La Dee-vina Comedia

You got it, although Geelong (the city) actually has a number of (maybe 5?) swinging seats.

One of the great things about the English language is that sometimes it can mean different things to different people. For example, for politicians, "community benefit" actually means "electoral benefit". If you read the opening sentence with that interpretation it makes perfect sense.

Not sure about that. The media who cover AFL regularly claim that the best two clubs for the media to deal with are Melbourne and North Melbourne. That's an important job, particularly for clubs with low prime time free-to-air coverage. I don't know if that was Burgo's role, but if it were, he may well be a big loss unless his replacement ensures that the club retains that status.

My faith in the Colliwobbles has been restored. Collingwood has not won a Grand Final in September since 1958. (In 1990 the Grand Final was played on 6 October; in 2010 the Grand Final Replay was played on 2 October.)

It was a wonderful Grand Final played under today's rules. Makes you wonder if rule changes are even necessary. To answer my own question, the reason is possibly the way poor teams are coached to play. To be defensive at all costs. Still, wouldn't mind the AFL dumping all the major proposed rule changes and just stick with the following: abolish the "hands in the back" rule clarify the "slide tackle" rule so it only applies when the sliding player takes out the legs of his opponent, not when that player falls over a player going for the ball enforce the 50 metre penalty given when players on the mark deliberately impede the player with the ball (this was allowed to creep into the game this season) reduce interchanges to 60 per quarter abolish runners altogether

I'm not being pedantic, but just trying to clarify. Are you saying he doesn't have the necessary acceleration to get to "fast pace" quickly enough?

I worry that Demonland groupthink might have labelled JKH as "not fast". Having watched him this year, I'd say he does have speed. Not sure, though, about his tank or his smarts but what I saw this year suggests he's worth persevering with. He's now ahead of Garlett (although that could change) and I expect Spargo will eventually transition to a midfield role so there may well be a small forward role waiting for him to grasp with both hands if he's good enough.

I didn't realise it was a paid engagement. Where was that confirmed? I agree we have the right to cancel a paid engagement, but I still don't think we should have. If it was not a paid engagement, though, we shouldn't be selective about which media representatives are allowed to attend and which are not.

Never knew that. I genuinely thought it was a word invented to describe Collingwood's uncanny ability to lose (then) VFL Grand Finals, particularly in the 1960s and 1970s.

Just following on from the earlier post which referred to a hint in a story in The Age which suggested that Vince will have a role with the club next year. He virtually confirmed it on his appearance on "The Front Bar" last week. He was asked whether he was going to be a real estate agent post-retirement. He confirmed that he had planned to do that after he had retired but it might not happen just yet because he might still remain at the club. He still didn't say in what role, though.

The most disappointing part of the post-game media coverage has been a distinct lack of use of the word "Colliwobbles". This is the type of result the word was invented for.

Why do Collingwood supporters walk to matches? Because they know they will be driving home.

With all the talk of potential rule changes, the one that I've not seen discussed much is a further reduction in interchange rotations. Should that happen (and I still think it will), it will discourage clubs from giving their key position players and ruckmen time on the bench so as to reserve the quota for the hard running players. That would mean resting a ruckman in the forward line might return. That, in turn, means developing ruckman as true forwards so instead of spending about 5 minutes off the ball in each quarter on the bench (as Gawn did this year) they would spend more like 10 minutes off the ball but in the forward line instead. Under this scenario I can see why we might want Preuss and why Preuss might come to us. In essence, everything old would be new again perhaps best described in this thread as "Remembrance of Things Past".

Not a year of notable retirees. Cyril is the standout superstar and Brendon Goddard (if he retires) was also a star. But the next best are good, but hardly greats of the game, such as Waite, Vince and arguably Tippett.

I think his correct name is Gillon McGillonface

Mick McGuane has stacked it on a bit.

But she is opinionated and a podcast would give her the opportunity to explain why she holds the opinions that she does. While I don't always agree with her (and I find her inability to ever admit she's wrong to be both irritating and entertaining at the same time), she has formed her views from 50 or so years of very close association with football people, particularly those that could be described as "back-of-house".

Actually, I think Caro on a Demonland podcast would be a great idea. Seriously. There is insufficient longform journalism these days. A Demonland podcast would give her the opportunity to provide a serious assessment of the Demons.

Congratulations, Jaded. I like your direct, yet subtle, matter-of-fact announcement.

If it's true Preuss wants to come to Melbourne, he's taking the alternative option to Kent...come to a successful club but possibly not play too many games in the seniors. I'm not sure that's a wise plan for him (but good for us).

While money and length of contract might have something to do with it, surely any footballer wants to play football at the top level. Going to St Kilda gives him a much better chance of playing consistently in the seniors than staying with us or going to another strong team. I see this as a sensible move by him and I hope we can facilitate it for him. I have found him to be a frustrating footballer. Has shown some excellent cameos but too often has also "gone missing" for extended periods. He's also held back by his inability to kick on his right foot.

The issues you've mentioned are all important and raise questions of equity but not integrity. But I agree that the equity issues are more significant than this particular integrity issue.

I'll take a guess and assume you believe fewer of the younger generation of males are as circumspect as we baby boomers.

Last night on Footy Classified, Caroline Wilson pointed out that Aaron Francis' excellent mark in Round 23 wasn't properly considered for the Mark of the Year award because the judges were given the "full" list of contenders after Round 22. It's beyond belief that the AFL can't get its act together and manage the MOTY process after all the Home and Away games have been completed. What's the rush to have it resolved before the end of the season? The winner doesn't get announced until Grand Final Week, which allows plenty of time for a decision to be made. I assume there is betting conducted on the MOTY. In which case, should people who bet on Aaron Francis' mark be entitled to a refund? Should the AFL have to face scrutiny from the gaming regulator for not having managed this betting opportunity with appropriate integrity? I'm not saying that Francis mark was necessarily better than Isaac Heeny's. But it definitely was good enough to be considered. (I couldn't see this discussed anywhere else, but if I'm wrong, please merge with the appropriate thread.)

While I agree with your point, she's no longer the chief football writer at The Age. She retired from that role before the 2018 season began and now does some podcasts and other things for Fairfax (including appearing on Footy Classified, now that Fairfax and Nine have joined forces). Jake Niall is now their chief football writer. Even though Caro is no longer the chief, your point is still 100% correct. She remains a very influential figure within the football media.