Macca

More 80's ... 'Yes' with "Owner of a Lonely Heart" & 'The Romantics' with "Talking in your Sleep"

Watched a few highlights ... Had some flashback moments when I saw Tolzien & Flynn were used as the QB's for the Pack. Don't get hurt Rodgers. Just don't. Johnny football did a bit of running around and Rex is considering using Vick as part of a wildcat scheme. How is it that I'm not surprised by that? The Jets are always fun to watch though and it probably won't be any different this year. The Vikes Linval Johnson got hit in the calf muscle by a bullet in a club. Nothing like a good night out and a bit of dancing hey - later on you get shot at. Only in America. In all seriousness, it was lucky nobody was killed. 9 people were treated for injuries. 2 people for serious injuries.

That's an interesting development Not sure if ch7 or 7mate be will doing the Thursday night games like OneHD did but we'll find out soon enough. They are doing the 3 thanksgiving day games and 3 games every Monday (our time) so who knows? For those of us with cable not much has changed and we'll still get 7 live games all up (although Foxtel might decide to do what they've done in the past and not show an early or late game on a Monday for the first month or so) ... Seven the official NFL broadcaster

Just realised that pre-season match tomorrow is the Super Bowl replay (of sorts) Peyton & Wilson will probably only throw the ball 6-8 times max but I'll have a bit of a look at the game, all the same. All 32 teams are in action on the weekend and although the games don't mean a lot in terms of results, they do mean a fair bit in terms of how teams operate in their phases (either offensively or defensively) I'll be looking to see whether the Packers have improved with their defensive work.

Yeah, you've summed them up well. Still, they've got to get their act together sooner or later! ESPN are televising the Seattle @ Denver game tomorrow (11am) Can't see any other games listed on cable or OneHD but that may change.

Tate is actually a very good receiver and he could be more than handy at Detroit. Good move by them because Stafford definitely needs a number of quality targets apart from megatron. They were disappointing last year and they or Chicago really should have won the division considering Rodgers missed half the games. If Bridgewater lights it up our division could be quite a bunfight. Rodgers stays healthy and we'll be hard to beat but I'm not overly confident. Cutler and the Bears will be out to make amends as well. Interesting times ahead and that's just our division! We could all try and tip our divisional winners, MVP and Super Bowl teams again ... I'd like to have a look at the some of the pre-season games before making any of my usual outlandish predictions (bet the opposite, you'll win lots of money) And Gorgoroth, your points on the tipping comp are duly noted.

Yep, the inconsistencies are quite profound. These sporting organisations are often making determinations that you scratch your head about. FIFA, the AFL, the NHL and other sporting bodies are not always known for making sensible decisions. The NFL have got this one horribly wrong. On a lighter note, here's some highlights of today's "Hall of Fame" game As for the tipping comp, I'm leaning towards leaving it as it is unless a majority want to fine tune it (anyone wanting to know about that "fine tuning" can scroll to the top of this page for details) By the way, our first meeting (Packers/Vikings) is on Thursday night football (Oct 2) I guess a lot of us watch these games on a Friday night after work and I'm a big fan. Kicks the weekend off in an ideal way. Bridgewater may well be up and firing by then but it is at Lambeau. Unlike previous years, this season will see a lot of big match-ups scheduled for Thursday night football (CBS are covering the first 8 of them) ... My Packers are taking on Seattle @ Seattle in the first one on Sept 4 (this is also the first game of the regular season) The last time we went there "Goldengate" happened and Rodgers got sacked 8 times! I'll always give Green Bay a chance with Aaron at the helm but it's a toughie first up (to say the least) ... Here's the full schedule of Thursday night games

Yeah cfh, I'm also happy to leave it at it is and I believe that yourself and Strafford would have still won with the new system that I'm proposing. The simplicity of it is that it's not a time consuming thing (for the participants and myself) We'll see if we get a bit more feedback but I'm happy to go either way. Not sure there's any other feasible way to do it anyway so it would probably be either/or. I've added 1 or 2 more bonus weeks and that might be change enough (as well as starting off everyone on a point) As for the Demons, I just can't believe our kicking to position skills - it kills us. We're getting hold of the pill but we keep butchering it. Get Darren Jarman down there I say - we could do worse ... one more kicking coach to add to the plethora of other coaches surely wouldn't go astray. Here's some news on your new bloke ... Teddy Bridgewater And The Quarterback It Factor

Can't imagine quoting that number of people in that sort of way again but ... there's a logical explanation if you choose to read on ... I'm happy to run the tipping comp again this year and am open to ideas. The 3 road tips concept seemed to work quite well but it might need some fine tuning (just so the participants can regularly pick up a point instead of bombing out most weeks!) We could leave it as it is or we could change the way we award points to ... Option 1) Award a point for getting 2 out of 3 correct with 2 points awarded for tipping all 3 correctly or ... Option 2) Any other type of variation on the theme. Bonus points could again apply for weeks 2, 5, 8, 11, 14 and 17 (with week 17 worth triple points) Double points would apply to the other 5 bonus weeks. In those bonus weeks, whilst the double or triple points would apply if you get all 3 tips correct, 1 point only might only ever be awarded in those same bonus weeks (for getting 2 out of 3 correct) In other words, regardless of the week, getting 2 correct out of 3 tips only ever rewards you with 1 point. For instance, an example of that is week 2 ... tip all 3 road winners and you receive "the 4 points" but ... if you only get 2 right out of 3, you still only receive 1 point. This effectively emphasizes a greater reward for tipping all 3 "tips" correctly. I'm in favour of changing the way of awarding points to option 1 but again, I'm open to ideas. Also thought that we could allow participants to join the comp at any time (those late starters are always playing "catch-up" anyway and besides that, the more the merrier) The top point scorers from last year's comp ... 9 - Strafford & cowboy from hell (joint winners) 7 - pantaloons & Macca 5 - Gorgoroth n.b ... thought we could start all participants off with 1 point as well ... there's nothing worse than sitting on the dreaded zero So ... the first time you put your tips in, you would then automatically qualify for a 1 "participation point" n.b 2 ... there's no real need to reply to this post (unless you have another option on how to do the comp - keeping in mind that any other option perhaps shouldn't be too cumbersome or time consuming - both for the participants and myself) ... aside from that, you can just start putting your tips in when the games start (if you want to participate in the comp) Anyone else who I haven't quoted is welcome to join in. In other news, believe it or not, the first pre-season game is on Monday morning (10am AEST) ... Buffalo @ NY Giants. Can't see any TV listings yet but there's another 16 games on next weekend. There's sure to be a game or 2 on cable or OneHD.

Could be that a number of the England players have been "spooked" (if you can believe the following story) ... England spooked both on and off the field as Ben Stokes and Stuart Broad struggle to sleep because of Langham Hotel's GHOSTS

Yes ht, the drama series "The Returned" (or "Les revenants") was based on the movie that you watched ... The Returned (2004) Bit perplexed on the American re-make though ... there might be 2 ... The Resurrection (already released) or The Returned (to be released in 2015) Anyway, those 2 re-makes would want to be very very good to be as good as the French version. Apologies for the re-post but I started "editing" and then decided to just re-write the reply. A couple of other European drama series that are worth a look are Forbrydelsen (The Killing) & Äkta människor (Real Humans)

Extant is a new series worth a look especially if you like your sci-fi - Halle Berry stars. Currently showing on channel 10. And whilst it's a little formulated, Brooklyn Nine-Nine is good for a laugh. Starts on SBS next week I believe. Also stumbled upon a French drama/thriller series called The Returned ... highly recommend this one but it might be a bit hard to find. It was shown on SBS earlier this year but I've heard they may be repeating the first series again soon. Apparently the Americans are making a version of the show I must check out The Strain and The Leftovers, DA.

Caught a look at the Arènes de Nîmes at the completion of stage 15 ... quite a sight. The Roman Amphitheatre is still in use and has been used by quite a few bands (Metallica, Dire Straits, Rammstein and others) Anyway, we're now in the Pyrenees and tonight's stage is supposed to be harder than it looks. This is the first of 3 days in the Pyrenees and we might see that Nibali has increased his lead by the end of stage 18 ... or perhaps there's an outside chance that he might be feeling the pinch. I reckon the former argument is far more likely. Here's a write-up of tonight's stage (stage 16) ... The profile ...

Tonight's coverage starts from 8.30pm on SBS & SBS HD. Whether we see any of the GC riders attack Nibali or whether Nibali shows any signs of cracking remains to be seen. Regardless of all that, it's a very tough stage. The picturesque nature of last night's stage is sure to be repeated tonight and the final climb may prove too much for a few of the GC riders. Porte may be in a position to win a stage or 2 from here on in so there's still a bit to aim for.

Yeah Cards, after last night, it's hard to see anyone challenging Nibali. Of course, there's a number of grueling climbs ahead but he may well increase his lead. Winning 'le tour' would complete the trifecta for Nibali (he also won the "Vuelta a España" in 2010 as well as the "Giro d'Italia" in 2013) Valverde might challenge and I hope he does but ... it's a big ask - he couldn't go with Nibali last night when the heat was on. There's always the chance that Nibali might crack but he, along with his team, looks too strong. He was far too superior last night and full credit to him for winning the stage. Bad luck for Porte but he'll live to fight another day. The remaining climbs still remain compelling viewing though and you just never know what might happen. I'll post up the profile later on but the riders start climbing the first of 3 category 1 climbs right from the word go tonight.

Tonight's first climb begins from Saint-Égrève at about 11.10pm. The summit of 'Col de Palaquit' should be reached about 30 minutes later. The 2nd climb from Saint-Martin-d'Hères should commence at about 12.05am. The summit of 'Chamrousse' should be reached about 40 minutes later. Times are approximate only but it's doubtful whether they will start these 2 category 1 climbs much earlier than the approximate times that are given. Niboli has indicated that he may attack Porte tonight and/or tomorrow night but Porte may well have his own plans. Should be a fascinating night and tomorrow night should be just as interesting.

There are 5 mountain stages left involving twelve category 1 climbs. We're in the 'Alps' tomorrow night and Saturday night and ... next Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, we're in the Pyreness. All 3 of the stages in the Pyreness are tough. I don't reckon it's done yet - it may come down to who has the better team and besides all that, it only takes one bad day for any cyclist to lose valuable time. We may even have someone else as the leader in the next week. Porte or Nibali could hit the wall and an opportunist might take advantage. However, I do agree with you Cards that Nibali looks the likely winner but ... he's got a truckload of work ahead of him to make sure of it. Here are the next 3 profiles but there's 3 more similar outlooks (like the last 2 profiles posted) when they're in the Pyreness next week. Tonight's stage shouldn't present too many problems but the fun begins on Friday ... Tonight ... Friday ... Saturday ...

Now Contador has crashed - bandaged up and a bit knocked around, he struggles on. Apparently the frame on his bike snapped and it was quite a nasty crash. 3 and half minutes behind the peloton with 5 decent climbs ahead. His teammates have dropped back to help him. Edit: Contador abandons the tour - he didn't look right when he got back on the bike. The attrition rate in this tour is quite something. The conditions haven't helped but we're in the dark about what actually caused Contador to crash the way he did.

Yep, tonight and tomorrow night they continue to climb in the 'Vosges' ... I get the feeling that Contador has a need to bridge the time gap to Nibali so he might go on the attack tonight. Porte is already up to overall 3rd and he may be more watchful for the time being. Tomorrow night's stage is arguably more difficult so as a contrast, I'll post up both profiles. Regardless of what happens in the next 2 days, both these stages will be fascinating to watch. Here's a write up of tonight's stage (stage 9) from the official site ... Tonight's profile ... Tomorrow night's profile ...

A preview of stage 8 from cyclingnews.com Live coverage from the official site The climb to the Col de Grosse-Pierre involves a steep 1.2 kilometre stretch which has an average gradient of 12% with a passage of 16% Also, the last climb (La Mauselaine) has an average gradient of 10% for the final 1.8 kilometres (with a maximum gradient of 15%) and ... it's all uphill to the finish.

Yeah, I agree. It's certainly different though. I'm trying to think of another "great" sportsperson who has returned to their original team after leaving that team in rather acrimonious circumstances. It's a huge move all the same and I like it. He'll be embraced by the large majority of Cleveland fans you'd reckon. The city has been so starved of success so in many ways, they have to embrace him. I can't see how it won't work either in terms of them becoming an automatic playoff contender (especially in the East) As for being a true contender, time will tell. 50 wins? 55? A lot may depend on Wiggins and Irving. Kevin Love may be pursued and Wiggins hasn't actually been signed yet despite being drafted as the no.1 pick overall. The other question is what happens to Miami now? (who play in the same conference of course) Ironically, Cleveland have got Miami's first round draft pick next year. ... and well done to the 2 Aussies (Exum & Bairstow)

Here's a summary of last night's stage from the official site ... ... Boom wins, Nibali triumphs, Contador struggles, Froome pulls out Another flat stage tonight but again, there's a bit of rain about so the riders may need to be quite cautious (especially after the events of yesterday) I guess a lot of attention now goes onto a number of other riders (with Froome being out) but from an Aussie point of view, it will be fascinating to see how Porte goes and how his team reacts to yesterday's setback ... the race has really opened up in many ways but a realistic goal may be a overall podium finish for Porte. He's got a strong team behind him so you just never know. Nibali won the Giro in 2013 and Contador is sure to challenge once they get into the mountains. Valverde and Talansky have claims as well. Contador isn't the time trialist he once was but that may not matter. The race is up for grabs. SBS tour tracker & live coverage from the official site

Froome crashes again and he's out of the tour ... first Cavendish and now the race favourite is forced to quit. Looked a sick and sorry lad before getting into the team car - such a shame

Missed that bit ... what happened? ... he's certainly not having a good time of it regardless. It looks as if they've only removed a couple of kilometres of the cobbled sectors after all (down to 13 klms from 15 klms) 7 cobbled sectors remain with the first of these to be encountered with about 70 kilometres remaining in the stage (around about 11.30pm tonight)

Kittel might make it 3 stage wins tonight ... he looked strong again last night and will be hard to beat. Local favourite Arnaud Démare should be thereabouts at the finish though. Here's a stage 4 preview from ... cyclingnews.com SBS tour tracker & live coverage from the official site