Macca

On another thread I have talked about retrospectively pinging players for staging & flopping (or anything else like that for that matter) And over the years here I have made many other such references ... especially when it comes to the biggie - the contentious high contact free kick (which is getting worse) I distinctly remember having a long discussion many years ago about that type of free kick with dc But I'm also a realist so if those sorts of actions were to happen, public opinion and the media would be talking about it (at least) And they aren't, not on this site either But we are creatures of habit and we don't like change My view on the 50 (paid or not paid) keeps leading me back to the overall and the big picture. In other words, we can sweat the small stuff as long as we address all the issues that are in fact, in my view, bigger issues So 2 x 50 metre incidents last night vs 15-20 high contact (possible) incidents ... it has to be remembered that players flop about and stage for free kicks but they are not always awarded the free. Our players do it from time to time So if you were to ask me what is (by far) the biggest issue it's the high contact free ... miles ahead of player abuse & dissent, which by the way, we can still curtail at the same time There's probably 10 issues to address if the truth be known as holding the man, in the back and marking infringements are missed or paid too There is a simple solution for the players with regards to the 50 ... don't argue the point or question the decision and you won't get pinged And all this 'robot' talk is nonsense ... for instance, there were 47 free kicks paid last night and on 45 occasions the infringing players all managed to control their emotions 45 from 47 is a decent result So I saw last night as a positive ... if I was a perfectionist, maybe not

Always nice to back the first winner of the day (a bonus 50 on winnings too!) And worth following is 'Tokorangi' too - impressive winner

I saw a more than a dozen soft high contact incidents last night ... some were paid, some weren't. As viewers, we don't really know if the whistle is going to be blown (or not) for that type of incident So we have a far bigger problem with that type of decision ... which, by the way, leads to player frustration and possible dissent or abuse. Holding the ball - similar issues. In the back - similar issues. Infringements in marking contests - similar issues. Etc etc etc As for the non applying and the applying of the 50 last night. One player got off the hook and can count his lucky stars (although if he was pinged, the player he infringed against (if awarded the 50) wouldn't have had a shot at goal) Whilst the other player got rightfully pinged and cost his team with his selfish act. His act resulted in a goal. Don't react at all and there's no penalty You can bet he won't be doing it again and if he does, his coach will be furious with him (again) So the coaches are instructing their players to clam up if a free kick is awarded against the player. Eventually, the reacting players will have the finger pointed at them And that might happen more quickly than people think The rule is going to be applied and there will be the odd inconsistency (as there was last night) Just as there is with nearly every other type of footy incident

Long term the league would be better off with the average of 4 FTA games staying as it is with the other 5 games all being available on another source or 2 (as it is now) If they split the 5 non FTA games up across various platforms they'll be asking for trouble and if the FTA content is reduced, the same For the greater good, the league can't be too greedy looking for a cash grab (and that opportunity will present itself if Amazon & Paramount enter the fray with the big bucks) As it stands, there are a number of AFL fans who will watch the Rugby League on Thursday evenings if the AFL don't have a game scheduled for that day

Well, we eventually turned Scully into Steven May & Tom Sparrow I believe. And at the rate that Sparrow is improving, he could easily have a better career than Scully. May was All Australian last year and a premiership hero So Scully goes to GWS and we receive a compensation pick in the mini draft (Hogan) in return Eventually Hogan goes to Freo and they give us picks 6 & 23 in return (we gave them some inconsequential pick in the 60's as well) We give pick 6 to the GCS for May and use pick 23 (eventually pick 27) in the draft on Sparrow Turned out alright when factoring in Gawn at pick 34 as well All's well that ends well

Dropping T-Mac does add clarity to the one position in the forward line other than the positions filled by Fritsch & Ben Brown Weideman needs to perform to stay in the side but T-Mac also needs to also put pressure on Weideman's position ... so if Tom replaces Weideman down the track, the same scenario applies with roles reversed So it's no longer a debate about which player plays the best (in the same side) and who goes and who stays But Tom does have another avenue and that is as a reserve backman but with Smith seemingly ahead of him and Tomlinson in reserve, that path is a more difficult one So it's over to you Sam but ... Tom needs to stand out for Casey as well And Sam will almost certainly play across the half forward line and further afield ... a role others here have mentioned that he may be better suited to. Lead up marks and then dishing off (quickly) could be his go (as opposed to playing as a deep forward)

The game tonight was ok only. Was expecting better but GWS just seem to lack real purpose when the heat comes into the game They don't use the corridor enough and can't seem to get on a run when needed. Not a lot of physicality although they were better than last week. There's something missing though As for the Saints - hard to judge them tonight but they do keep winning. As Ben mentioned above, their defence is decent They are a reasonably good team but I'm not sure they can reach great heights just yet. A top 4 spot is within their grasp though with a 5 & 1 start to the season. And if you're top 4 you're a chance

The Giants all walk taller with Toby in the team (no pun intended) He doesn't drop his head or give up and that sends a message to his team mates. Plays for keeps. He's a bit of a product from a bygone era but there is no denying he captures an audience But can he not cross the line? Does he need that edge to his game in order to be at his best? In my view, probably The game should be a good start to the long weekend of footy ... the 4 FTA games should all get a big TV audience Our game is quickly becoming a standout blockbuster (as long as the crowds are maintained), the ANZAC day game always has a great atmosphere and the Freo/Blues game on Saturday evening might answer a few questions

And of course Libba when talking about Carlton tanking That was one of the quickest about-face's of all time ... he went from one extreme to the other in a couple of days Journo's would know the line they can't cross too ... oddly enough, if the controversy has a knock on effect of having the sport front & centre in the media, that seems to be ok Take the H/S with the attack on Goodwin. Got everyone talking about footy and the AFL would have loved that

In some games it's way more than 3-4 (actual attempts at staging, not all paid) In the Cats/Hawks game there might have been 15-20 instances Not that I let it bother me ... it is what it is and the better team usually wins and it evens itself out anyway Except if you are the Western Bulldogs ... they have a clear advantage because they are coached really well to exploit the high contact ruling And it's no good for the punters to point at the Western Bulldogs either. They are just "Playing' the rules It's an AFL issue and only drastic measures will fix it, Sue Also, this particular type of free kick leads to player frustration ... which leads to umpire disrespect It's a blight on the game

We've created a monster with the head being sacrosanct along with the concussion issues & protocols The exploitation of the head high contact can only get worse in my view. As time goes on all the teams (not just Selwood & the Doggies) are going to become adept and coached to win the high tackle free kick We can't fix it even if we had the motivation to fix it ... unless we retrospectively ping up to 100 players per round for staging & cheating So the ducking, shrugging up of the arms and knees dropping will continue and get worse And everyone will complain but the problem will rage on Anyone got a solution? Apart from expecting the umpires to sort it all out (which is an impossible mission)

Previously (not that long ago) we were told that it was going to take a couple of years to get the players fit. At the time I didn't want to believe it but as it turns out, they were right. Done for tanking, 186, Various coaches. Upheaval. AFL intervention Along with knowing deep down that we were miles off (years) from contending. It was demoralising knowing we had to wait an age and even from that low base we had to start to make every post a winner Fast forward to now (and after a breakthrough flag) and those thoughts are gone (well, almost) We slip up and we're back there again so we need to get better with no let up. So there should be no issue with motivation (at the club) Our rise has been quite a story ... there's a best selling book there for someone with great penmanship Hemingway? 'The Rise of the Demons'

With 2 forced changes do we want to take a total of 3 out of a winning side? (that is also 5 & 0) So T-Mac & Weid to stay with T-Mac going back? Bedford comes in you'd imagine along with BBB Dunstan as the sub? Or maybe Smith for some added versatility (if needed)

There's a few holes in it but some excellent suggestions ... as well as a few suggestions that I struggle to agree with I reckon a watered down version would be better The 4 sectors makes sense but you'd maybe keep the boundary umpires and let the 4 umpires adjudicate on onfield decisions only The boundary umpires can remain a part time job ongoing. Boundary umpiring is for the fitness fanatics so let them continue and you don't have to pay them top dollar The teams of umpires also has merit and the goal umpires and field umpires swapping roles could work ... having 2 goal umpires at each end makes the job of the goal umpires much easier. Just standing next to the goal post seems easy enough I don't agree with the goals and behinds scored being tampered with ... touched ball remains a point as does hitting the post in my view But overall, I like Eddie's idea for change And the sport should be able to afford full time umpires ... pay them a lot more and get the umpiring squads to do 2 games as Eddie suggested

And I was the same in my playing days as well as serving on numerous committees (the absolute suburban hack!) ... just keep bringing in the proper talent and you win more games Get really good and you can win big. And for the first time in my life (and many others I'm presuming) we've now got that team at the MFC. Under Northey & Daniher we were good and sometimes very good but we weren't the best nor were we superior to the rest And are we getting ahead of ourselves? Doesn't feel that way at all ... we are very good and that's for real. League-wide, the finger is being pointed at our club (as the best) And we can get even better as our recruiting is still really good. As is the coaching Bring on the Tigers!!!

Of course So the clubs that have transgressed need to be cautioned, then fined or premiership points docked It's like the racist chants in soccer ... ultimately the clubs or countries then have to play in front of empty stadiums The AFL should have acted in a stronger way with regards to Adam Goodes but we hounded him out of the game

At the top level it's quite a reasonably well paid part time job ... at the lower levels the clubs are strapped for cash so tens of $Millions would be required to subsidies those umpires I'm not against that as a concept But the abuse at junior level is a very real thing ... I've seen it first hand but there would be others here who would have seen that abuse on a more widespread level We live in a different world now where workplace bullying, mental health, fair working environments and suchlike are front & centre It's almost like the umpire abuse is one of last bastions that needs to be addressed (although racism in sport, gender equality and other areas still need addressing)

I should drag out that Mark Neeld poll (here on this site) where 97% (over 300 people) wanted Neeld to continue on in 2013 and beyond! The poll on Goodwin staying put? At one stage 85% wanted to show him the door! Ah yes, polls! Not always to be taken seriously Ask the Trump supporters!!

I'd like a 2nd opinion as I don't trust 1 poll only. As I said yesterday, people don't always tell the truth (for fear of embarrassing themselves) And the abuse could easily be a secondary reason or at least another reason on top of what they've said And further to the discussion into high contact free kicks, we have a pool of what, 40 or 50 umpires and they haven't been able to differentiate as yet what is high contact and what isn't high contact. Over decades? Is there even 1 umpire who can get it right most or all of the time on high contact frees? If the answer is no then they are either all incompetant at the same time or we have an issue with the actual high contact incidents and the adjudication of those incidents I'm heavily in favour of the latter argument rather than the former. All it needs is logic applied

I put most of it down to people in general not recognising that the sport cannot be umpired correctly If they came to terms with all the umpiring errors (that are going to happen by default) then they may not be concerned Some areas can be cleaned up somewhat ... full time umps and a clearer definition of the holding the ball area but even so, the grey areas will always reign supreme. As they always have. Probably since the mid 19th century But hey, I've got no chance of changing your mind and vice-versa. Nor does that bother me at all My default view on footy is just be the best team in terms of talent and coaching and then you probably won't ever worry about umpiring decisions Yeah but the ducking is subjective ... we've had this conversation before, Gonzo You believe the umpires can sort it out and I disagree. And my reasons are in a post above And don't you think that if the umps could sort it out that they would have done so by now?

And what about the drop-out rate for umpires once they take it up (more so outside of AFL level) How long do they last and what are the reasons as to why they give it away I'm tipping abuse and being intimidated would be right up there as the reasons

So here is a grey area that we won't be able to fix The highly contentious high contact free kick ... players duck, drop their knees, throw their heads back etc etc in order to milk the free kick. And every year the problem gets worse as more and more players are becoming adept at milking high contact And it all happens so fast that the umpires can't begin to be able to get the adjudication right. We often need 3 or 4 replays in order to work it out ourselves We could decide to not pay high contact free kicks (inless the neck/head area is targeted) but here's the issue with doing that ... the concussion protocols and issues with the head now being sacrosanct So we can't fix it even if we wanted to So we have to live with it. Complaining won't solve the problem Further to that, we probably see an example of high contact up to 30 times a game (either paid or not paid) The only possible fix (and it's an extreme long shot) is if they retrospectively ping the cheats and start handing out suspensions retrospectively. And that might number 100+ players in any given week And that's just one facet of the sport Good luck trying to fix it all of it

Yeah, that's your view, Gonzo. We don't all think the same way I can watch a game of footy and just take all the good with the bad. As a general rule, I block out all the stuff that might displease me. It's a chaotic sport, they'll almost certainly never go close with regards to fixing up all the grey areas (due to the nature of the sport) so you can either let it get to you or realise you have to live with it I do have the odd concern ... the need to have total respect towards umpires and the decisions that they make And hopefully, we are now going to have a swing in that direction. The game will be better for it So with regards to our team, I'm thoroughly enjoying our wins and the way that we are playing. And it's all about the hard work we are putting in. We are getting on with But you can view stuff any way you like, I'm not trying to change your mind (or the minds of others) ... if I was, I'd be here 24/7 quoting people hundreds of times a day

I don't share the same concerns

Yes Wrecker, our work rate is quite incredible It wasn't so long ago that we had a few players (in leadership roles) explaining that we needed to buy-in to the game plan!! We've come a long way from those days to a point where, as you correctly mentioned, we have not only totally bought into the game plan but we are doing the extra's These are the sorts of threads that we should see more of too. Our game plan being analysed correctly with selfless individual acts being highlighted Of the ones you mentioned the Sparrow effort was amazing. Tom is really coming on as a player. With so many top players in the team we have now got everyone getting in on the act. Pressure for spots improves a team It's out of our hands on how we keep everyone together and under the salary cap. That's for the list managers and bean-counters to figure out Big bright future It's good being a Demon supporter!