sue

You're probably right. However, the difference is that the 'not 15' is necessary to follow long established rules of the game.

I think stand is the worst of the ‘need to hear’ instructions and god help us in a grand final with a crowd. Where the player on the mark can stand is yet another thing which requires the ump to be running about with a measuring tape. Wont make it much worse if they add to that uncertainty by allowing the man on the mark to move 2 metres or whatever rather than looking like a windmill in a light breeze. The umps give a lot of instructions which are unnecessary and don’t have to be heard. Eg don’t hold in the ruck. (Will they soon be saying ‘don’t throw it’ or ‘don’t tackle below the neck’ ). Why do the players need to be continually told the rules. Eg stay on your line when kicking after the siren.

I agree the rules are a problem, but surely getting the distance a ball has travelled when a player marks a ball even roughly right says something else is wrong. Of course there will be some errors since the umpires are not running around with lasers, but so often the error is enormous and the call seems to depend on context, both location on the ground and the state of the game.

I presume you didn't have any inside information on TMac's state and certainly not more than the club staff, so you were more or less guessing. Nevertheless you got it right this time, but I wouldn't be polishing my 'realist' medals based on that. None of us have any idea if sitting in the plane or missing his own comfy bed played any part in aggravating the injury. Maybe he'd have missed all the benefits of being with the team that Binman mentioned for nothing if they had left him behind while gaining no or little recovery benefit. Who knows. Hopefully he'll be back and rested for the rest of the season.

In response to those saying we should be free to say what we like and too bad if some people will be offended, surely it depends on the nature of the statement and who it is directed at. IMO there is a clear line - make nasty statements about a person for things over which they have no control (like the race they were born with) and you have clearly crossed the line.

I completely disagree. Your implicit defintition of politics is far too restrictive. It's more than political parties and the current politicians. Real politics (not manouevering for votes) is about the human condition and how to better it. Just because some right winger thinks anti-rascism is a leftist plot, doesn't make it a non-political issue. It says more about that person.

There are 2 reasons why they get so much hype. The number of Bomber supporters and the alliteration. We need the Diaper Demons.

But that is exactly is what politics should be about. I have no problem saying this is a political issue.

Possibly not. But I think the scenario Engorged painted would have been in the mind of every MFC player regardless.

When Gawn kicks for goal from 30m out he kicks it high and hard and almost always hooks. Why he does that rather than trying to pass it to a bloke behind the umpire is beyond me.

Re Spargo play-on. I thought he looked confused rather than trying to play on.

True. And WCE players would be thinking they had nothing to lose. the commentators had oodles of time plus 30 extra minutes to get some info on Hunt and tell us. but nothing Why?

Not beyond the AFL to arrange that

The umpires tried but failed

How does the team having 'set themselves' change the bookies odds? Are you implying WCE team is corrupt? 😀

good luck with that. Sadly

I suspect the reason the 'victim' is not called is because they can't be relied upon to give honest testimony for fear of being a rat. So they are likely to help get the offender off which would embarrass the AFL.

I hear Melbourne have cancelled their Perth hotel and are hiring a Boeing 737 instead.

the game is supposed to start at 12:10 isn't it?

Doubtless with Casey tiered out after playing today?. For those who are unaware only footy fix today is Casey on freebie on Kayo today 1pm EST. Probably a very depleted team since big squad is presumably somewhere in the air over somewhere.

Saw a fleeting banner on ABC saying No professional sport. Can't confirm so far Update: from 4pm. "There will be no football matches. So, no community sport, no professional sport, nothing for the next three days. Starting as of 4:00pm today. But I would hope that anyone who's out there concludes whatever they're doing and goes home." Short game coming up...

As I think someone may have alreaady said, it's a freebie on Kayo.

Double sorry jnrmac, it seems very odd that you call my post rubbish, when I said nothing that contradicted what you said. Surely my mention of hoping for a 'return to form' more than implies I thought we had lost form. I was commenting on supporters' emotions now, not the players performance. As for whether the coaches haven't done anything, I'm in no position to tell. And while the personal hasn't changed in name, they may have changed in other ways that challenges the coaches.

good work. Not totally implausible, but I think enough to cause you to investigate other possiblities. Likewise for chance of dying.

True, the count in any individual game does not need to be even. But when you look at those tables of net frees for the bulldogs (good team most of the year) it looks statistically a definite outlier (miles beyond the next most 'favoured' team), whereas the demons (good team most of the year) are close to the mean along with most other clubs. It seems to me that it is very hard to explain away the dogs situation solely along the lines you suggest. I expect there are other factors (without resorting to conspiracies).