John Crow Batty

Malthouse is still frothing at the gills for us beating and replacing his Footscray for the last finals spot in 1987 on their home turf. I remember the look on his face after the game. He couldn’t believe they lost.

The tribunal act like cowards. Pick on the weak but suck up to the strong.

That was when the teams reputation was mud and Trengove was an up and comer but not quite there yet. Melbourne were a handy club to make an example of and still are. Irrespective of a crackdown or not, a fringe player in a lower club like Nibbler was always going to suffer the full wrath of the tribunal for being what he is and who we are.

We don’t really know until the next high profile ornament to the game gets pinged for a sling tackle.

Richmond have a lot of good small/medium types who kick goals. Aside from Rioli there’s Higgins, Short, Bolton, Castagna and Baker. Cant keep them all and a tough decision to chose who to move on. Rioli based on previous form is a keeper who’s having an ordinary season so far. Butler would have been a huge pickup for us after delisting Garlett and JKH.

Will Buckley buckle under pressure and admit the buck stops with him for bucking the protocols? Buckley’s I’d say. Anyway it will cost him big bucks.

Having Jones playing is like fielding 17 men and a witches hat. No other team plays a player as slow, plodding, unaccountable and past it as Jones is on a wing or anywhere else. No way in best 22.

I believe the mental demons that have plagued this club for the last decade won’t go away until he goes.

Port Adelaide and West Coast team songs would have to be the most inane earworms ever composed.

It’s obvious by that graph that we were shafted big time.

Viney is no leadership material either and neither was Jones.

If he cares anything about his legacy he would decline even before we asked him.

Unimpeachable truth.

Another rare prime time game butchered.

Seriously JKH showed more.

Clarkson will come only for the bucks or if his ego makes him think he’s god and can work miracles.

What memories?

The big kick up the [censored] lasted three weeks. Bad habits storm back with a vengeance.

Dumb, dumb stoooopid quarter.

Gaunt was our best player. Kicked a couple of goals and had a lot of the ball. Flower didn’t play. If Warrick Irwin kicked straighter they might have got 40 goals.

Those were the days of junk scoring. We averaged 95 points a game and 125 against for the season and finished 2nd last. The previous match earlier in the season Fitzroy kicked 26 goals to our 21. Tackles inside 50 were not invented yet. We did beat them twice the following season though.

What’s left of them beat us last Sunday.

I used to work with a company who’s owner was a mad Richmond supporter in the early 80’s. A well known Richmond player recruited from interstate was an employee. His job description was a bit vague and he wasn’t around much. These kind of rorts were widespread. Let he who is innocent cast the first stone.

It’s a damning statistic on the state of the game. Negativity has taken over. Might as well give every team 95 points and only play out the last 5 minutes. At least it will guarantee a high scoring game.

Playing Jones has put us behind the 8 ball already.