Jaded No More

I hope we rise to the occasion. Big Friday night game against a top performing team. Soft games are good, but too many of them can see complacency kick in. A big contest is just what we need to spark a really strong 4 quarter effort.

Sydney were not ordinary when we beat them. They were equal first on the ladder and hadn’t lost a game at that point. They’ve dropped off significantly since copping a mountain of injuries to all their key position players.

This is a genuine 50/50 game. If we stand up and win it, I think the media will start to really talk us up. If we lose, I think we are rightly back in the pack, with Pies and Brisbane ahead of the rest. We need a strong midfield game tonight. I bet we won't see as many rotations as we have seen until now, with Clarry, Viney and Trac to play their usual heavy midfield minutes. The ruck situation will be fascinating. I think Grundy will actually be a better matchup for Lycett in the ruck, who is a big boy. Grundy's athleticism might challenge him, which means Gawn could play more minutes up forward, and that means Aliir Aliir can't just peel back, because you can't leave Gawn one on one in the square. He will tower over Jonas. Also exciting and nerve wrecking to see how Salo goes. I just hope his body holds up!

I learnt his name the night I nearly jumped the fence to murder him.

Oh noes. Broadbent nearly killed me against Richmond. God no.

You can’t play nice in AFL. Nobody felt sorry for us when we were down. Clubs came poaching Frawley and Rivers and it sucked. But those players wanted success and they got it. You cannot hold back from improving your list because you feel sorry for another club. At the end of the day if Larky wanted out, I would absolutely want us to chase him hard. He’s exactly what we need. Would also chase Ben McKay.

A club who can least afford it too.

Bear is a ball hog. Can’t play fetch without two balls. He won’t drop the one he has until he sees that you’re going to throw him a new one. A selfish princess. Goodwin would not put up with his [censored].

Would be a real [censored] move for someone who missed half a season with rubbish injuries. The club is welcoming him back on social media. Seems highly unlikely. I suppose we have a plethora of players who can cover for him if he needs to be subbed off. JJ can come in and move into the middle and you have Rivers and Gus who can slot back. I just really want him to succeed and I’m not sure that bringing him straight back into a massive game after he missed 10 rounds is setting him up for success. Still, we trust the club, and it will improve our defensive ground ball down back significantly.

Might alternate with Rivers

Exactly. I don’t know why people don’t understand what Dunstan is.

A big surprise with Salo. I hope the club isn’t rushing him back. They did last year and his season really suffered. Thrilled with no Dixon. He’s a monster and he always troubles us.

If the jumper is why you think we lost, you need to think again.

Taking the absolute [censored]. Can he play forward once Salem return? I know we have 8000 players fighting for a half forward role, but come on!

I’m with you. As someone who works full time and lives more than an hour away from the MCG I hate Friday night games. It’s a pain to get to and I don’t end up getting home until midnight!

Sunday 3.20pm is prime time TV and very family friendly.

So with round 23 being a Sunday afternoon game, can I assume our round 24 game against Sydney will either be a Saturday night or a Sunday again? (I am away in Noosa so want to work out if I'll be able to watch it). I assume AFL will want Lions vs Saints and Geelong vs Dogs (depending on how the season pans out), as the two prime time games. The rest of the games in round 24 are absolute rubbish, unless Essendon vs Pies determines whether Essendon makes finals or not.

He is welcome to follow fellow North forward Ben Brown's lead and come win a flag with Melbourne.

I would have thought his fingers would have been the issue

So glad I have my reserved seat. For 20 years I paid for these seats, and it's never been needed... finally, the long wait has paid off 🤑

My only issue is the short break leading into the Brisbane game. Gonna be tough.

What annoys me about all this, is that North have suffered more from this racism allegations than Hawthorn have, and Hawthorn are the club in question. I have no idea who is or isn't innocent in all this, but the one thing I agree with is that this investigation has been a farce, and Hawthorn have somehow come out of it unscathed, while the individuals involved are left hanging. God bless the AFL and it's complete lack of integrity. A joke of an organisation!

You have to feel for North in all of this.

Teddy is adorable! Does he ever wear his hair in a ponytail? I feel like he could pull off the Brody Grundy.

As I said, it’s why he’s chunky. You can’t say no. My dad can’t ever say no to him. The minute my dad is around and there’s food, Bear goes and puts his head on my dad because he knows old man can’t resist him! On Mother’s Day Bear had bacon, salami, egg salad, bagels, smoked salmon and croissant… and then nearly killed us with farts 😂