La Dee-vina Comedia

As a matter of interest, does the highly sought-after Demonland Player of the Year Award include votes in finals?

And it would mean we play each final at the MCG rather than having to go to Perth.

It's worth reminding people that there might be more to coincidence than meets the eye. While you might be right, as this chart shows causality doesn't always correlate with outcomes:

This photo has the colouring of a photo taken in the late 1950s. If I'd seen the photo at the time it was taken, I would have said I knew then we were going to win just because of that.

Sorry, but nothing is improved by adding that screeching. (And while I'm at it, it comes from possibly one of the worst movies ever made, too.)

If those stats were presented out of context as those of an unnamed KPF, you might think they belonged to Reiwoldt (either of them), Roughead or Goodes. That's my way of saying he belongs in the big time.

Then I don't have a good footy mind. I didn't put him in my votes...but I thought about it. Yes, he made a few mistakes but he was more creative than I've ever seen him play before with his tap ons, punches as well as the more regular kicks and handballs.

6. Harmes 5. Oliver 4. Weideman 3. Neal-Bullen 2. Salem 1. Brayshaw

Thank goodness. I was worried he would attend training and be photographed not smiling which would have worried us no end.

Added incentive (if any was needed).

If Tyson does not play, I don't see Hannan as his automatic replacement. The Match Committee might want to add a defender to release Fritsch to play further up the ground, effectively replacing Tyson on the wing. If that's the case J Smith or Hunt might be selected ahead of Hannan. That's not to say Hannan might not be selected to replace JKH but if that were to occur that would be three changes (ie, Out Kent, Tyson and JKH) which would be quite a surprise after such a solid victory in Round 23.

I haven't seen any discussion about Austin Bradtke. I assume he's a potential ruckman, should he make it. Does anyone know what his prospects are? Seems relevant to this discussion.

Is that the reason? I thought it was introduced to stop legal action on restraint of trade (if that's the correct term for stopping players from exercising their right to free movement). Perhaps someone with a legal background might know. I guess it could be both.

Another way to look at this is to question why Tom Lynch is going to a club more likely than not to fall from here. Of course, his chances of being in a Premiership team aren't zero, but he'll be joining Richmond after they've peaked rather than beforehand. If he genuinely wants to play in a Premiership he'd be better choosing a team that's still on the way up.

cry.

I suspect that whatever we're paying Jordan Lewis will be worth it on Friday. I'm not referring to his on-field play (although that will be important) but his experience of how to cope with finals football, particularly in the last hour or so before the game starts, should help the coaching staff to calm the nerves of our otherwise inexperienced team.

At three quarter time in the 1971 Grand Final, St Kilda was leading Hawthorn by 20 points. At that stage, each had won a single Grand Final while we had won 12. Since then, St Kilda has kicked on with multiple wooden spoons while Hawthorn now has 13 Premierships...and we've still got 12.

Another enjoyable way to beat Collingwood in a Grand Final would be to see Harmes knock the ball back into play when it is arguably over the boundary line in the forward pocket in front of the members which then leads to the winning goal.

One thing that struck me reading that article was the timing of Josh Mahoney's appointment and our improvement. I wonder whether I've not fully appreciated Mahoney's role in our rise. It may just be a coincidence of timing (to use a cliche, he was in the right place at the right time) or conversely Mahoney has been a major but perhaps unheralded reason for where we now find ourselves.

Chicken or the egg. I wonder which came first?

Maybe we were ahead of the pack with those blazers...

I think selecting the "AFL Pick Your 22 Tools" might be more fun. A couple from the 2019 AA team might get into both teams.

On the other hand, me might have been lucky that the head knock between Harmes and Melksham didn't appear to have any consequences (other than Melksham's immediate discomfort). In fact, perhaps we should remind ourselves how tough all AFL footballers are. If I get a paper cut I'm out of action for hours.

Compare and contrast...

Are you saying he's buried next to Dominick "Big Trin" Trinchera or Dominick "Sonny Black" Napolitano?