La Dee-vina Comedia

I accept that there's more check-in and wait time for a plane trip than a bus trip, but the trips to and from the airport are really short at both Maroochydore and Cairns.

Seems to me that the sports editor at The Age needed to keep a closer eye on what the reporters were writing, but depending on which story you read in today's edition, Pendlebury is both likely and not likely to play this week.

This is an excellent thread. This type of discussion is why I prefer Jobe Watson and Jimmy Bartel doing special comments on TV. They talk team tactics. Others, such as Matthew Richardson and Cameron Ling tend to discuss individual player efforts which I find somewhat unnecessary. Wayne Carey does a bit of both but because he's been out of the game for nearly 20 years, his tactical knowledge isn't as current as Watson and Bartel.

The phrase "keeping his width" is competing with "connection" for buzzword (or phrase) of the year. It's come out of nowhere and I suspect is meaningless.

I suspect you could also do a 10 picture grid just with Jeremy Howe marks in Melbourne colours. I've been watching football since the mid-60s. He is the best taker of marks I have ever seen, and not just speccies. While it sounds wrong, he has both the softest hands and the tightest grip, as well as the best leap.

It's about a two and a half hour flight from Maroochydore to Cairns with very little road transport time to and from each airport. The road trip from Maroochydore to Metricon is just over 2 hours. In other words, there's not much difference in time to travel to Cairns or the Gold Coast to play. Is it more comfortable for the players to be in a bus or a plane for 2+ hours? And does being in a pressurised plane cabin make a difference? I think a plane is more comfortable than a bus (others may disagree) and I don't know the answer to my last question.

It's official. We're playing two games in Cairns: JOINT STATEMENT Premier and Minister for Trade The Honourable Annastacia Palaszczuk Minister for State Development, Tourism and Innovation The Honourable Kate Jones Qld Government locks in deal to relocate AFL clubs to Cairns The Palaszczuk Government has locked in a deal with the AFL that will see two clubs relocate to Cairns for a three week period. Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk today announced the Fremantle Dockers and the Sydney Swans would temporarily relocate their players and staff to Cairns, in a move that will see a number games played at Cazaly stadium during rounds 15-18 of the AFL season. Matches will include both Fremantle and Sydney as well as a number of opponents flying into Cairns, including Melbourne who will themselves play two matches at Cazaly stadium during this period. The Premier said it’s good news for Cairns and the AFL. “We know the Cairns economy has been hit particularly hard by the global pandemic,” the Premier said. “Having two teams plus officials and support staff based in the city provides an obvious economic benefit. “I hope Queenslanders will travel to Cairns to see the teams play and that fans will enjoy seeing the game played in the Tropical North.” Tourism Minister Kate Jones said the deal inked this week would pump millions of dollars into the city’s economy. “This is a first for Cairns. We’ve never seen so many AFL Premiership games here in one season. The eyes of sports fans across Australia and around the world will be on Cairns. This is a huge boost for the local community,” Ms Jones said. “These teams have huge appeal in three of our most important domestic tourism markets. “Having the Dockers and Swans based in Cairns will provide vital publicity for the Far North in the weeks and months to come. “This exposure is vital when it comes to rebuilding our economy and supporting local jobs.” Member for Cairns Michael Healy said today’s announcement would provide a great boost for the region’s economy. “Having these teams relocate to Cairns for three weeks will pump millions of dollars into the local economy and support jobs,” he said. “Setting up Cairns as a hub for Australia’s sports teams will undoubtedly help us in our economic recovery efforts. “Cairns is one of the most beautiful places in the world to visit and is the gateway to the Great Barrier Reef. “The natural beauty of our region will be on show to thousands of footy fans across the country. “We want to ensure that as soon as these people are safe to travel, that they come to our region and spend money locally. Today’s announcement helps us to ensure Cairns remains top-of-mind for domestic tourists.” AFL General Manager of Clubs and Broadcasting Travis Auld said it was fantastic to return football to Cairns, as well as basing two clubs in the community for a period of time. “We are delighted to be again playing games at Cazaly’s and to have Fremantle and the Sydney Swans staying in Cairns which has such a passionate AFL support base,” he said. “We are really grateful to the support of the Queensland Government for their ongoing support of AFL and their support for ensuring our season has been able to continue as well as the wonderful support of Tourism and Events Queensland and Cairns Regional Council. “We are always excited to bring our games to the north of Queensland, and now for a period of time having teams in the community and contributing to the local economy.” Cairns Mayor Bob Manning said the hub would be provide many benefits for the region. “To have these teams based here as part of a Queensland hub has of course immense economic benefits. “Players and club officials will be staying at our hotels and making the use of our facilities – all of which will provide a welcome boost for businesses and also lift community spirits. “It also gives our region increased exposure, not only reaching out to millions of viewers through television screens, but also through the first-hand experiences of these players, which I am sure they will take back home and share with family and friends and supporters back home. “Having the calibre of these sporting teams in our region is a rare opportunity. For youngsters, this will be an inspirational chance to see some of our country’s elite sportspeople in action, and I have no doubt it will entice new fans. “Cairns has an enduring relationship with Tourism and Events Queensland and we are absolutely thrilled to play a part in the spread of AFL teams and games across Queensland this season – especially the Tropical North. There is no better time in the year to be in Cairns and certainly there is no better place outside a metropolitan centre to play elite football.” Between 2011 and 2018 the Gold Coast Suns played one regular season game a year at Cazaly’s Stadium, facing off against the Tigers, the Bulldogs and the Kangaroos in that time. [ENDS]

Most of the time I read that we play a zone defence. If that's the case, why do I also read about individual defenders and their "direct opponents"? Do our defenders have direct oppponents? How can that be if we play a zone defence? It's all too confusing for me.

I think Harmes played mainly or even wholly in defence against North.

Are you sure you spelled that correctly? I thought it was a b, not a d.

I can just see him squinting through the window at AFL HQ and seeing red and black against a white wall and assumed it was Essendon and not St Kilda.

I've never heard this about Bate before, and the only place I've seen it said about Gysberts has been on Demonland. Is there any empirical evidence that either was lazy or is each just an urban myth repeated endlessly (in the case of Gysberts) on Demonland?

Matthew Bate

I'm torn about whether I want Collingwood to play finals. If they don't, Dunn will finish his career on 196 games plus whatever else he plays this year with no finals. Dunn is currently equal 7th on the list of "most games, no finals" and could end up as high as 5th. On balance, as we keep hearing the team is more important than the individual, I hope Collingwood doesn't play finals.

3rd best?

I'm curious as to what your definition of "old" is when you say "plays like a wingman of old". I'm in my 60s, and to me "a wingman of old" means a wingman of the 60s and 70s. Those guys didn't run all the way into defence or necessarily all the way forward. They pretty much stayed in the traditional wingman's position, playing one-on-one with their opponent. Of course, in those days, most players, other than ruckman, ruck-rover and rover, stayed relatively close to their nominal positions on the ground.

While we knew about the academy picks we obviously could not have known that there would be no meaningful under-age football this year. That alone, is enough to say we did the right thing trading out a pick for this year. We turned what has become this year's much riskier option into last year's educated selection.

Interesting that the Herald-Sun had Tom McDonald listed in our best players. I didn't think he was in our best, or our worst half dozen. It will be interesting to see how the structure is managed when Gawn comes back. My gut feel is that Jackson will be "managed" to create a spot for Gawn.

You may be right. But the alternative argument might be that Weideman would not be playing as well as he is now if he had been brought back sooner. We will never know.

Just as Hillary Clinton's book cover, "What Happened Hillary Rodham Clilnton" was a question and answer all in one, so too, is your own post. Jones has been a loyal and consistent warrior, but it's time for him to announce his retirement. For the rest of this season, rather than questioning his place in the team, his career needs to be celebrated.

Footywire seems to think Watts (and Lynden Dunn) must no longer be playing. In the list of "Most Games, No Finals" both appear in the column of all players, past and present whereas their names are missing from the column showing current day players. Jack has played 174 and Dunn 196 games without a final. Personally, I'd like to think that's all the fault of Port Adelaide and Collingwood respectively. (The only current Melbourne player on the list is Steven May on 140. I'm not sure whether this number includes yesterday's game, or, indeed, any of this season).

6. Petracca 5. Oliver 4. Brayshaw 3. Lever 2. Langdon 1. Hibberd I'm surprised that Jackson has been in some people's votes, less so about Pickett, but isn't it great that our first year players (including Rivers) are more than worthy of their places in the team?

Here's a link to the story referred to in the opening post. (I can't help you if it's stuck behind a paywall). I like McKenzie's self-awareness of his deficiencies.

Six other teams are having their byes now during this so-called Festival of Footy. For example, Round 10, which finishes tonight, has four teams having a bye (Carlton, Hawthorn, Fremantle and West Coast) and Round 11 sees Sydney and GWS each having a bye. I dont know when other teams will have their bye but I expect our game against the Bombers will just become a game scheduled like any other without any need to squeeze it in as an extra game.

I've just gone to the Urban Dictionary to see if "vanders" or "vandenberg" has been included in the dictionary as part of the explanation of the meaning "harder than a cat's head". It hasn't, though it probably should be. If you go to that page you'll see a direct reference and link to AFL. The fifth* definition of AFL in Urban Dictionary is, um, unusual and unexpected. *It's numbered as the fifth, but it's actually the sixth.