La Dee-vina Comedia

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.

Was that a good spoil (ie, a deliberate spoil showing great courage by going back with the flight) or a bad spoil (ie, he got in Chandler's way)?

Keep up the good work. You've got Jefferson in both rehab and in the white team. Is that possible?

The reason I see T20 cricket as an analogy is because its growth (in my opinion) has damaged cricket's value. Not because of the format nor because it's meaningless but because it's on TV on so many days. Thursday night AFL means more football on primetime FTA TV which goes against the economic theory of value found in scarcity.

I accept that Thursday night football is here to stay, even though I don't like it. I know the AFL claims that it's "a hit", but I wonder about what its definition of "a hit" actually is? The analogy is T20 cricket. Cricket Australia claims that T20 is a hit but is also concerned about the future of test cricket. Has the "hit" which is T20 cricket irretrievably damaged test cricket? Similarly could too many days per week of AFL ultimately damage the long-term health of AFL football? I'm going back a long time now, but in the 1980s, the then VFL commissioned David Crawford (a well-known consultant) to review all aspects of the competition. This was when most teams were technically insolvent. Out of that review came the professional competition we know today including the independent commission and national expansion, amongst other things. Crawford was adamant in that report that the VFL had to resist US-style professional sport with its private ownership and high-priced tickets. He wanted the VFL to remain the popular and supported at the grass roots level rather than being a product only available to those who could afford high prices. I fear that the administration of the AFL over the last 10 years has lost that understanding and now wants to mimic everything that happens in US sport which will eventually be the code's undoing.

I'd be very happy to hear other's opinions. I may be on my own, in a minority or part of an overwhelming majority. But I won't be swayed by others' opinions. I just don't like it. The fundamental reason for that view is that I'm not ready for a game of football on a Thursday night. I'm only 80% through my working week and I prefer my football once I'm 100% finished for the week. I accept others may have a different view.

"Our" thirst? I have zero thirst for football on Thursday*. I'll go further...I think it has diluted the value of football so that by Saturday night, it's become very ho-hum. *To be clear, I have no objection to Thursday football if it or the next day are public holidays. That's a special event.

Climate change

So, sttlish exists in social media so by modern standards, it must be accepted as a real word! Silly me.

Can't believe no-one else has asked the obvious question...what exactly is that word down the bottom of the cover of that knock-off copy of "The Time Machine?" The word before "...CHARMING, CONTINUOUSLY EXCITING". I realise it's meant to be "STYLISH", but I can't see a "Y". Is it spelled "STTLISH" or has the Greek letter pi been put in there in lieu of "TY"? Oh, and thanks for the training report. Much appreciated as always.

A ruckman needs to do more around the ground than tapping the ball. Brown doesn't have sufficient capability below his knees to offer value as a ruckman. He can pinch hit in the forward line because it's always more crowded with others who can hunt the ball once it's on the ground.

Attendances might actually go up. In tougher economic times, people often turn to cheaper forms of discretionary expenditure (meaning, cheaper for them than what they might have previously been spending). So, attending AFL games might be cheaper than alternatives whether that's international travel, attending more expensive sporting events such as the F1, skipping the opera or foregoing that new tattoo.

Nice work. And you didn't even sit on the fence by including the qualifier "arguably" in this phrase.

So, extending the "New Hope" theme I can imagine the following: Obi-Wan Kenobi - Peter Jackson Luke Skywalker - Paul Roos Chewbacca - Max Gawn (but only if he had his beard by then?) Darth Vader - I'm loath to say Mark Neeld as I think he was on our side, even if he wasn't a success. Han Solo???? Who else???

85 inch TV! Forget having the modem in another room. If I had an 85 inch TV, half the TV would be in another room!

To be fair to the Herald-Sun, the headline writers have to come up with something and whenever Demons are involved, using "hell" is always going to be a natural fit. It's like bad news at Carlton will result in a headline using "blues" and for the Bombers an injured player will be "grounded".

The AFL has indicated it intends to change the process for using points for father-son and Academy picks. If I understand the speculation correctly (and it is still just speculation) the AFL is looking at making clubs use earlier round picks instead of multiple later round picks. The thinking is that the current process where a club can bundle up (say) picks 42, 45, 46 and 50 to accumulate the same points as a first round draft pick, makes a mockery of the system. Whether any changes come into effect in 2024 also remain to be seen. Nevertheless, if there's to be a change of this type AND if it comes into effect in 2024, it might make deals like this one more difficult to achieve.

I'm not sure who had the more disastrous time - the MFC or Opel.

See here: https://www.melbournefc.com.au/teams/training-times

It was clear from the moment we drafted him. Anybody with a double letter in their surname or nickname is at great risk of leaving early. What other evidence did we need? (It was probably not quite so obvious when we drafted Jordon. Did we know his nickname was JJ?)

Don't worry about it, FD. This way, we can make our own minds up about what you wrote. Think of your "censored" having the same influence as "Make America Great Again". MAGA has never truly been defined and means different things to different people depending on their age, geographical location and education level, amongst other things.