La Dee-vina Comedia

With Salem running laps with Oliver, I wonder whether Salem is really rehabbing something or just being used as company for Oliver as he continues with his re-integration. It would make sense to me if the club was helping Oliver by making sure he wasn't always doing the boring stuff (running laps) on his own.

Bad list management. Presumably salary cap problems.

I'm very pleased. I had thought "decimated" meant reducing something by 90% to leave one-tenth. Having checked I'm pleased with the better definition of it meaning only one in ten rather than nine in ten. (On the other hand, the historical, literal interpretation is that decimate meant "to kill one-tenth of a group as military punishment in the Roman army." But let's just ignore that detail.)

I'd rather name him after a piece of clothing than a Nazi sympathiser.

I'm not in favour of it at all. But if it is to be introduced, it should not take effect until all traded future draft picks have been used. Trading is inextricably linked with draft picks. And given future picks are already "in play", the mid-season draft should only be introduced after they have been used.

If the AFL changed the rule to a 5 person interchange bench, within one season an AFL coach will complain that it's unfair when a club has a player removed from the game because of concussion. That coach will call for a sixth player to be on the bench as a "medical substitute". Nothing surer.

That seems like a risky strategy by the clubs. If the trade isn't agreed, they're stuck with a player who doesn't want to be there (albeit in these two examples, two very good players). Nevertheless, it obviously worked out in these instances.

Throw in Dustin Fletcher in 1993. He was still at school.

Has a club ever matched a Restricted Free Agency bid? I can't recall any (but it's not something I follow, either).

I know we'll be better off with a new purpose-built training venue, but how beautiful is it seeing the green grass, the established trees, and Government House in the background? (Oliver in the foreground is a nice bonus, too.)

In fact, you could replace "BBB" with any one of a number of players..

Who are the Port Melbourne Colts? The Port Melbourne I'm familiar with in the VFL (formerly VFA) have always been known as the "Borough". Is this a different club, and, if so, in what league do they play?

Ben Brown's switch has been good for both clubs and the player, too. North knew they were not going to be genuine contenders and wanted to refresh their list; Brown was a bit of the jigsaw puzzle that helped us win a flag. Would we have won the Premiership in 2021 if he hadn't been playing with us? Maybe...but you could say that about most players at any club in any year.

Well said, Macca. I just want to add one extra point. How the club treats its players at the end of their careers will be noticed by other players (and their managers) when contemplating changing clubs. It would be much harder to attract quality players to join us if we didn't show we cared about them in their declining years.

Why not? They work in an industry that "works" on weekends and public holidays throughout the season.

Probably would have helped if Ginger Baker was still on our playing list.

*I thought it was Clark not Aaron or Paul

We're all grateful for your reports. Thankyou.

Nice work. I suspect the majority of Demonlanders have no idea what these posts mean, though.

I'll assume this is a typo or auto-correct interference. if it's neither, I have no idea what this means.

Yes, it's a business. And in business you have contracts. We signed Brown up knowing about his knee history. We also don't know what money (if anything) Brown may have foregone in his first few years in order to get a longer contract or to help the club manage its salary cap. In short, the club entered into this contract knowing full well what the terms were and that he would be on our list until the end of it, come what may.

I'm just one of a number of English language pedants on Demonland. I'm confident you haven't seen the end of any lessons.

Thanks for this. The highlight for me was the last sentence. I'm sure I'm not alone in enjoying the simplicity of the verb "to learn" rather than the use of the tortured expression "They continued with their learnings". (I almost feel sick writing that.)

It's a continuation of the AFL's continued fascination with everything American. US sports, including the players, generally have a better relationship with the media overall with the media getting much better access for interviews. But it doesn't always work. For example, Marshawn Lynch's Superbowl interview from a few years ago where he answered every question with "I'm here so I won't get fined". (It's a masterclass for Dusty and all the others who don't want to be forced to participate.).

We also have to recognise that the TV rights holder has significant influence on the AFL as a product. As I've said before, there's an inherent conflict between the AFL Commission and the broadcasters. The AFL Commission should be making decisions for the long-term good of the game while the broadcasters can only look as far ahead as the end of the current broadcast rights deal. What's best for one is not necessarily always going to be good for the other.