but I was told yesterday that this year Carlton had no less than ten plum Friday and Saturday night fixtures which when you work out the financial benefit to that club in terms of revenue from the gate, membership and sponsorship, it makes the handout we got today look like peanuts. On the other hand, we had no Friday night fixtures and one home and one away Saturday night fixture. The result was an attempt at premedidated murder of our club by the AFL to which we had to succumb once we performed so poorly in the first three rounds. Obviously, the AFL was happy with the way we lost three games by an aggregate of 350 points to start the season. How do we start the fund to collect the extra 450 grand?

So in effect it was the money or the box and we got the money. I suppose the extra $1m or so to keep was our preferred option in place of a priority draft pick which might have come at 10 or 19. Nevertheless, the decision is every bit as ridiculous as the tanking outcome. I wonder if Mark Evans was able to keep a straight face when he made the announcement?

AFL site.I suppose we've performed a lot better than I thought.

Given the laws of libel and such, it might be better that the person remains a faceless man.

In any event, they would be considered unworthy of draft assistance because they burn dwarves.

What beggars belief about the article is not only that it's complete horsesh1t concocted to justify a contrived result to suit the other 17 clubs that have been bleating about the club's application for assistance but that the AFL leaks information like a sieve. This is just one of the many sagas that abound that indicate something rotten about governance at the AFL.

Incredible that people have nothing to say about out dual Bluey winner.

In the SANFL, Norwood won its way into its third grand final in four years. Redlegs win Second Semi Final Norwood 8.2 10.6 12.13 14.16 (100) West 1.1 3.4 4.6 6.8 (44) BEST – Norwood: Suckling, Grigg, Thomas, Webber, Dumont, Fuller, McGuinness, Phillips. West: Webb, Macreadie, Caire, Birss. GOALS – Norwood: Phillips 4, Warren 3, Davis, Pfeiffer 2, Dumont, Fuller, Webber. West: Tuck, R. Anderson, Beech, Bonney, Rankine, Still. INJURIES – Norwood: Zorzi (knee). West: Still (hand), Slattery (finger) withdrew from selected squad. REPORTS – West: Hartlett (abusive language), (rough conduct). UMPIRES – Leigh Haussen, Curtis Deboy, Michael Schramm. CROWD – 9,248 at AAMI Stadium.

The panel also named a further five players as being in the mix for the first round ZAK MERRETT (Geelong Falcons) PATRICK CRIPPS (Western Australia) LUKE DUNSTAN (South Australia) BLAKE ACRES (Western Australia) JARMAN IMPEY (Murray Bushrangers)

I had to pinch myself reading this trying to recall how many Demons actually improved as footballers under Bailey in the four years from 2008 - 2011. If Bailey did any better in those four years than Neeld did in his 1½ then it's a line ball at best. As for Bennell, he had ample opportunity at Melbourne under both Bailey and Neeld and never came up to the mark. If anything he was played out of position by Bailey after showing some promise as a running small defender. I suspect he might have developed better had he been allowed to settle into one position.

The TAC Future Stars Panel went through the entire first round today with Gardner and Crouch dropping out of the top 10 and Zak Jones just making it into the first round although playing in a team that was so badly smashed today wouldn't have helped him much. 1. GWS TOM BOYD (Eastern Ranges) 2. Melbourne JAMES AISH (South Australia) 3. St. Kilda JOSH KELLY (Sandringham Dragons) 4. W Bulldogs MATT SCHARENBERG (South Australia) 5. Gold Coast JACK BILLINGS (Oakleigh Chargers) 6. West Coast DOM SHEED (Western Australia) 7. Brisbane BEN LENNON (Northern Knights) 8. North Melbourne LUKE MCDONALD (Oakleigh Chargers F/S) 9. GWS KADE KOLODJSHNIJ (Tasmania) 10. Collingwood MARCUS BONTEMPELLI (Northern Knights) 11. Richmond CHRISTIAN SALEM (Sandringham Dragons) 12. Carlton LEWIS TAYLOR (Geelong Falcons) 13. Port Adelaide BILLY HARTUNG (Dandenong Stingrays) 14. Sydney NATHAN FREEMAN (Sandringham Dragons) 15. Geelong DARCY GARDNER (Geelong Falcons) 16. Fremantle CAMERON MCCARTHY (Western Australia) 17. Hawthorn MATT CROUCH (North Ballarat) 18. Gold Coast ZAK JONES (Dandenong Stingrays)

That's my recollection of the Balme era. He had the team playing sensational footy by the end of 1994 and the loss of Jakovich after the Hawthorn game leading up to the finals could even have cost us a flag. Thereafter, we were decimated by injuries for a long period and struggled under the weight of the merger controversy. We were pathetic for much of 1997 during which time Balme was sacked - his game plan was atrocious at the time but limited by a lack of personnel. Daniher was in the right place at the right time - a new broom when some of the experienced players came back from injury and we recruited well with White, Shanahan, Johnstone, Rigoni and players emerging like Ingerson and Rigoni. It all came together very nicely for Daniher who was fresh and innovative and, as a result, we prospered. I can't see as rapid a rise in the year ahead under Roos but if the stars align we should see some progress.

If the AFL punishes us a second time for whatever did or did not happen at the club in 2009 by awarding us anything less than a # 1 draft selection then it will have set a precedent and should not be permitted to reward a club that was a drug cheat in 2012. They should either play short or be allowed to take only players from state leagues and within the usual salary cap restraints. I note Essendon has joined the other clubs in opposing our request for assistance. They should not receive our support or that of anyone else and I would not expect it of others if we are found to be involved.

Every article in the media on this subject had been completely one-sided. There hasn't been a single statement in our favour as to why we should receive a top ten pick and the consensus appears to be that we will get an end of first round selection. Our own silence suggests to me that the result will be a contrived one - a deal done a while ago. At least we can hope that pick 18 or 19 or whatever becomes a champion for our club. Such a result will definitely be a blow to the independence of the AFL Commission. A precedent will have been set and it can only strengthen the already strong clubs and cause instability in the organisation. I pity Essendon if the final ASADA report leads to a dozen two year suspensions as has been mooted in some reports. If you're consistent then why give assistance to a club in need that's recently been found to be involved in the use of banned substances?

I can understand that such a scheme can be justified for GWS which won't benefit from a father/son pick for a couple of decades but the Swans already benefit from having father/sons. Tom Mitchell was taken by them last year and made his debut this season. It seems to me that this is another rort that benefits the Swans and must be ended ASAP.

"Fair and balanced" is what the conservatives on Fox News Channel use to give legitimacy to their often unbalanced views of the world. I think in a way Ben Hur has it right but I don't believe that it's wrong to point to inequities as long as you're prepared to go out and do something about it. Unfortunately, for way too long, the people in control of the club have always tried to be far too nice. Neale Daniher once said we should become ruthless but he stayed nice. We kept him on as coach for 2 or 3 years too long. And don't get me started on Dean Bailey or Mark Neeld. Are we being treated fairly by the AFL, the media, the other clubs and the public? Probably not but let's do something about it. I think Roos has started off on the right foot. Let's keep stepping on the toes of others and eventually, when we're winning like Hawthorn and the Swans we'll get respect, not because we ask nicely for it but because we demand it by our actions and achievements.

Bubsy, I think if we're fans of the sport and we want it to thrive, then we have to care. There are so many things about the game that are good but unfortunately, it's starting to fall apart with the banned substances scandal, recreational drug taking, tanking, inequities in fixtures, the draft, AFL handouts and selective decision-making. We've developed a very ugly face and recently it's been dominated by some shady characters like Dank, the stupidity of those at the top of leading clubs who greedily hang on to their privileges at top at the expense of others and then you have players like Buddy, Swan, Sam Fisher and the dwarf immolators. Standing among them is Dustin Martin. Apropos of nothing in particular other than to demonstrate where we are as a sport, this par comes from Crackers Keenan in this week's Inside Football: You have to worry about the future of the game when you read this and realise that some such players are being paid $½ million to run around the field.

I wish Jamie Bennell the best of luck for the remainder of his career. It was unfortunate that we couldn't get the best out of him and that he suffered an ACL injury that put him out for the best part of a year. However, he would have to go down as one of our many recruiting disasters from that era and in particular, that draft. We took him at 35 ahead of Matthew Broadbent (38), Steven Motlop (39), Mitch Robinson (40) and Rory Sloane (44). Then we took Neville Jetta at 51 ahead of Michael Walters (53). And that was after taking Sam Blease and James Strauss ahead of Luke Shuey and either David Zaharakis or Dan Hanneberry earlier in the draft. I know its easy to say the above in retrospect and other clubs missed out as well but I suspect that better recruiting people could have exercised better judgement. Imagine how much stronger our midfield would be today if the correct recruiting decisions were made back then? This isn't going to sound too flash but I do feel some comfort in the knowledge that Bennell and Cale Morton are on the Weagles' main list.

Thank you for that but, while I do like many of the Age's sporting journalists, I don't think I'd be popular with its chief football writer. The latest brouhaha involving Richard Colless' attack on Paul Roos highlights exactly what I mean about the necessity for an independent AFL Commission as against the individual clubs making or influencing decisions on issues where they place undue and heavy influence by seeking to apply criteria that are not of great relevance. The Swans are upset at Melbourne so how do we expect them to behave at the AFL Commission on Monday? There's every possibility that if the Commission gives undue weight to extraneous factors in deciding on Melbourne's application for draft assistance then it will not only be the beginning of the end for Demetriou but of the Commission itself. Once the precedent is set, then more partisan results can be expected. I can see Eddie starting the ball rolling by attacking Sydney's $900 salary cap advantage. Interesting times.

Exactly Sue. We know what Martin is like as a character (Wilson spelt it out very well earlier in the week) but that's not the point I was making at all. It appears now that apart from some mild interest from coach less Brisbane, at this stage there's only one club that wants Martin and that happens to be Richmond. Wilson's inconsistency is that having excoriated Collingwood and St. Kilda for tolerating their bad boys and then painted Martin as the worst of the worst in her articles earlier in the week, she has hardly a bad word to say about the Richmond Football Club. If she were a true critic and had some integrity she would be straight with Hardwick and the Tigers. A bogan is a bogan no matter what club he plays for and for the good of that club he needs to be cut adrift.

You sound like this - Howard Beale: I'm as mad as hell, and I'm not going to take this anymore!

Of course not. The best player of all time tag belongs to Jesse Hogan but I'm sure Swallow would gladly accept second best and GCS will take a fourth rounder and Tom Couch in exchange.