Macca

And now the Northern Territory has announced a 14 day self isolation period for interstate and overseas visitors.

'The Cruel Sea' appeals HT as does 'Ford vs Ferrari' 'The Lighthouse' as well but I've got to pick the right time to embrace a film such as that. Late at night probably but any film involving William Defoe is often on the money Of the Oscar nominated movies I really enjoyed '1917' (9.0) 'The Irishman' (8.0) 'Joker' (9.0) 'Once Upon a Time ... In Hollywood' (8.0) & 'Parasite' (8.5) Have you seen many of the nominated Oscar films?

The racing has been cancelled in the UK until the end of April DZ whilst they are still racing in Ireland & the USA (albeit with no crowds) I suppose there aren't that many people involved on racedays but the jockeys should be given separate rooms. And at a large racecourse there would be a fair bit of spare space. Again, I reckon we can do without but I'll tune in as it's either that or other forms of entertainment (that doesn't involve information about the virus) But it's only going to take one positive test and that will be the end of it (you'd imagine)

But we do play games in Tassie ... until now (North & Hawks relocated home games) And will Tasmania be the only State to ask visitors to self isolate? (or at least those who fly in)

So the NRL continues on and the AFL starts up. But for how long? I am a betting man so I can't see either sport operating in a month. 2 weeks or less is more likely and if it does cease we'll probably wonder why they even bothered starting up. But there's a lot of money at stake with the players needing to receive 28% of 'budgeted' income for the year (not 'actual' income?) with the rest of the football departments (coaches included) probably being under the same banner. That's a lot of expense across 18 clubs. It's any wonder the NRL's Peter V'landys is on the front foot about the NRL's plight ... we haven't heard as much from Gil but it's the same story (IMO) So if you believe they are just putting the games on to satisfy a sports hungry public, you might want to have a re-think. So where does the money come from if there are no games played? The following excellent article better explains it all. An extended coronavirus shutdown may change sport as we know it in Australia

It's all on ... Footy, League & the Racing. Very uneasy about it all but from a selfish point of view, I'll be tuning in. But for how long? What happens if a jockey tests positive? That jockey's room sees them all in close proximity with gear flying around everywhere. Anyway, the best bet to follow.

Well if I'm calling for the AFL & NRL to be postponed (indefinitely) then the gambling sports should cease as well.

Thanks for that info DG ... I knew Warren had some sort of injury as he was well on his way to becoming a very good long term player for us. He could certainly roost a footy and moved well. Good hands too.

With the absence of so much sport it's time to revisit some classic movies from the past. Will post up some trailers from some more recent releases as well whenever I get a chance. 'Three Days of the Condor' n.b. A TV drama series spin-off called 'Condor' was released in 2018 and it is very good (if you like the genre) Anyway, here's the trailer for 'Three Days of the Condor'

Northey had the team going very hard at the ball and the 2nd & 3rd efforts were great to see. The run from the backline was another highlight. We weren't the most skillful team but we played no nonsense footy at all times. Warren Dean was terrific to watch though ... silky smooth. Was it a knee injury that curtailed his career?

Here's the game that broke the 23 year drought of non finals appearances. With 1 of our former coaches commentating on the game. 5 players kicked 17 goals between them for the MFC in the game ... can you guess which 5 without checking the details? The game was fast, furious and we played great football.

Agree in part DW but this talk about this so-called 1 player being infected is along the lines of that player being expendable. And I'm not saying that that is your opinion either. I'm largely agreeing with the crux of your argument but I'd postpone the season start if it were up to me. It wouldn't be 1 player only anyway ... if a player tests positive to the virus then that player will have been exposed to any number of other people within his own club. Who then expose others. Family members, grandparents et al. And if games have been played then the virus could easily have been transmitted to a player from another club where the process is repeated. This virus is highly contageous so to think that only 1 singular person will be the end of it is just not going to be the logical conclusion. 1 could = 100 and if that happens then the playing of games could be seen as an irresponsible act. Why take the risk when the harder decision is to just go without - that won't kill anyone but the virus might. Sport is a non essential activity where as working for a living and travelling to and from work is essential. Although that could all change as well.

He's got nowhere to go to Skuit unless he wants to work for a club in the Ukranian League ?

On a broader scale nearly all big sport worldwide has been shut down ... playing in front of empty stadiums is not even an option for sporting bodies around the globe. Anyway, we could go back and forth forever on this issue. Lets agree to disagree.

We can't shut down everything but sport is a non essential activity whilst we're in this crisis. Businesses, commerce and the like can close down for a period but not indefinitely. Otherwise another greater issue can be created

Players can have the virus but not show any visible signs of having the virus. And the virus is highly contageous as we all know. And it's a contact sport (footy) with a lot of congestion. It's not a stretch to state that an undetected player can pass the disease on to another unsuspecting player who can then pass the virus on to family members (which can include grandparents and the like) High risk in my opinion. The sensible move would be to delay the start of the season until it's safe (or safer) to proceed. The government could also step in and decree that contact sport (or any sport) needs to be shut down. Or at least, sporting bodies could be advised as such. A lot of minor sport has been put on hold for the reasons outlined above

I'm not sure the players will get a choice if there aren't any games or it's a reduced season. Are their contracts that watertight? If businesses close down employees can access holiday pay etc but when that runs out employers wouldn't be obliged to keep paying their employees if they weren't required to come to work The same conditions would apply to footy as footy is classed as another workplace like any other business. Many other people in the entertainment industry will simply lose their income if their industry is shut down or partly shut down.

I know footy means a lot to many but whether the games go ahead or not should be the least of our concerns. We've still got Books, Radio, TV, Music, access to movies etc etc. No sport means absolutely nothing to me right now. Lets face it, sports fans have been spoilt rotten for decades so surely we can go without for a time. My attitude is that any footy we get this year will be a total bonus. Stay safe and stay healthy demonlanders.

Agreed DJ ... I know of many people who are quite possibly losing or will lose their primary form of income sooner rather than later. So those in the entertainment business are no different to anyone else. Besides which, if the FD & players continue to get paid the clubs will go broke. Simple maths. And given the money they earn they should have reserves anyway. As it stands, the clubs will need to eat into their reserves anyway and without gate receipts, Broadcast money, sponsorship money and the like, where's the money going to come from? Clubs work in a cash-flow way and often pay any sort of expense from future monies (those monies trickle in throughout the season) We're all going to have to buckle up.

Coronavirus issues aside we'll be able to have a bet somewhere you'd imagine. I'm not rusted on to local (Oz) racing and the trots & dogs are options as well (anywhere) haha For instance I backed a winner last night in a G1 race at Santa Anita overnight ( a tip from Racingpost.com) ... after having some success at Sha Tin late yesterday. So I'm playing with house money in a few selected races around the country today. I'm cramming as much in before it might go. Partly explains why the AFL are talking about playing extra games before they can't. So where does one find the form guide for the races out of 'Chile' Wadda!!

Super Rugby will be off as well you'd imagine. Quarantine rulings will close sport down. Plane travel is already problematic (who'd get on a plane now?)

Got 22-1 for our multi fellas which is more than decent odds for 3 very good chances. I've gone down the exacta path with legs 1 & 3 whilst taking out a trifecta in the Probabeel race. Hoping for 4 collects!

So have we got a contingency plan if the races are cancelled in Oz? Honkers? Europe? Chile? Bitcoin? Online Poker? We can't hit the casino and pile it all on the red as the crowd there might exceed 500. We have to find a way!

You may well be right but what about these 2 ideas? A variation on 6-6-6 could be that teams have to start with 7 forwards vs 5 backmen and vice-versa. Therefore a quick clearance from the centre bounce-downs could be quite productive As an add-on teams could be required to have X amount of players (4, 5 or 6?) in their forward line every time a stoppage is called for (boundary throw in or ball-up around the ground) That doesn't mean that the forwards couldn't venture out of the 50 arc at any time.

True in many respects but putting rules in place to help stop the coaches from having such a defensive mindset is a real possibility So take some measures now, and then see where it takes us The alternative is to do nothing and we'll just get more of the same dross that we see now.