La Dee-vina Comedia

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.

It was being reported last week that this was what his manager wanted to arrange. But did it actually happen?

Plenty of great players don't get Brownlow votes. For example, Neville Jetta has never received a Brownlow vote.

The top three teams to win Brownlow medals are Sydney with 14 medals, Western Bulldogs (10) and St Kilda (10). They've won 5, 2 and 1 premierships respectively.

A few observations: that Brayshaw wasn't invited adds credibility to the whole thing. It shows that no-one, not even the AFL, knew what was in the umpires' minds or envelopes Brayshaw polling more than Oliver suggests two things. He kicks the ball more than Oliver, so perhaps umpires value that form of disposal more than handpassing. As it generally equates to more metres gained, that's understandable, even though it's often the first handpass that sets that train in motion. Secondly, Oliver has a habit of arguing with umpires when he gives away a free kick or doesn't receive what he believes he's earned. I suspect umpires don't respond well to that implied criticism that Oliver and Brayshaw polled as well as they did is partly because of the work of Gawn. That's probably why the coaches rewarded Max more than the umpires did it was great that Brayshaw, Gawn and Oliver polled as well as they did. I was somewhat surprised, however, that the next best only polled seven votes. Some of our other players still need to lift. (On the other hand, our 15 players polled 93 votes, which was second overall - perhaps I'm expecting too much) I'm amazed how much criticism is in this thread for Patrick Cripps. He got votes because he earned them. Given how appalling Carlton was all year, he deserves some sort of award for being so good in such an awful team I'm sure all the nominees for the Jim Stynes Award have done great things, but I was certainly pleased to see Jetta rewarded Channel 7 as usual forgot that there were viewers interested in how their team went. Not once did the broadcast provide an update showing votes for each team. Overall, I would give the broadcast a C minus. Too much nonsense when there were plenty of opportunities for proper analysis

There's a strong hint in today's Age newspaper that he will take up a role within the club although it doesn't say in what capacity.

Fun fact (if it's true)... Max Laughton‏Verified account @maxlaughton FollowFollow @maxlaughton More Every team that has drafted a Rioli has won the #AFLGF within 3 years. 1990: Hawks draft Willie Sr. Win ‘91 flag. 1998: Dons (rookie) draft Dean. Win ‘00 flag. 2007: Hawks draft Cyril. Win ‘08 flag. 2015: Tigers draft Daniel. Win ‘17 flag. 2016: Eagles draft Willie. ‘18 flag? 2:28 PM - 23 Sep 2018

What about now? To be serious, if I was a fringe player I'd be considering my options. Would I want to stay at a club which seems as close as anyone to winning a flag over the next few years but with whom I might not get more than a game or two? Or would I want to go to a team that's not as strong but at least I would get to play regularly? And that ignores the question of money, who might be able to pay more and length of contract. If I were Hunt, Bugg, Kent, Wagner and another club offered me good money for a three year deal, I'd have to seriously consider the offer. It might be more enjoyable to play seniors regularly at a middle-ranked club than play in the seconds for a top four club.

What is the "Next Generation Academy" and what does this "eligibility" mean? Does it mean that if we want him, we can just add him to our list? Or is it more like the father-son rules where we can nominate him but it comes at a cost?

He's already had the longest first year for any Demon since at least 2006. That's a fine start to what will hopefully be a long and illustrious career. And for what it's worth, I think in the last couple of weeks he has looked like the long season has finally caught up with him.

I' ts not just tatts that give people reasons to regret nohing. But at least this one's fixable

I'll probably sleep like a baby. That is, wake every two hours, cry and need some assistance getting changed into something dry.

None of us really know what went on. But it's quite possible the club agreeing to the players' request that the camp not proceed has had the unintended benefit of strengthening the relationship between the players and the coach. Imagine the alternative of the coach demanding that the players go on the camp even when they didn't want to? Would the club have been better off then? I know that the tail can't always wag the dog, but leaders also need to understand that sometimes the best strategy is to follow those who you ostensibly lead thereby building the followers' resilience, confidence and belief.

The intention of the "below the knees rule" is sound but I agree it needs to be re-thought. It should be used when players collecting the ball actively take the legs out of an opposition player, not when an opposition player trips over the ball-getter. It's not the only rule that needs clarifying or re-tooling, though. I'd rather fix a number of the rules that already exist rather than creating new ones. As an example, it has become increasingly clear that after a mark or free kick, players are being deliberately restricted by their opponent for longer. The 50 metre penalty introduced to stop this needs to be more strongly enforced. That will help stop congestion because the delay is intended to give the opposition time to flood back.

It's all Jack Watts fault. If he hadn't left all the comments would be calling for him to be dropped thereby leaving Tyson alone.

Tyson seems to be the lowest in the pecking order for midfielders, so if Fritsch is moved to the wing to allow Joel Smith to be added to the team, Tyson's place is under threat. But I don't think Tyson is the only one who's position is at risk. Fritsch could also replace Hannan who hasn't really done enough to guarantee his spot, either. (I'm not suggesting Hannan should be dropped, only that if another tall defender is selected, I think Hannan is at equal risk as Tyson of being omitted.)

Courageous reporting (not). Means any number upwards of zero.

Possibly the most meaningless phrase ever. Tells us absolutely nothing.

Someone needs to tell Whispering Jack that he's been wasting his time updating the draft order after each final in the Draft, Trade and Cheese Board section. Unless of course, WJ has been right all along.

If I've got this right (and someone will correct me if necessary) winning the semi-final has lifted us up a spot and into the top 4. And every time we go up a spot on the ladder Adelaide's pick received from the trade of Jake Lever gets downgraded by a spot. If that's right, it's just a bonus highlight. But a very nice one.

O Mac has definitely improved with experience. But he has been helped by a better functioning defensive unit, too. We now see far fewer instances of three Demon defenders all going for the same mark (or spoil) leaving an opposition small forward loose to capitalise on the inevitable loose ball. And like any defender, he's also helped by the ball not coming in as often or as quickly either because the mids and forwards keep pressuring their opponents and our defenders (particularly Salem, Hibberd and Fritsch) dispose of the ball out of defence with improved efficiency so it doesn't rebound so quickly.

The more they refer to him as "underrated" by definition they are increasingly incorrect.

It seems inevitable that the AFL will bring in new rules in 2019. My concern is that it seems to be driven by a new AFL operations manager wanting to be remembered for having done something. So let me tell him what will happen. First they will be known as the "Stephen Hocking rule changes of 2019". This will inevitably be shortened to the "S. Hocking rule changes of 2019" and ultimately the "Shocking rule changes of 2019".

Anyone know how Neil Crompton got his nickname of "Froggy"?