Jaded No More

The Dogs were always going to try something different this week. This is a dress rehearsal for finals. They lost against us once, it would be madness to try the exact same thing again in the H&A season and hope for a different result when we beat them quite comprehensively last time (if the loss was by under a goal you just back the same system and see if you can gain that extra inch). I think it's fair to say that the Dogs realised they lost this game because of our defensive set up. They are thinking they can stretch us and I assume they will have one of their talls play almost a tagging role on Lever, to try and draw him out of the contest. It may work, and if it does, it gives us plenty to think about ahead of finals, where we are likely to play Geelong who have a very potent forwardline. I hope the boys are gutted after last week. It was a horrible performance and a big missed opportunity. If we want to stay in the top 4 and indeed push for top 2 to ensure home finals (although Covid will likely make that irrelevant), these are the games we need to win. I am not confident we can do it twice, but let's see.

I hate that umpire! Why would you let such a poor quality umpire anywhere near the best game of the round? He has already given the Dogs 8 random frees and it’s not even game day yet.

Interesting calls all around. Don’t know that Vanders did much wrong and Harmes is in luke warm form at best. But he’s more attacking which we need as I think Viney makes us too defensive.

Covid baby boom is a real thing. Seems like people got really bored in the first lockdown and decided to pro-create. I bet they are really regretting that poor life choice in lockdown 5.0!

Mrs Gawn is due in November around Melbourne Cup time if I remember correctly from the podcast.; Not sure about Jones. Twins generally are delivered early via a pre-scheduled C-section. Far less likely to be a surprise or full term. My guess is they already have a roughly scheduled plan as do all multiple pregnancies which are always considered higher risk. Edit: I think Tmac has had a rough trot since his baby was born. Can understand why his form has been a bit up and down. Hope for his family's sake and our footy hopes that everything gets sorted out quickly.

I would be surprised if we beat the Dogs twice within the H&A season They will be really up and about for this game. It would have been a target on their schedule since they lost to us earlier in the year.

Another small piece of luck is that we did not need to travel this week, and Lever had his baby. I heard him on the Gus and Gawny podcast saying he will need to manage being at home for the birth if it happened while we were interstate. So lucky break there! Same with Tmac's newborn spending time in the hospital this week. If we were in a hub right now you would imagine he would fly home, and nobody would begrudge him that. No more babies due during the season, all safely out of the womb during byes and Victorian games. Well done everyone!

Ridiculous. Who says if we played them next week they wouldn’t lose a different key player to injury in the game prior? It makes 0 difference if we play each other this week or next. It’s just a crying shame that both of these top of the ladder games have gone ahead with no crowds this year.

Williams has said time and time again he doesn’t want to be a senior coach anymore. He is also not the right personality for a senior coach these days. He’s not people manager which is exactly what a senior coach is in modern footy. Yze is another story but I think Pies and Blues have too much pressure from members to go down an unknown path. I’m still backing Clarkson and Lyon for these two jobs.

No matter how hard, the AFL will and should keep pushing on. Save the bye for when we can’t find venues or get teams to grounds or field sides due to isolation orders or a Covid out break. If we could do it last year we can do it this year. Just keep going.

If we don't take advantage of this blessed and magical run of injuries in 2021, we are idiots. This sort of run is extremely unusual, and we will regret it if we don't capitalise on it. *Goes to knock on all available lockdown wood*

Another 7 days in Victoria

I’m not sure how you can compare playing in Darwin at short notice versus playing at the MCG, a ground where Geelong will be playing finals in a few short weeks, and a ground that is literally an hour drive away! It’s actually not a disadvantage to play at the G! It might seem like a simple thing to move venues, but it’s not. Even with no crowds ground staff would be booked, broadcasting would be planned, security etc. just because it’s happening all the time now doesn’t make it easy. It’s happening out of absolute necessity. Moving Geelong’s game is not a necessity. It’s just another headache the AFL has rightly chosen to ignore. Edit: it was apparently denied due to commercial signage and the MCC agreement the AFL has in place. As I said, it’s not that simple to move games. It’s only happening out of sheer necessity.

3-4 months

I am all for incentivising people to get vaccinated, but while our supply is so critically low, you simply can't punish people for the mistakes of the federal government. I am under 40. I don't think I should be punished because it is very hard for me to get access to any vaccine, even AZ, and I also shouldn't be punished for following the overwhelming health advice re: age, and I also shouldn't be punished for wanting to leave the AZ stocks we do have to people who are at higher risk than I am who are currently eligible for it and should rightly get it before I do.

It’s a joke that all Victorian clubs don’t have to play there like us. But that aside, you can’t just move venues at the drop of a hat. The AFL is dealing with so much trying to keep the season going. Geelong’s minor inconvenience is literally the last of anyone’s concerns. That they even bring it up right now shows what a complete bunch of arrogant self centered [censored] they are.

Why don’t they have timed tickets for entry? You buy your ticket and you have a 10-15 min window given to you to enter the ground. If you miss that time slot you need to wait until everyone else has been let in. It’s also a lot safer from a security point of view. Lots of big events overseas do it for safety measures. Not to mention they must enforce mask wearing at all times unless seated. Most people don’t bother with masks outside of the ground when in fact it’s the most crowded. And FFS open up the entire ground. Then you can skip every second bay or every second row and reduce transmission.

I really hope that our players are being told to limit their movements. Even once lockdown is lifted, and I know it’s hard because they deserve a life, but finals are so close. That sacrifice could make a massive difference. If we lose players to isolation or Covid it could cost us a flag.

It does seem unlikely. However a week is a long long time in this pandemic.

Our lockdown won’t end tomorrow which is no surprise. Good luck getting to the G before September.

They have a seriously enviable culture and attitude. They are a very scary finals proposition. They haven't uttered a single boo about their last month which has been riddled with changes and hubs and being separated from their families. What a contrast to the constant moaning from Richmond and Geelong. If they win the flag this year, I would not be surprised.

I will eat my hat if we are allowed crowds at games in Victoria in the next 2-3 weeks. Given the spread at the MCG the argument to allow crowds becomes ever harder to make while we still have cases and while NSW is still a clusterfudge.

I believe there was a practice game with a few Victorian clubs and we were involved as well. Not sure who played.

Sydney can absolutely go all the way. They are a scary proposition when they’re on and the team most like us in terms of game plan and contested footy.

I don’t understand this thinking. So if we played them in two weeks we could beat them but playing them next week means we lose? We aren’t carrying significant injuries. Nothing will be different next week to the week after, except for perhaps a small-ish crowd.