La Dee-vina Comedia

Not sure I agree with you. Players have no choice where they go in the initial draft (except father-sons) and clubs can determine whether to renew a contract or delist a player. If you mean A-grade players have too much power I might agree, but that might be for about 50 players in the whole competition. The rest don't seem to have much power at all.

I'm rather keen on making greater use of the salary cap formula. For example, for every two years a player stays at a club, the club should get a discount of, say, 10% of that salary from its salary cap calculation, up to a maximum of, say, 50%. So, if a player signs for years 3 and 4 for $300,000 per annum, the club's salary cap is calculated using $270,000 for that player. It makes it easier for that player's club to retain the player as any other club would have to include 100% of that player's salary if he moves. It rewards a club for the development they have put into that player which the new club would otherwise benefit from without having paid for it.

Maybe. But if it's a choice between having free agency and removing the salary cap, I think the former is better for small clubs than the latter.

If you believe in the premiership window theory, players may leave the bigger clubs if that window has appeared to close. Goddard and dal Santo have done so and while St Kilda is not one of the bigger clubs, I could see good players leaving relatively recent Premiers Geelong, Sydney and Hawthorn in the next couple of years if those clubs start to slide. Similarly, clubs such as Carlton, Essendon and Richmond might find an exodus soon if they don't get to the top before the inevitable backward slide begins (which I think is happening to Carlton already).

Which is why the AFL has concluded as it has. But ASADA may still act on any specific, provable violations whether it's one player or more, and at any sporting club, AFL or not.

The AFL scheme places restrictions on players initial entry into the competition by requiring them to enter via the draft. This means players have absolutely no choice where they may start their careers - both geographically and with respect to the relative quality (on field and off field) of the club. I suspect the threat of restraint of trade legal action which would blow the system wide open was enough for the AFL to accede to the players request for some freedom of movement. Until free agency came in the clubs effectively had control over players - including whether to delist them against the players' wishes. Whether the scheme in place now is as fair as it could be is a separate question, but I think having free agency redresses an employee/employer imbalance and, overall, is better for the competition than the alternative, which would see players going to court to seek their release.

While I agree with your assessment of the newsworthiness of the story, Caroline has managed previously to turn fluff into a three piece knitted suit. I would have thought the investigative, impartial Caroline Wilson would have been looking at whether Jeep was concerned with the image of one of the players of its sponsored club involving their product in a law breaking episode. She might also have explored the third party arrangement and whether the Richmond Footy Club might be (a) tiring of Martin's ongoing issues or (b) contemplating additional behavioural controls. As I said in my earlier post, perhaps she still will. And I also agree with you that if she exposed the story, she does deserve credit for doing so.

A successful footy team would be nice, but anyone with a lovely lady and a fine wine is doing OK.

Whether it's injury reports, on-field performance or the club's finances, I'd like the club to reverse its current strategy and under-promise and over-deliver. We have consistently done it the other way round for as long as I can remember.

But then you'll have the problem of everyone asking for their favourite former players and coaches wanting to be added, too. On behalf of all us Demonlanders, we should thank you for your efforts, not just with the re-design of the banner, but keeping Demonland available to allow us to discuss/vent/whinge about our favourite football club and related matters.

Should give an honourable mention to the Ox. While not actually spoken while calling games, anyone who can talk about a player's "longterm-gevity" or explain that a player is "a former shadow of himself" needs to be rewarded for adding such great terms into the commentary lexicon.

You'd think Roos' comments about players dropping simple chest marks might have been directed at Fitzy. Assuming (and the assumption might not be correct) that the coach's comments in the media are directed at the players more than the public, what effect would such a comment have on the player? Would he lose confidence? Would he respond positively? I know every player is different, but does anyone know whether Fitzy is more likely to respond to a stick or a carrot?

The online story has 6 sentences. Perhaps there's more to come, but are we to believe Caroline Wilson would have stopped at 6 sentences if it had been a player from any other club?

OD, seems like you might have Tonya Harding's ex-boyfriend on speed dial.

I didn't think he looked flat. If Gawn or Jamar don't play, is there any possibility of playing Tom McDonald forward so he can be the backup to Spencer in the ruck? He's got the running ability to get around the ground and it would allow (in fact, probably require) Pederson to play in the back half - the only place where he looks comfortable, although, admittedly, not particularly good. McDonald's kicking is a worry, but I wouldn't be expecting him to have many shots - rather he would provide relief for Jeremy Howe and Jack Watts (if he plays forward) and better opportunities for the crumbing forwards.

I love using statistics to make an argument. For example, Shannon Byrnes is clearly the outstanding forward in the competition in 2014 having kicked 40% of his team's goals.

Why did he play so few games at GWS? That is, what sort of injury or injuries did he have?

No. They should finish year 12 before they are drafted. Education is important - particularly for the many who, for whatever reason, don't last long in the AFL system.

I think we're no chance against GWS. But Carlton plays Essendon on Sunday night so it seems we might be going into round 4 with both teams 0-3. Surely we're a chance against them. (Waite will probably be missing either suspended or injured by then, too).

I was at the MCG and I gave him votes, so let me explain why. I thought he was one of the few who made the necessary effort to get to a position where he could be used. That requires him to take the risk of running off his player even though he knows he may have to rush back if the ball is turned over. Under Neeld I suspect the instruction was for him never to leave his man, so he didn't seem to do this. Yes, he turned it over and some of those turnovers were inexcusable. But I can see the plan and once we have a functioning forward line it won't come back as often or as quickly so he won't be out of position so often on the rebound.

My point wasn't that bad shoulders somehow slow someone down. Rather, that clubs make decisions all the time about players with known pre-existing conditions and have to make a judgement call about whether that condition lowers the player's place in the draft or trade table of values. And just to add to the point, Dermott Brereton who was involved with Hawthorn at the time of Judd's recruitment has publicly stated that Hawthorn would have taken him with pick 1 in 2000* except that he was too young but decided not to do so when they had pick 1 in 2001 because of his shoulders. *Note: I know Hawthorn didn't have pick 1 in 2000. But perhaps they may have traded for it if Judd had been available - just like they did for Luke Hodge the following year.

I don't know if you mean Russell Robertson or Mark Robinson. Either way, I still think you might be right.

Replace the words "hip problems" with "shoulders problem" and you've got exactly the same scenario with Chris Judd. West Coast knew about his shoulder problems and drafted him anyway (coincidentally at pick 3). Did they make the wrong decision?

Really? I'm of the opposite view...but I agree about the "bit of a buffoon" comment.

I thought he was OK - kept Le Cras reasonably quiet which I would have thought was his main task.