Macca

But miles better than not being on FTA DJ Having our matches shunted away on cable in a time slot often only suited for those who have cable is not a good result for all sorts of reasons And the Saturday evening FTA games would attract huge advertising dollars for Ch7 so it's a marquee event that we need to be part of I reckon it's a fantastic result ... bring it on In rounds 9-12 we're matched up against the Lions, Bulldogs, Blues & Crows so if we keep performing well we'll get more FTA slots

Well, we're every chance GV ... was having a look at our remaining fixtures last night Run home is vs Leicester, @ Newcastle, vs Chelsea, @ Burnley, vs Everton, @ Brighton, @ West Brom and then vs Southampton There is not a game amongst that lot which we can't win or gain points from If we can beat Leicester we're right in it as 2 CL spots would then be up for grabs Of course Liverpool, Spurs, Chelsea, Everton & Leicester are all eyeing off a spot as well. But Man Utd could drop points in the run home thus opening up a 3rd slot Dare to dream!!!

The Masters is on free to air this week ... 9GemHD (Ch95) Coverage starts from 5am Friday through to Monday when the live broadcast will be from 4am

Scapegoating kicks in with the losses ... head coach, umpires, 1 or 2 players etc etc. I have always viewed the multiple losses as being the whole clubs fault ... true leadership would see the best performed person at the club putting their hand up as being part of the problem (in those circumstances) So us supporters blaming one thing or another is not only a futile exercise, it doesn't solve the real issues. Not even close. The argument ends up going around in circles. Besides which, we supporters effect very little ... we are mere onlookers. We're just yapping away pub-talk style Recruiting from an overall perspective is the biggie (when was the last time we had a 'genuine' premiership type list?) ... but with excellent recruiting comes a well run club and top level coaching So fast forward to now ... hate to say it but we're still a work in progress. We can play finals of course but to win a premiership we'll need at least 4-6 more top level footballers. Last year the number was 6-8 (in my view) so we're getting there How's this for a forward line ... Hall Brereton Buckenara Loveridge Dunstall P Dear The 6th best forward won a Norm Smith medal That's how good you have to be to be a true (ongoing) contender ... go close and you'll be a contender still. Fall short and you'll fall away I've never read Smith's book but from what I can gather, we were the kings of recruiting during those glory days

Fair enough dl but there aren't many who aren't playing their part ... even those with low possessions seem to be doing the team things that aren't always noticeable I highlighted Sparrow for that reason ... we supporters don't really know what his role is but he is (by and large) being given the benefit of the doubt by many here. I reckon many here recognise that he has been given a task by the MC and is carrying that task out And I've never understood the whipping boy mentality ... is that some sort of primeval instinct left over from the cave man days? ? I try not to play favourites nor have anyone in the gun. To me, it's nearly always about the team (and Kozzie!)

Watched the replay ... looks a ripper and ran good time too

The 3 teams we have beaten aren't contenders but we still won all 3 And that's a big positive because previously we could have been expected to drop 1 or maybe 2 of the games We're definitely a better team in terms of how many players are being questioned on whether they should stay in the side... many here are saying no change (again) Sparrow is a good example ... from all accounts he's doing a lot of the team aspects (1%ers) but is not racking up the possessions. Previously, many would be calling for his absolute omission And we kicked 15 goals against GWS despite not having a meaningful contribution from T-Mac (who, to be fair was up against 2 or 3 defenders in a crowded forward line for most of the game) GWS shot themselves in the foot with those tactics as our backline ended up have an easy time of it (despite the Toby Greene cameos)

Agreed I posted that on the wrong thread but I suppose it is worth noting here on this thread anyway! Apart from us needing 14 wins as a minimum (so as to finish at least 5th or 6th) our team needs to be tested as early as possible. Geelong is a good start although they are missing a few valuable players. But Harmes, Ben Brown & maybe Weideman are missing from our best line up Melksham & Hibberd can't get a look in although I reckon 1 of them might get in this week (mystery injury or 2?)

The standout highlight out of the round in my view was West Coast's first half against Port They made Port look 2nd rate and their own skills on display were first rate ... they are going to be hard to beat That's what we have to match & better

Agreed on Brayshaw & Viney (and Hunt) Both Jack & Gus kept the team in the game early with their vigour & attack on the ball Without them we might have got run over or at least have been 5 or 6 goals down Brayshaw especially is playing well in a role that is unfamiliar to him (defensive wingman) ... he's often forced to kick to a contest as he is being asked to gain metres for the team So therefore the DE in relation to Brayshaw is another useless stat held up by those who don't watch the game closely enough. Metres gained with regards to the new attacking brand of footy is however a more apt stat But I choose to watch the game over what the stats say and Brayshaw had a very good game when considering he's not a natural wingman Viney was just Viney and he's a little champ Hunt is finally starting to find his feet ... I like what I see

If we bring our best we'll win. They (GWS) could bring their best but can they sustain it if we're at our best? Rather than matching them we need to set the standard and then keep our foot on their throats ... do that and GWS will wilt So really, the ball is in our court. And the team still has a lot to prove so being off our game at this stage of the season would be unacceptable Having said all that I would take any sort of win! Just win!

On the flip side AF, ... T-Mac, Gawn & LJ should get more opportunities to score if the trend of open forward lines stays put And just on the open forward lines and fast movement into the forward lines ... it's hard to see the coaches promoting stagnant movement knowing that the other mob are going to attack quickly and put pressure on their defence You've got to go for it otherwise the other mob will gain a break The biggie is when a mark is taken 60-80 metres out from goal ... now that the teams don't have to kick over the mark they can elude the 'Statue' and hit up a leading forward with a bullet pass We are witnessing a massive shift in thinking

Eagles are red hot (against a well credentialled outfit) Still excellent viewing even though the game has blown out As a measurement, we're going to have to be rather good to match up against this sort of standard! Port are probably wondering what's hit them

After todays result the Sydney game now looms large as a possible prime-time game. Any sort of win tomorrow could get us across the line. Ain't it grand that we can have this conversation at last? I just hope the team is as fired up and as hopeful as its supporters!

Hang Man wins again and beats a good field ... didn't have it included but it ran past a decent horse in Persan The connections would now have to be eyeing off a few of the bigger races in the spring. There might even be a race up in Sydney over the next few weeks that suits And Hungry Heart won the Vinery in fine style. Good horse to follow going forward Sir Dragonet wins the Tancred! Very impressive ... looked a class above over the 2400

Terrific days racing coming up ... they've got a good track up in Sydney with lots of Group racing whilst the fields at Caulfield are quite strong Don't mind 'Personal' in the Vinery and 'Angel of Truth' in the Tancred Good luck punters

I'm often on the side of the broadcasters in a few areas ... more open footy (less congestion) more scoring, less stoppages etc etc. But we don't see a lot of our team on prime-time TV for good reason. Losing a lot creates its own issues But they (the broadcasters) are paying the bills so they are obviously going to get a say in proceedings. They plough in $Billions The coaches on the other hand darn near ran the sport into the ground with their boring defensive mindsets. Thank goodness for Steve Hocking. He cops a lot but he's got his heart in the future of the sport. He has listened and acted The footy has been great this year (finally) and I take my hat off to the AFL for recorrecting where the game was heading Have you heard anyone critisising the game this year old dee? I've heard virtually nothing and I talk footy to a stack of people on a weekly basis (outside of the internet) Most I know are back on board and we're talking a sizable demographic By the way, with more attacking footy and more scoring comes more blowouts. That effect as a consequence stands to reason

Considering that the clubs generally pick their teams on a Tuesday with a proviso on 1 or 2 being fit enough to play, not getting the teams until the day before is an unnecessary delay If anything, we could get the weekend teams as early as a Wednesday evening. If there are a few late changes so what? We've had that scenario for decades anyway (late changes) The rest of it all is just ducks & drakes with the AFL kowtowing to the coaches (again) You have to wonder who actually runs the sport these days

The layout of the stadium was set before the AFL wanted to be part of it (which happened very late) Originally the stadium was to be for soccer, league & union and the AFL was going to stay at Waverley ... and those sports are usually not conducted in the early to mid afternoon - therefore no issue with the sun The moveable seats became a redundant idea once the AFL came aboard

The Sunday arvo free-to-air slot is more of a probability (but that is so much better than the early Sunday or late arvo Saturday slots on cable (or streaming) A pointer might be our R4 & R5 games - Cats & Hawks Ch7 3pm Sunday slots. A proving ground? My bet is 1 prime time & 2 Sunday arvo free-to-air games in the R7 - R12 allotments but we might get 2 prime time games That would make it 8 FTA games out of 13 if we ink in the QB clash. And that's a good result if augers well

Brisbane winning tonight increases the chances of our game against them being a FTA game ... of course the game is at Alice Springs but last year the game was played in the evening Agree with the rest of your assessment ... Ch7 do like putting up Carlton games so you never know. I heard somewhere that they might announce 2-4 rounds only ... makes sense in terms of the Covid situations & maximising audiences That sort of thinking is here to stay I believe which won't please those who like to plan in advance

What a great start to the weekend Pies lose!

Best Bet Caulfield R2 No.4 Agreeable $3.30 (Win)

I am way less concerned about crowd sizes during Covid - the actual effects & residual effects of Covid will continue on for this season and next (especially re the walk-ups) So those monitoring crowds will need to temper their expectations and take a more realistic approach. The 21k we got for round 1 doesn't look too shabby when we look at all the other crowd numbers for the other games North 13k, Sydney 20k, Bulldogs 21k etc etc ... the big match-ups has seen a big drop in numbers as well Crowds are down right across the board so the new 60k is more like 45k or 50k But prime-time free-to-air is a way different story ... we've got a chance to state our case so in my opinion, we need to win well (and impress) in order to give ourselves a good chance at getting a few prime time TV in the next block of games The value in securing these games is invaluable ... sponsorship, corporate dollar, membership and gaining new supporters and more exposure is front & centre

Might be a blessing in disguise (the delay) We've got another game (against GWS) to stake a claim for prime-time TV slots. Win & win well and the Ch7 execs could deal us a good hand Included in the 6 round block (R7 - R12) are match-ups against a rejuvenated Sydney, a backs to the wall Lions and a well performed Bulldogs outfit ... all likely candidates for FTA Lose against the Giants and we'll blow our chances. So there's a lot to play for