Macca

1989 Elimination Final ... and a victory over the Pies. After our meteoric rise in '87 & '88 John Northey continued to coach the team into the finals. We were 4 - 6 top players from being a real premiership threat but the players of the day gave their all. If the link (below) doesn't work Go Here

Agreed Mergers would never work in Victoria ... 95% of the supporters care way more about their team than they do the game itself. Merging 2 teams within Victoria would be like merging the White Sox & Cubs, Yankees & Mets, City & United or the Reds with the Toffees. Or Freo & the Eagles. Anytime there is a match-up between 2 Victorian teams there's often over 140 years of history between those 2 clubs. 1877 is a better starting point rather than 1897. 200+ games to boot (each match-up) It wouldn't work and the new entities would probably have less supporters & members. Most would rather see their team die than merge. Footy is all about the passion, the colours, the theme song, the jumper and history and past greats. And not many care about the money either ... we just want our teams to win.

Jerry Jones is the GM for the Cowboys BBP ... doesn't work either. And he won't be relinquishing the role in a hurry. On the other hand Belichick is the GM for the Patriots as well as the head coach. And that does work. As for private ownership in Oz. It's just the wrong fit. Even if we had enough billionaires who might be interested, it would be more like a hobby for them rather than an entity that makes lots of money.

It's important to note that since October the players have been paid their salary up until now ... 5 monthly payments at a guess. But the club was expecting money from gate receipts, corporate, ongoing sponsorship money, NT money, MCC money, Pokies income and most importantly, the end of year dividend from the AFL (which is often $12Million plus) The membershio sales will have helped enormously but that money has slowed dramatically as well. To state that we have a cash-flow issue would be understating things. The flow would be slowing to a trickle so if there's no money, there's no money. Normally we'd have a credit line or overdraft with the promise of incoming money but again, what money? The AFL has cash reserves to hopefully bail out the clubs but that could be eaten up quite quickly as well. And are there enough cash reserves? You'd think not with the AFL asking the players to take a 79% pay cut. And will the AFL help out the clubs equally? Some of the clubs were in a precarious position before the Pandemic. Others are cashed-up. Our club would probably be in the lower tier of the middle ground. And that's not a strong position by any means.

Yeah, I had the 2000 prelim final in mind as well BBP but it's nice to have a bit of a gap and discuss or make mention of each game posted. And of course anyone can post up a game. I'm still to watch the last quarter of the (above) 1988 prelim but the game was very willing in the 3rd quarter. It looked like we came out aggressively with intent and then took advantage as the Blues tried to square up. That was an old Collingwood trick going way back. And it's always great when we beat Carlton.

Have any of the other players on big coin distanced themselves (pardon the pun) from Dangerfield's comments? Further to that we'd have at least 6 players on very good money. Have any of them spoken about taking big cuts? Dangerfield could just be the A-end of the problem. Albeit a spokesperson for others.

It feels odd (right now) to be interested in what is often perceived to be a gambling sport (only) but even as a horse racing enthusiast I'm struggling with it all Wadda And there is so much money involved with up to 250,000 people employed in the industry (in some way) And that could all stop abruptly. That number seems a tad high but the 250,000 is apparently the equivalent of 77,000 jobs. Footy would be a high number as well when considering the catering, beverages, gate people and thousands of others that are directly or indirectly effected. And we purchase memberships to go to the games. Everyone loses. So to keep people working I suppose it's ok to want the racing to continue. But the racing in the UK was closed down a few weeks ago so it may not last long here as well.

The 1988 GF is largely forgettable for most Demon supporters but just 1 week earlier the excitement of winning the Preliminary Final and thus making the GF occupied our thoughts. It's easy to forget the high's in footy sometimes but I'll never forget how good this preliminary final win over Carlton felt. So take your mind back whilst watching this replay as if the GF was still to come. Oh, and watch out for the 'Pulsar Vector' advert. That's right, the replay comes replete with ads. And if the link below doesn't work go here - 1988 Preliminary Final

The clubs have a better chance if they decide to pay the players 7cents in the dollar (or thereabouts) All other people employed will simply be let go (coaches etc) It would still be a costly exercise to pay everyone but the AFL's cash reserves (and fixed assets) can cover the clubs costs (at least in part) The players could take the clubs to court but if there's no money, there's no money. So the biggie is the player payments as the CBA agreement states that the players are 'entitled' to 28% of 'Budgeted' income (not actual income) For the duration of their existing contracts (?) So if the club comes before the individual then the clubs might decide to take their chances in the courts ... the alternative for a number of clubs is to possibly or probably go under. Or a club becomes insolvent replaced by another new club that takes up where the other one left off. So there is a way (in theory) to save even the smaller clubs in Melbourne. I know what I'd be doing if it was up to me. The Club always comes first.

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