La Dee-vina Comedia

"The Paddock that Grew" by Keith Dunstan is a fascinating book about the history of the MCG. It's a long time since I read it and it probably has more about cricket than football given Keith established the other AFL, the Anti-Football League. I suspect he actually was a fan of AFL (the football) but established the alternative AFL to enable him to satirise the game in his role as a writer for the old Sun News-Pictorial. (For the young amongst you, the Sun News-Pictorial was the predecessor of the Herald-Sun. For the really, really young ones, newspapers were where people used to get their news printed on paper...and paid for.)

Of course, that assumes that the bye is good for a team. Let's see how it pans out. If Essendon and Melbourne don't get a bye when everyone else does, we might be the beneficiaries of continuity of play. Or in Matthew Richardson-speak, "Momentum is a big thing in football these days".

I now fully expect one of the nuf-nufs at the Herald Sun to make use of the fact that 1 goal 6 behinds is 21% of our season average total score of 56.2 points a game as an argument as to why we'd be mad not to go after him. Might even win said nuf-nuf one of those sought after News Ltd awards for journalism.

I don't think he has a good enough understanding of the game just yet to play on the wing. If given the chance, he may yet get there, but I doubt it. Nevertheless, in the games he has played this year, while he has made his share of mistakes, he has looked more comfortable knowing what to do when he has the ball. In previous years, once he had the ball he looked more like a deer in the headlights with no idea what to do next. His future might depend a lot on what list sizes look like next year. I can't see any club being able to hold on to too many "project" players. We may have to make some tough decisions.

While being away from home can have its challenges, at least the players and any members of their families with them should be pleased that they will be in a location that will be far safer than Melbourne (an probably Sydney) with respoect to the possibility of catching the coronavirus.

All politics is local politics. Queensland is going to the polls on 31 October this year, so expect a bit more of this while she pushes Queensland's credentials in a way that allows her to take some credit for it (while she prays that there's no outbreak of Covid in Qld before then).

Desperately seeking omens? This is from Hawthorn's website: "If history is a guide, Hawthorn are likely to have a two-point win this week. The Hawks have triumphed by two-point margins three times in Round 7 in years ending in zero, doing so in 1960 against Geelong, in 1980 versus Carlton and in 1990 against Collingwood." I'm quite impressed that someone has gone to the effort of identifying this piece of trivia (while ignoring the results in the 6 other years ending in zero since the Hawks joined the VFL/AFL).

I've sort of been there, done that. I was at the 1964 Grand Final but was too young to remember any of it.

Seeing them play would be enough for me.

I understand and agree with your point, but (in the words of a much better American President than the current one), "Facts are stubborn things". Facts can't be obliterated. They can, however, be forgotten, ignored or misrepresented, which, I believe is what you are saying.

If I recall correctly, the AFL changed the trading rules after the Heffernan trade to ensure that a contracted player could not be traded against his wishes. If that is correct, Heffernan must have still been under contract to Essendon when they traded him to us without his own approval. Under such circumstances, I could imagine it would be hard to be motivated to play for us at his best. Nevertheless, I thought he played for us as well as he played for Essendon. It's just that the players around him at Essendon were that much better which made him more productive.

You mean to say you've posted on this thread without even reading the opening post?

One noticeable change with the TV production this year is that wider shots are being used much more often. I wonder whether that's because cameras are shooting from higher up to avoid showing empty grandstands or whether the TV producers have heard the complaints that close ups don't show enough of the game (or both). Whatever the reason, we can now see much better how the game is being played. I wonder whether Demonland's newfound appreciation for Oscar has come about because we now have a greater understanding of his role because we can see it and therefore understand it better.

While NSW might become a problem for the AFL, it will become a nightmare of epic proportion for the NRL. At least the AFL has WA, SA, Tassie and the NT as predominantly AFL-States/Territory from which it might be able to choose.

Was it divorce?

I would have thought FTA Sunday afternoon would rate quite well at the moment given the restrictions on alternative things to do, especially in Victoria.

This seems to suggest racism is only about the colour of somebody's skin. I would have thought racism also extends to other characteristics, including religion although I appreciate that there has always been an argument that religion and race mean two different things.

Thankyou for correcting me. He may be laconic (literally) as I don't think I've ever heard him speak, but clearly that's not what I meant. I'm not sure that "languid" is quite right, though as it means "lacking in vigour or vitality, slack or slow, lacking in spirirt or interest", etc (Source: Dictionary.com). Maybe I should just say that Oscar plays with a minimum of fuss and expression.

No, we wouldn't. It's not about "circumstances". It's about character, irrespective of the circumstances.

Ever since I first saw it re-published by the MFC, I've wondered about whether doing so was was the correct approach. On the one hand, the club has made sure everyone now knows what was said and (if he's using a real name) by whom. On the other hand, it's given this idiot more publicity which is possibly what he craves. On balance, I think I would have preferred it if the club had not re-posted the original tweet, even though it would have been easy enough to find for anyone with enough interest. Yes, it means most people would not have known what was being complained about, but I'd rather that than see the specific, horrible and racist expression given currency. Maybe I'm wrong. What do other people think?

Just looking at that highlights package and two things stood out. Firstly, he's very laconic in his approach. That might be misinterpreted by some as if he's uninterested. Rather, he's just not letting his emotions interfere with his concentration. The second thing I noticed is his speed of movement. This is not the Oscar I remember. Has there been any suggestion that previously he was playing with some sort of encumbrance, such as hip or leg issues, which have now been fixed?

Late, but... 6. Viney 5. Gawn 4.Petracca 3. Salem 2. May 1. Oliver I was contemplating not giving Oliver any votes because he butchered the ball so badly. However, in the end he gets one vote for obviously listening to the coach and making a greater effort to kick the ball rather than blindly handpass it. I'm also surprised that Hannan got so many votes. He's impresive when he's near the ball. he just doesn't get near it often enough. I also contemplated votes for Weideman for the opposite reason. He got to the ball a lot and while he had only a few possessions himself, his work at the contest brought the other forwards into the game.

While the changes look good on the basis of individual talent, I'm trying to work out who replaces Tomlinson on the wing. I assume Jetta and O McDonald will seamlessly replace the roles played by Rivers and Smith respectively. Arguably, Weideman is a tall replacing a smaller forward in Hunt, although one could equally argue that Bennell is Hunt's replacement. Either way, Weideman comes in for a small or smallish forward. It seems unlikely that Bennell will have the fitness base to play on the wing. Ditto vandenBerg and probably Hannan. The seems to leave Melksham, Harmes or one of the midfielders such as Brayshaw to take Tomlinson's role. Or maybe I'm overthinking it and as listed, vandenBerg plays wing with others helping out when he needs a break.

This is an excellent post. However, I disagree with the comment "it’s highly dangerous, and likely toxic, to keep an unsuccessful CEO candidate around". It sometimes may be, but not always. Depends on the character (ego) of the person who missed out as much as the competence of the person who is appointed CEO. I've worked in many organisations where people who applied for the top job missed out but just got on with business with no rancour. I can't say whether Mahoney should or should not have left or been moved on; that can only be known by Mahoney himself and the people within the club.

Nevertheless, the President has said he believes we might be able to survive independently without becoming beholden to the AFL. That's a positive sign. I assume Pert should be given some credit for us being in this situation. https://www.sen.com.au/news/2020/06/30/demons-may-not-need-afl-assistance-after-all-but-they-need-supporters-to-dig/